Prevod

There was a cunning man who would go to the market to buy things, then refuse to pay the men who carried them for him. One day he bought a chest of glassware and looked for someone to carry it. He found a porter and said to him, “Choose one of two things: either I pay you your wages, or I give you three pieces of advice that will serve you well in this world.” The porter replied, “I earn money every day. I will carry it for you in return for those three pieces of advice.”

He picked up the chest. When they had gone a third of the way, he said, “My master, this chest is heavy, and its weight is bearing me down. Give me one piece of advice, so that I may find the strength to go on.”

The man said, “If anyone tells you that slavery is better than freedom, do not believe him.” The porter looked at him closely and realized that the owner of the chest was a trickster. “Still,” he thought, “I had better wait until we arrive.” They went on, and when they had covered the second third of the journey, he said, “Tell me the second piece of advice.”

The man said, “If anyone tells you that poverty is better than wealth, do not believe him.” They went on until they reached the house. The porter said, “Master, tell me the third piece of advice.” The man said, “Put down the chest.” The porter replied, “I am so delighted with the two pieces of advice you have given me. Tell me the third, so that I may put it down.”

The man said, “If anyone tells you that hunger is better than a full belly, do not believe him.” The porter said, “Stand aside, master, so I can put it down.” He lifted the chest above his head and sent it crashing to the ground. Its owner cried, “Ah! You have smashed my chest!”

The porter replied, “And if anyone tells you there is a single glass left unbroken in this chest, do not believe him either.”