The Short Prince

I heard of a prince who was short and unimpressive, while his other brothers were tall and handsome. One day his father looked at him with disgust and contempt. But the boy, sharp and clear-sighted, understood, and said: Father, a short wise man is better than a tall fool. Not everything that is greater in size is greater in worth. The sheep is clean, and the elephant is a carcass. Sinai is the smallest of the earth's mountains, yet before God it is the greatest in rank and station. Did you hear how a lean, wise man once said to a fat fool: An Arabian horse, even if it is thin, is still better than a whole stable full of donkeys. The father laughed, the pillars of the court approved, and the brothers were stung to their souls. Until a man has spoken, his faults and talents stay hidden. Do not take every thicket for empty growth; a sleeping leopard may lie within it. I heard that around that time a fierce enemy rose against the king. When the two armies clashed, the first to ride into the field was this boy. He said: I am not the one you will see turning his back on the day of battle; I am the one you will find in the dust and blood, still a head held high. For the one who fights gambles with his own blood on the battlefield, while the one who flees gambles with the blood of the whole army. He said this and charged the enemy's ranks, cutting down several seasoned warriors. When he came before his father, he kissed the ground in service and said: You who thought my body was small, do not mistake bulk for skill. It is the lean-waisted horse that proves its worth on the day of battle, not the fattened ox. They say the enemy's forces were many and these few. A group of men made ready to flee. The boy shouted: Men, fight, or else put on women's clothes! At his words the horsemen grew bolder and charged all at once. I heard that on that very day they won the victory over the enemy. The king kissed his head and eyes, held him close, and each day favored him more, until he made him his heir. The brothers grew envious and put poison in his food. His sister saw it from an upper room and slammed the window shut. The boy understood, drew back his hand from the food, and said: It is impossible that the gifted should die and the ungifted take their place. No one seeks the shade of an owl, even if the fortune-bird vanished from the world. They told the father of this. He summoned the brothers and gave them the punishment they deserved. Then he assigned each of them a portion of land in distant regions, so that the strife settled and the quarrel ended; for ten dervishes can sleep under one blanket, but two kings cannot fit within one realm. If a man of God eats half a loaf, he gives the other half to the poor. A king may seize the realm of one land, yet still he schemes to take another.