A traveler, wearied from a long journey, lay down on the very brink of a deep well, overcome with fatigue. Just as he was about to fall into the water, it is said that Dame Fortune appeared to him. Waking him from his slumber, she addressed him:
"Good sir, pray wake up! If you fall into the well, the blame will be thrown on me, and I shall acquire an ill name among mortals. I find that men are sure to attribute their calamities to me, no matter how much they have truly brought them upon themselves through their own folly."
This encounter serves as a reminder that everyone is, to some extent, the master of their own fate.
The moral
Individuals are often responsible for their own misfortunes, rather than attributing them to external forces like luck or fate.
Discussion questions
- How does the Traveler’s experience illustrate the theme of personal responsibility?
- Why do you think people often blame external forces like luck instead of their own actions?
- Can you think of a personal experience where you faced consequences due to your own choices?
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Read it in another language
- المسافر والحظ · العربية
- Der Reisende und das Glück · Deutsch
- El Viajero y la Fortuna. · Español
- مسافر و بخت · فارسی
- Le Voyageur et la Fortune · Français
- यात्री और भाग्य। · हिन्दी
- Il Viaggiatore e la Fortuna · Italiano
- O Viajante e a Fortuna. · Português
- Путешественник и Удача. · Русский
- యాత్రికుడు మరియు అదృష్టం · తెలుగు
- Ang Manlalakbay at Kapalaran. · Tagalog
- Мандрівник і Доля · Українська
- 旅行者与命运 · 中文
Good night.
Tomorrow night: The Fox and the Crane
