Khmer Folktales

Khmer Folktales Vol. 1: Justice   

Khmer Folktales

Khmer Folktales Vol. 2: Place   

Khmer Folktales

Khmer Folktales Vol. 3: Tricksters   

Khmer Folktales

Khmer Folktales Vol. 4: Gender   

The Blackbird And The Monkey

There were two blackbirds, male and female who set up their nest on a tree. Mean whole it was raining; a homeless monkey who was stricken with cold came to stay under the blackbird’s tree. When the blackbirds saw him terribly shivering, one counseled him “Oh, Brother Monkey, you have two hands and two legs as a man does. Why don’t you build home for you dwelling?” The monkey said “I have two hands and two legs as a man does. Thus I am a nestles animal. The truth is I cannot do it” The blackbird said again “You do not need knowledge to build your nest. You see the birds have only one beak and they can build the nest which they need for their protection from the cold and the rain. You had better think it over. Am I right or not? All the animals in the world have their own dwelling to protect their babies and their mates from suffering. If you cannot build a good nest, you just put branches one on another and you cover it with leaves for your own nest for a while. You do not depend on another dwelling or on a branch or on a tree. It is very difficult for you mate and your young ones. Monkey you have two hands and two legs, I think you can do it. Please do it, do not wait for your knowledge to help you. All the animals have only strength will work in their own way. They never work like the human beings. You see even the worm, the locust and the termite which are very small, but they have their own habitations, and you, why can’t you do it? Other animals have no more knowledge than you, but they are able to build habitations of their own. You said that you cannot do it because you do not want to do it, and you are lazy animal” When the monkey heard the blackbird criticize him, he became very angry, because he was ashamed before the blackbirds, and then he swung straight to the blackbird’s nest and dropped it down.

DO NOT GIVE COUNSEL THOSE WHO DO NOT WANT TO LISTEN

The King and the Poor Boy

In a small village near the edge of the forest, there once lived a buffalo boy who had no mother or father. His uncle, who was the chief cook for the king, pitied the poor boy. So he invited the boy to stay with him in the palace. The grateful boy worked hard to help his uncle. He washed the plates, polished the cups, cleaned the dining room tables and mopped the floors. At the end of each month, his uncle gave him six sen as his wages. Now the king frequently inspected the palace quarters. He often noticed the hardworking boy mopping the floors or polishing the cups, cheerfully and in good humor. One day the king asked the boy, “Do you receive wages for your hard work?” The boy bowed and said, “Yes, I do, Your Majesty. I earn six sen every month” Then the king asked, “Do you think you are rich or do you think you are poor?” “Your Majesty,” the boy replied, “I think that I am as rich as a king” The king was taken by surprise. “Why is this poor boy talking such nonsense?” he mused to himself. Once more, the king spoke to the boy, “I am a king and I have all the power and richest of this country. You earn only six sen a month. Why do you say you are as rich as I am?” The boy laid down his broom and slowly replied to the king, “Your Majesty, I may receive only six sen each month, but I eat from one plate and you also eat from one plate. I sleep for one night and you also sleep for one night. We eat and sleep the same. There is no difference. Now, Your Majesty, do you understand why I say that I am as rich as a king?” The king understood and was satisfied.

The Buddha preached about the equality of all human beings. In this story, a vain king, too proud of his wealth, is taught by his lowly servant that in the most important things of life, all men are equal brothers.

Chkae Toeur