贪婪的旅行者

冯萍

Once， there was an old tiger that could no longer hunt. One morning， he stood by a lake and held a gold bracelet2 in one paw3. He was shouting， “Ladies and Gentlemen！A gold bracelet for my kindness.”

曾经一只老虎，它老了，不能抓捕猎物了。一天早上，它站在湖边，一个爪子拿着一只金手镯，喊道：“女士们，先生们，為表善意，我献出一只金手镯。”

A traveler， passing by， liked the gold bracelet. However， he was scared of the tiger.

一个旅行者刚好经过，他很喜欢这个金手镯，但是他怕老虎。

The traveler said， “How can I believe that you would not harm me？”

旅行者说：“我怎么能相信你不会伤害我呢？”

The tiger replied， “I admit that when I was young， I was wicked4 and killed many cows and human beings. Then a holy man advised me to give alms5. So， now I take a bath and give things for the sake of kindness. Besides， I’ve gone old. My teeth and claws have fallen off. So， what do you fear？”

老虎回答道：“我承认，我年轻的时候，我是作恶多端，吃了很多牛和人。后来一个圣人建议我多行布施。所以现在我洗了个澡，为表善心，我把这些东西给别人。而且，我老了，我的牙齿和爪子掉了，你有什么好怕的呢？”

The traveler believed him and went into the lake， but got struck in the deep mud.

旅行者相信了老虎，向湖走去，但是他深陷泥浆，不得动弹。

When the tiger saw this， he comforted him. “Oh！Don’t worry. I’ll help you，” he said， and slowly waded6 towards the traveler and grabbed7 him.

老虎看到了，宽慰旅行者说：“啊！不要担心，我来帮助你吧。”他说着，慢慢地朝旅行者趟水走过去，抓住了他。

Soon after that， the tiger killed the traveler and ate him up.

很快，老虎咬死了旅行者，并把他吞下了肚。

Moral： You must not risk your life for the sake of greed.

寓意：不能因为贪婪而去冒生命的危险。