Chapter :

Once upon a time, in the land of Gandhara in northern India, there was a city named Takkasila. In that city, the Enlightenment Being (Lord Buddha in a previous life) was born as a calf. This calf grew up to be strong and gentle and was named ‘Joyful’ by a rich man who took great care of him, feeding him the best food and treating him kindly.

When Joyful grew up into a powerful bull, he thought, “My master has taken such good care of me. I want to use my strength to repay his kindness.” So he suggested to his master, “Find a wealthy merchant with many strong bulls and challenge him, saying that I can pull one hundred heavily loaded carts.”

The rich man followed Joyful’s advice and met a merchant who was proud of his bulls. They made a bet that Joyful could pull one hundred heavily loaded carts, with the stakes set at one thousand gold coins.

The merchant prepared one hundred carts, filling them with sand and gravel to make them very heavy. The rich man fed Joyful the finest rice, bathed him, and adorned him with a garland of flowers.

When it was time for the challenge, the rich man harnessed Joyful to the first cart and, trying to seem important, cracked a whip in the air and shouted, “Pull, you dumb animal! I command you to pull!”

Joyful felt insulted by the harsh words and refused to pull the carts. The merchant laughed and claimed his winnings. The rich man, feeling humiliated, returned home, saddened by his loss.

Seeing his master so upset, Joyful asked, “Why are you so sad?” The man replied, “I lost a thousand gold coins because of you. How can I not be sad?”

Joyful responded, “You called me ‘dumb’ and insulted me in front of others. I have never misbehaved or caused any trouble. The fault is yours, not mine. But because I feel sorry for you, go back to the merchant and make the same bet for two thousand gold coins. This time, speak to me respectfully.”

The rich man did as Joyful suggested. The merchant, confident of an easy win, agreed to the bet. Once again, he set up the one hundred heavily loaded carts. The rich man fed and bathed Joyful and adorned him with a garland of flowers.

This time, instead of using a whip, the rich man touched Joyful’s forehead with a lotus blossom and spoke kindly, “My son, please do me the honor of pulling these one hundred carts.”

With all his strength, Joyful pulled the carts until the last one stood where the first one had been. The merchant, astonished, had to pay the two thousand gold coins. The onlookers were so impressed that they honored Joyful with gifts. More importantly, the rich man learned a valuable lesson in humility and respect.

Reference: This story is adapted from "Buddhist Tales for Young and Old (Volume 1) Illustrated".