The wise and the foolish merchant

The wise and the foolish merchant

Once upon a time, two merchants were preparing to set out on a journey in a large city.

Both had bought goods: fabrics, utensils, incense, oil, grain, and various small items that they wanted to sell in distant villages and towns. Each had a caravan of ox-drawn carts and people to help them along the way.

One merchant was young, quick to make decisions, and very self-confident.

The other was more experienced. Before making a decision, he studied the route, listened to his people, and checked that everything was ready.

When it was time to set out, the experienced merchant said:

“We shouldn’t set out together. It will be difficult for two large caravans to find enough water, grass for the oxen, and a place to spend the night. Someone should set out first.”

The young merchant immediately thought:

“Excellent! If I go first, the road will be clear, the grass fresh, the water clean, and the buyers won’t have seen anyone else’s goods.”

“I will go first,” he said.

“So be it,” answered the experienced merchant.

Both were pleased with their decision.

Soon, the first caravan reached a vast, dry plain. Ahead lay a desert route with no river or well for many days’ travel.

The young merchant ordered large jars to be filled with water.

“We’ll take enough for everyone and for the oxen,” he said.

The carts became heavier, but everyone felt calm.

But in that desert, according to an old tale, cunning spirits lived. They loved to mislead travelers and check whether they were easy to deceive.

One of the spirits saw the caravan and came up with a trick.

He disguised himself as a wealthy traveller. His cart appeared to be splashed with mud, fresh grass clung to its wheels, and water flowers lay beside him. Even his companions’ clothes looked damp.

When they met the caravan, the spirit asked amiably:

“Where are you going?”

“Across the desert to the settlements beyond,” the merchant replied. “And where have you come from?”

“From the place you are heading for. There has just been heavy rain. There are ponds and streams everywhere ahead.”

The merchant looked in surprise at the wet wheels.

“Really?”

“Indeed. And what are those heavy jars on the last cart?”

“Water.”

The spirit smiled.

“Why drag the extra weight? Pour it out. In a few hours you will find fresh water.”

The people from the caravan hesitated.

“Perhaps we should keep at least some?” one asked.

But the young merchant had already made up his mind.

“You can see the wet wheels and the water flowers! Why make the oxen struggle?”

And he ordered the water to be poured out.

The caravan moved on.

An hour passed. Then another.

The sun rose higher and higher.

There were no ponds.

No streams either.

And the dark strip, which from afar they had taken for a forest, turned out to be only clouds above the horizon.

“Just a little farther,” the merchant kept saying.

But the day passed, and it became clear: they had been deceived.

The travellers conserved their strength, sheltered in the shade of the carts, and shared the few sips that happened to remain in their smaller containers. The oxen could barely keep going.

At night, the cunning spirits crept into an abandoned part of the camp and took several bales of goods. Fortunately, the travelers themselves kept together and did not disperse far.

At last, they met travellers who knew a shorter way to a well and helped the caravan out of the desert.

Everyone survived, but some of the goods were lost, the oxen were exhausted, and the journey that should have brought great profit turned into a hard lesson.

Several weeks passed.

The second merchant set out along the same road.

Before entering the desert, he checked every jar.

“Is there water?”

“Yes.”

“Food supplies?”

“Yes.”

“Ropes, shade cloth, fodder for the oxen?”

“All ready.”

When the caravan entered the desert, the cunning spirit appeared on the road again in the same guise.

Wet wheels. Water flowers. Wet grass.

“There has been rain ahead!” the spirit announced cheerfully. “Pour out your water. You won’t need it.”

Some of the people perked up.

“Perhaps that really would make the journey easier?”

But the merchant was in no hurry.

He looked up at the sky.

“Do you see rain clouds?” he asked.

“No.”

“Do you feel a cool, damp wind?”

“No.”

“Have any of you heard that there are lakes in this part of the desert?”

“Never.”

Then the merchant turned to the stranger:

“Thank you for your advice. But we will not pour away the water we have until we see a fresh supply with our own eyes.”

For a moment the smile on the traveler’s face became strange.

And then he quickly drove away.

The merchant watched him go.

“Remember,” he told his people, “a convincing story is not proof, especially when it asks us to give up at once something that could save our lives on the journey.”

They moved on.

Towards evening the caravan saw traces of the first journey: abandoned ropes, empty carts, scattered small goods. A broken jug lay near one of the wheels.

Now everyone understood why the stranger had been so insistent on them getting rid of the water.

“It’s good that we checked his words,” said one of the assistants.

“And it’s good that we didn’t decide just because we wanted to go faster,” added another.

For the night, the merchant arranged the carts in a circle to keep everyone together. The oxen rested inside, the water and goods were watched, and the travellers took turns keeping guard in pairs.

But the cunning spirits did not approach again.

The next day the caravan safely crossed the desert. The merchant sold the goods, replenished his supplies, and returned home by the same road.

When he met the young merchant again, the latter no longer boasted of always being the first to decide.

“I saw the wet wheels and believed all the rest,” he admitted. “I never even asked myself where those desert ponds had come from.”

The experienced merchant nodded.

“Anyone can make a mistake. What matters is learning to ask one more question before an important decision: ‘How do I know?’”

“And not to pour out the water until you have found more,” the young merchant added with a smile.

“This is also a very useful rule.”

From then on, before a long journey, the young merchant felt no shame in checking his map twice, asking for advice, and keeping extra supplies for the unexpected.

Because a quick decision sometimes seems the most convenient.

And a wise decision often begins with a short pause, a careful look around, and a simple question:

“Is that really true?”

May this story leave a little light in your heart ✨