The Bulls and the Lion

The lion scouts his isolated victim, from a 15th-century Central Asian album

The Bulls and the Lion is one of Aesop's Fables. It teaches that friends should stick together against enemies.

A lion saw some bulls in a field. He wanted to eat them. But he knew they would fight back together. So the lion made the bulls angry at each other. The bulls stopped being friends.

The lion killed the bulls one by one. None of the bulls could fight the lion alone.

The story teaches that enemies will try to break up friendships. Friends should not listen to people trying to make them argue. They should work together against enemies. Some versions tell leaders to keep their people united. Then enemies cannot defeat them.

The fable has been translated into many languages. Artists have made many pictures to go with the story. Poets have written longer versions to teach the message. One poem in the 1700s used 13 bulls, like the 13 American colonies. It said they should unite against Britain, their enemy.

The fable shows why friends and allies should cooperate against enemies, instead of arguing amongst themselves.

Lesson

Friends and allies should stick together against enemies. Do not let outsiders cause fights between you.

Sources

• Aesop's Fables by Aesop
• The Fables of Aesop by Joseph Jacobs (1894)