from Persia, and bracelets from Yemen. It seems that the caravans had but just brought these things to our city. And now behold me, in rags, yet the wife of a rich man. I would have some of those beautiful things.”
The husband, still busy with his morning coffee said, “My dear, there is no reason why you should not go down to the street and buy all that your heart may desire.”
And the deaf wife said, “‘No!’ You always say ‘No, no’. Must I needs appear in tatters among our friends to shame your wealth and my people?”
And the husband said,“I did not say ‘No’. You may go forth freely to the market place and purchase the most beautiful apparel and jewels that have come to our city.”
But again the wife misread his words, and she replied,“Of all rich men you are the most miserly. You would deny me everything of beauty and loveliness, while other women of my age walk the gardens of the city clothed in rich raiment.”
And she began to weep. And as her tears fell upon her breast she cried out again, “You always say ‘Nay, nay’ to me when I desire a garment or a jewel.”
Then the husband was moved, and he stood up and took out of his purse a handful of gold and placed it before her, saying in a kindly voice, “Go down to the market place, my dear, and buy all that you will.”
From that day onward the deaf young wife, whenever she desired anything, would appear before her husband with a pearly tear in her eyes, and he in silence would take out a handful of gold and place it in her lap.
Now, it changed that the young woman fell in love with a youth whose habit it was to make long journeys. And whenever he was away she would sit in her casement and weep.
When her husband found her thus weeping, he would say in his heart, “There must be some new caravan, and some silken garments and rare jewels in the street.”
And he would take a handful of gold and place it before her.
探 索
一千年前，两位哲学家在黎巴嫩的一个斜坡上相遇了，一位问另一位：“你要去哪儿？”
另一位回答道：“我在追寻青春的喷泉，我知道那些山间有井，有记载说那喷泉迎着太阳绽放花朵。你呢，你找什么呀？”
第一位说：“我在寻找死亡的奥秘。”
这两位哲学家彼此都认为对方严重缺乏科学知识，于是他们开始争论，指控对方精神上的盲目性。
正当两人争论的声音高入云霄的时候，一个被自己村里人视为傻子的陌生人走过，他听到两人激烈的争论，他站了一会儿来倾听他们的争论。
然后他走近他们说：“我的好人，你们好像是同一个哲学流派的，你们在谈论同一件事物，只是你们是用不同的方式表达，你们一个要找寻青春的喷泉，另一个要找寻死亡的奥秘。那确实是同一件事物，而且存在于你们俩的身上。”
流浪者 第五章（5）
陌生人转过身去说：“再会，哲人！”他耐心地笑着离开了。
两位哲人默默地相视片刻，也哈哈大笑了。
其中一个说：“嗯，现在，我们都别走，一起找吧。”
The Quest
A thousand years ago two philosophers met on a slope of Lebanon, and one said to the other,“Where are thou going?”
And the other answered,“I am seeking after the fountain of youth which I know wells out among these hills. I have found writings which tell of that fountain flowering toward the sun. And you, what are you seeking?”
The first man answered,“I am seeking after the mystery of death.”←←網←文←檔←下←載←與←在←線←閱←讀←
Then each of the two philosophers conceived that the other was lacking in his great science, and they began to wrangle, and to accuse each other of spiritual blindness.
Now while the two philosophers were loud upon the wind, a stranger, a man who was deemed a simpleton in his own village, passed by, and when he heard the two in hot dispute, he stood awhile and listened to their argument.
Then he came near to them and said,“My good men, it seems that you both really belong to the same school of philosophy, and that you are speaking of the same thing, only you speak in different words. One of you seeks the fountain of youth, and the other seeks the mystery of death. Yet indeed they are but one, and as they dwell in you both.”
Then the stranger turned away saying, “Farewell sages.” And as he departed he laughed a patient laughter.
The two philosophers looked at each other in silence for a moment, and then they laughed also. And one of them said,“Well now, shall we not walk and seek together.”
权 杖
一位国王对他的妻子说：“夫人，你并不是一位真正的王后。作为我的伴侣，你太粗俗，太没规矩了。”
妻子说：“先生，你以为你自己是国王啊，实际上你只是个可怜的应声虫。”
这番话让国王怒火中烧，他把权杖拿在手里，用这黄金质地的棍子敲击王后的前额。
正在那时，国王的大管家进来了，他说：“啊，哟，陛下！权杖可是这个世界上最伟大的艺术家铸造的。唉！有一天你和王后都会被遗忘，但权杖，一件漂亮的艺术品，得保留下来，世世代代地传下去。而现在它沾上了王后陛下的额头上的血，这权杖就要更加受到