The Farmer and His Horse
- 2 minute read
- Ages 8-12
- Moral Stories
There was a farmer who had one horse, and the horse did the work of the farm.
One morning the gate was open and the horse was gone.
Bad luck
The neighbours came round that evening to say how sorry they were.
"Such bad luck," they said.
"Maybe," said the farmer.
Good luck
A week later the horse came back, and it brought six wild horses with it, and they walked into the yard behind it and stayed.
The neighbours came round to congratulate him.
"What wonderful luck!"
"Maybe," said the farmer.
Bad luck again
The farmer's son began breaking the wild horses to ride.
The third one threw him and he broke his leg badly, and it did not set straight, and he was on crutches for months.
The neighbours came round to sympathise.
"Terrible luck," they said. "And at his age."
"Maybe," said the farmer.
And again
A month after that the army came through the district taking every young man who could walk, for a war in the north that most of them did not come back from.
They looked at the farmer's son on his crutches and left him where he was.
The neighbours came round.
"The luckiest thing that could have happened," they said. "If he had not broken that leg."
"Maybe," said the farmer.
What he meant
He was not being difficult and he was not refusing to feel anything.
He had simply noticed something the neighbours had not, which was that every single time they had told him whether a thing was good or bad, they had turned out to be wrong within a month.
So he had stopped deciding so early.
Moral of the story
You are usually judging a story that is not finished. The farmer's answer is not indifference; it is knowing he cannot yet see where the thing goes.
Questions and answers
- What happened to the farmer's horse at the start?
It escaped through an open gate and disappeared.
- What did the horse do a week later?
It came back bringing six wild horses with it.
- How did the son break his leg?
He was thrown while trying to break one of the wild horses to ride.
- Why was the broken leg fortunate?
The army came through taking every young man for a war, and left him because he was on crutches.
- What does the farmer mean by 'maybe'?
That every time the neighbours judged an event good or bad, they were proved wrong within a month, so he stopped deciding too early.
Word meanings
- crutches
- Supports used under the arms to help someone walk.
- sympathise
- To show that you feel sorry for someone.
- district
- An area or part of a country.
- indifference
- Not caring one way or the other.
Questions about The Farmer and His Horse
Where does this story come from?
It is a Chinese parable, usually connected with Taoist teaching, and is often called 'the farmer and the horse' or simply 'maybe'.
What is the moral of The Farmer and His Horse?
That you rarely know enough yet to judge an event. Each thing that looked like a disaster led to something good, and the other way round.
Is the farmer being cold about his son?
The story addresses this directly at the end. He is not refusing to feel; he is refusing to conclude, which is different.
What age is this suitable for?
Ages eight and above. Younger children can follow the events but usually need help with the point.