“The Ant and The Dove” is an Aesop’s Fable about how compassionate behavior is rewarded. Aesop was a storyteller from Ancient Greece who lived between 620 and 560 BC. His fables where spread by word of mouth and eventually collected. They’ve been translated into many languages. The great Russian author Leo Tolstoy translated some into Russian, including “The Ant and The Dove”. Below you can read the English version and listen along with a recording. You can also find Tolstoy’s Russian version of the same fable with a YouTube video and the pronunciation. -Enjoy! Mama Lisa

MP3 of The Ant and The Dove

The Ant and The Dove – A Fable

An Ant came down to the brook: he wanted to drink. A wave washed him down and almost drowned him. A Dove was carrying a branch; she saw the Ant was drowning, so she cast the branch down to him in the brook. The Ant got up on the branch and was saved. Then a hunter placed a snare for the Dove, and was on the point of drawing it in. The Ant crawled up to the hunter and bit him on the leg; the hunter groaned and dropped the snare. The Dove fluttered upwards and flew away.

Moral: Do unto others as you wish them to do unto you. Or one good turn deserves another.

Russian Version:

Муравей и Голубка (Басня)

Муравей спустился к ручью: захотел напиться. Волна захлестнула его и чуть не потопила. Голубка несла ветку; она увидела — муравей тонет, и бросила ему ветку в ручей. Муравей сел на ветку и спасся. Потом охотник расставил сеть на голубку и хотел захлопнуть. Муравей подполз к охотнику и укусил его за ногу; охотник охнул и уронил сеть. Голубка вспорхнула и улетела.

Pronunciation of Russian Version (By Google):

Muravey i Golubka

Muravey spustilsya k ruch’yu: zakhotel napit’sya. Volna zakhlestnula yego i chut’ ne potopila. Golubka nesla vetku; ona uvidela — muravey tonet, i brosila yemu vetku v ruchey. Muravey sel na vetku i spassya. Potom okhotnik rasstavil set’ na golubku i khotel zakhlopnut’. Muravey podpolz k okhotniku i ukusil yego za nogu; okhotnik okhnul i uronil set’. Golubka vsporkhnula i uletela.