Elephant

Buying Love for an Elephant

There once was a rare white Elephant who worked and lived with a carpenter. He enjoyed living with the carpenter and his family because he enjoyed playing with the children at the end of the day.

One day a King was walking by and noticed the white Elephant. He wanted the Elephant because of his rare color, so he asked the carpenter, “How much money will you take for your white Elephant?”

At first the carpenter refused to sell the white Elephant telling the King, “I could never sell him. He is a part of the family. My children would miss him dearly.”

Sadly, money spoke louder than words. And with a high enough price the King was able to convince the carpenter to sell the white Elephant to him.

The King took the white Elephant back to his palace where he made sure the white Elephant received the best room, the best care, and the best food. Anything the white Elephant asked for he was given. Yet, none of the possessions the white Elephant received could make him as happy as the King had first seen him with his carpenter family.

The King questioned the white Elephant, “Why do you seem so unhappy here? Is there something you are missing? I can buy whatever you need. Just tell me what you would like.”

The white Elephant would deny being unhappy and would tell the King, “You give me everything I need and more. None of this could make me unhappy.”

Later that night the King asked his wife, “Why do you think the white Elephant is so unhappy here? He will not give me a reason. Whatever the problem is I am sure I can buy him something to fix it.”

The Queen smiled at her husband and told him, “Remember, dear, money cannot fix every problem, but I will talk with him tomorrow to see if he will tell me what is wrong.”

When the Queen went to see the white Elephant, she noticed that he did seem sad so she asked him, “Why don’t we go for a walk around the palace so that we can get some fresh air and talk?”

As they were walking around the palace and making small talk about the weather, the Queen noticed that the Elephant was hypnotized by the servant children playing about. The Queen then understood what was wrong and after the walk went to talk with the King.

That evening the King called to the white Elephant to come out of his room because he had a surprise for him. The white Elephant attempted to be happy as he came out, until he heard the voices of his carpenter family. The white Elephant cheerfully exclaimed, “How did you know that I missed my family so much? I am so happy to see them. Thank you very much.”

The King then explained, “Do not thank me but the Queen. She helped me learn that possession cannot replace the love that comes from a family. I want both your family and you to know that you may visit each other as often as you would like.”

The King was happy to have a white Elephant who was also happy to live the rest of his life with the King and visiting his family whenever he wanted.

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Author’s Notes: This story comes from the tale of The King’s White Elephant from the Jataka Tales by Ellen Babbit. In the original story the white Elephant is taught by his father to help out the carpenters from a young age and grows up living with them. The King is in the woods one day when he sees the beautiful white Elephant and wants to have him. The story ends with the King having purchased the white Elephant and the King “took the best of care of him as long as he lived.” I felt like the story was missing some information about how and if the white Elephant actually wanted or enjoyed living with the King. Being purchased by a King might have seemed like a “dream come true” because he could buy anything the white Elephant needed but what about what money can’t buy? Even though the King does not state that the white Elephant is not allowed to see his family, neither takes the time to communicate with the other. I deiced to add in the Queen character that could be more sentimental towards the loss that the Elephant was feeling. She is able to help the King and the white Elephant in the tale, a trait I feel most women have, always able to help clean up the messes of those they love. I hope you have enjoyed my story and would love to hear feedback and ideas!

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Image: Elephant picture. Source: Pixabay by Jose_Art