Two jackals, who were friends, sat together in the hot sands of the deshret. They hunted together, ate their prey together, and cooled themselves under the shade of the desert palms together. One day, as they rested, they saw a hungry lion racing toward them.

The two jackals stood motionless as the lion approached them. The lion was confused, and he roared, “Did you not see me coming toward you?!”

The jackals replied, “Truly, we saw you running toward us in your anger and your haste.”

“Do I not scare you? Do your legs freeze up in terror at my approach? Why, then, do you not run away from me?” the confused lion asked them.

“We decided among ourselves not to run from you. Is it not true that if we tried to run away you would have overtaken us anyway? If we are destined to die, why should we tire ourselves out before you kill us?” replied the first jackal.

“Besides,” added the second jackal, “if we ran away in fear, the stress would cause our meat to leave a foul taste in your mouth.”

The lion suddenly let out a roar of laughter at the jackals’ boldness and he allowed the jackals to live. The jackals had discovered a truth as ancient as the world: the truly powerful are never angered by the truth.