The Monkey and the Wedge

Once, a king was having a temple built, and carpenters worked daily, cutting and joining large pieces of wood. Every afternoon, when the workers went off to eat their meal, they would leave their work unfinished for a while.

One carpenter had been sawing through a thick log, splitting it partway down the middle. To keep the gap open while he was away, he had wedged a wooden block into the split. Then he, too, left for his midday meal.

Nearby, in the trees surrounding the temple, lived a troop of monkeys, known for their restless curiosity. One monkey wandered over to the construction site and noticed the half-split log with the wedge jammed inside it. Curiosity got the better of him.

The monkey grabbed hold of the wedge and began tugging at it. The other monkeys nearby warned him, "Don't do that — it could be dangerous." But he ignored them and, gathering all his strength, yanked the wedge clean out.

The moment the wedge came free, the two halves of the split log snapped back together — trapping the monkey's tail and hindquarters tightly in the gap. The log clamped down on him with tremendous force.

The monkey shrieked in agony but couldn't free himself no matter how hard he struggled. Just then, the carpenters returned from their meal and found the monkey badly trapped in the log. They felt some pity for him, but were also annoyed that he had interfered with their work.

With great difficulty, the carpenters managed to free the monkey, but by then he had suffered serious injuries — a painful price for his curiosity and his habit of acting without thinking.

Moral: One should never meddle carelessly in matters that don't concern them. Such interference almost always leads to harm.