There once lived in a certain village a poor man who went out daily
to beg, carrying in his hand a small vessel made from a gourd, such
as the Jogis, or holy Fakirs, in India use.
In it he carried home his scanty meal of flour each evening.
One day he placed the gourd, which was empty at the time, upon the
ground, and went to some little distance to drink water.
On his return he was amazed to find it full of scorpions.
Seizing it on one side, he carefully knocked it against a stone until
the venomous things dropped off.
Great indeed was his surprise to find when he next looked into
his gourd, that several scorpions still clung to it, but had been
transformed by the Gods into pure gold, although their forms were
retained.
Thus the good old man was enriched, but great was his disappointment
when he remembered how many scorpions he had thrown away, for these
might also have turned into gold had he kept them.
Moral.--There is good sometimes in even the evil things in life.