英文幽默故事：The Holy Snake

Long ago, in a small village lived Vishnudutta, a poor Brahmin farmer. He worked hard but was not able to earn much. His son, Somadutta was always asking for more money. “Be satisfied¹ with what you have, my son," Vishnudutta would say. 

 

One day, Vishnudutta was resting in his field after work. Suddenly, he noticed a snake on the nearby mount². On seeing Vishnudutta, the snake coiled³ and sat up with a raised hood⁴. “It looks so calm and peaceful. May be it is a deity," thought Vishnudutta. He brought a bowl of milk from his house and offered it to the snake. 

 

Next morning, when Vishnudutta came to collect the bowl, he found a gold coin in it. “I am sure this is a holy⁵ snake," he thought. After that it became a regular practice for him to offer prayers⁶ and milk to the snake. And every morning he got a gold coin in the bowl near the mount. This made Vishnudutta a rich man. 

 

Once, while Vishnudutta was away, his son Somadutta had to keep the bowl of milk near the snake. As usual, after some time, there was a gold coin in the bowl near the mount. Somadutta thought. “I guess there is a treasure of gold coins beneath this mount. If I can kill this snake and dig⁷ under the mount, I will get all the gold!" With gold on his mind, Somadutta tried to kill the snake. The snake bit Somadutta and managed to escape. 

 

When Vishnudutta returned, his wife told him everything. “I always warned⁸ you against greed⁹," said Vishnudutta to his son. Then he ran towards the holy snake. With folded hands, he asked for forgiveness and offered milk to the holy snake. 

 

But this time the holy snake did not accept it. “I spared your son’s life because of your kindness. You will have to pay for his greed. I shall not help you any more," said the snake and disappeared.  

1 satisfied   

adj.满意的，满足的；清偿过的；确信的，毫无疑问的v.使满意( satisfy的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• She's never satisfied with what she's got. 她对自己的所得从不感到满足。
• He had a self-satisfied smirk on his face. 他脸上挂着得意扬扬的笑容。

2 mount   

n.山峰，乘用马，框，衬纸；vi.增长，骑上（马）；vt.提升，爬上，装备

参考例句：

• Their debts continued to mount up.他们的债务不断增加。
• She is the first woman who steps on the top of Mount Jolmo Lungma.她是第一个登上珠穆朗玛峰的女人。

3 coiled   

v.将…卷[盘]成圈或螺旋形( coil的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）缠绕，盘绕

参考例句：

• The snake coiled up, ready to strike. 那条蛇盘绕起来准备攻击。
• a snake coiled up in the grass 一条蛇盘在草丛里

4 hood   

n.头巾，兜帽，覆盖；v.罩上，以头巾覆盖

参考例句：

• She is wearing a red cloak with a hood.她穿着一件红色带兜帽的披风。
• The car hood was dented in.汽车的发动机罩已凹了进去。

5 holy   

adj.神圣的，圣洁的，至善的；n.神圣的东西

参考例句：

• She was still a holy and pure young girl.她仍是一个圣洁的少女。
• He reads the Holy Bible every night.他每晚读《圣经》。

6 prayers   

祈祷( prayer的名词复数 )； 祈祷（习惯）； 祈祷文； 经文

参考例句：

• to say your prayers 祷告
• He says his prayers every night before he goes to bed. 他每晚睡觉前都做晚祷。

7 dig   

v.挖（洞，沟等）；掘

参考例句：

• It is difficult to dig the ground when it is frozen.地面冻住了就不易挖掘。
• In those days we often went to dig for wild vegetables.那时候我们常常出去挖野菜。

8 warned   

v.警告( warn的过去式和过去分词 )；提醒；告诫；预先通知

参考例句：

• Motorists have been warned to beware of icy roads. 已经提醒开车的人当心冰封的路面。
• I've warned her countless times. 我警告过她无数次了。

9 greed   

n.贪食，贪心，贪婪

参考例句：

• His greed knows no limits.他的贪心永无止境。
• Greed was his only motive for stealing.贪婪是他盗窃的唯一动机。