Yes, I read Arabian Nights stories. I
have always loved fairy tales, and Arabian Nights is just a perfect
choice for one such as I. Most of the stories, as you perhaps know,
are about Genies, and Princes, and ghosts, and witched so on, but
some little of them tell about just our ordinary lives in this
ordinary world. Ali Cogia is one of those stories.
As the other post, I will write
billingually. Here I go.
In Bahasa:
Ali Cogia adalah seorang pedagang, yang
berniat untuk pergi ke tanah suci. Dia menitipkan kepada temannya,
sesama pedagang, sebuah kendi berisi emas yang ditutupi dengan
zaitun. Kendi tersebut diletakkan di rumah sang pedagang dengan janji
bahwa ia tidak akan menyentuh barang milik Ali. Ali pun pergi ke
tanah suci, namun sambil berkelana dan berdagang juga, sehingga
akhirnya seluruh perjalanannya memakan waktu 7 tahun.
Sementara itu, sang pedagang ingin
memakan zaitun yang ada di kendi Ali, sehingga akhirnya ia membuka
kendi itu. Namnu, yang ia temukan ternyata bukan sekadar zaitun,
melainkan emas dalam jumlah banyak. Akhirnya ia mengambil emas itu,
dan mengganti zaitun yang ada dengan zaitun yang baru.
Sewaktu Ali pulang dan mendapati
emasnya dicuri, ia meminta penjelasan dari snag pedagang, yang
mengaku tidak tahu menahu soal itu. Ali pun meminta Kalifah Harun
Al-Rasyid menjadi hakim bagi perkaranya. Sang Kalifah pun setuju.
Sore itu, pada hari sebelum pengadilan,
sang Khalifah berjalan-jalan di kota dengan pakaian rakyat biasa,
seperti kebiasaannya (kebiasaan yang baik, tentu saja, sehingga ia
bisa melihat kehidupan rakyat jelata dengan mata kepalanya sendiri).
Ia melihat anak-anak bermain. Sebuah kelompok anak-anak ternyata
memainkan perkara Ali Cogia dan pedagang itu. Seorang anak lelaki
yang masih kecil berperan sebagai Khalifah dan mengadili dengan
sangat bijak sehingga Khalifah pun terkagum-kagum. (Kalau mau tahu
lengkapnya, silakan baca sendiri kisah ini, menarik lho)
Sang Khalifah akhirnya memanggil anak
itu dan menyuruhnya mengadili Ali dan pedagang itu. Anak ini pun
melakukannya, tanpa lupa menyerahkan keputusan terakhir ke tangan
sang Khalifah.
Cerita ini mengajarkan kita bahwa janji
adalah hal yang serius, kebohongan pada akhirnya akan diketahui, dan
bahwa bahkan orang-orang besar pun kadang-kadang perlu mendengar dari
kebijaksanaan anak-anak. Saya secara pribadi menyukai sang Khalifah,
karena ia adalah sosok pemimpin yang baik bagi orang-orang yang
berada di bawah kekuasaannya.
In English:
So it's a story about Ali Cogia, who
wanted to go in pilgrimage to Holy Land. Before he went, he put a
large vase filled with gold, but covered with olives on its top, into
his friend's confidence, a merchant as well. He promised him that he
wouldn't touch it or open it. His journey proved to be a long
adventure, for he sold and buy along the way, and made money as he
came home. At last, after spending seven years on journey, he went
home.
Meanwhile, the merchant wanted to eat
olives, so he opened the vase and look! He found a great sum of gold
inside. His greed prevailed over his good intention, so he took out
the gold and replaced it with new olives.
When Ali came back and found no gold in
his vase, he asked his friend what he had done with it. But the
friend said he knew nothing about any gold. So Ali went to the
Caliph, Harun Al-Rasyid, and stated his case. The Caliph agreed to
judge his case.
The afternoon before the appointed day
for the trial, the Caliph went to the city disguised as commoner, and
watched the children played. One of the group played tha case of Ali
Cogia, and the one acting as Caliph jugded wisely. So the Caliph
asked him to judge the case the next day. The child did so, and the
wicked merchant got what he deserved.
This story teaches us that even great
people sometimes need to listen to the wisdom of a child. I
especially like the Caliph for being a good leader of his people.
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