The fable, and the message it so clearly contains, date from over a thousand years ago.
The origins of the story were Indian, but it was actually written down for the first time in the tenth century C.E. in Arabic by a Sufi order. It has since circulated through most of the Eastern religions, this edition is the first one in English.
I found out about it through Isabel Carlisle, who converted it into play form, and has used it in schools over the last few years.
The story is, that there once was a place on Earth...
an island called Tsagone...
where the animals lived happily, and free from persecution by human beings. The Isle was ruled over by Bersaf, King of the Spirits. But a ship, carrying passengers, was wrecked near its shores, and a large group of people clambered onto the island.
Quite soon, perhaps inevitably, the people began to use the animals and birds for food and labour, and in fact enslaved them. So for the animals, 'eyes that were once filled with trust began to be drowned in stormy oceans of fear.'
Eventually, the animals - in desperation - met and agreed, to ask the King of Spirits for help. He decided to summon the humans to court, to answer the charges which were beginning to be specified by the animals.
~bron~
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