Introducing the famous and inspiring story, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
Years ago, in the land of Persia, lived two brothers, Ali Baba and Kasim. After their father's death, they jointly managed their father's business. The elder brother, Kasim, was very greedy. He deceitfully took over the entire business and drove Ali Baba out of the house. Subsequently, Ali Baba, along with his wife, settled in a hut in a village, leading a life of poverty. He would daily go into the forest, cut wood, and sell it in the market to make ends meet.
One day, while chopping wood in the forest, Ali Baba saw forty horsemen approaching. Each horseman carried a bag of wealth and a dagger. Recognizing them as thieves, Ali Baba hid behind a tree to observe them. The horsemen then gathered near a mountain. The leader of the thieves stood before the mountain and shouted, "Open, Sesame!" Immediately, a cave's entrance opened in the mountain. All the horsemen entered the cave. They then declared, "Close, Sesame!" and the cave entrance closed behind them.
Ali Baba was amazed. After a while, the entrance opened again, and the horsemen emerged and rode away. Ali Baba was eager to know what was inside the cave and what the thieves were doing there. He decided to investigate. He approached the mountain and repeatedly called out, "Open, Sesame, Open, Sesame!" The cave entrance opened. Ali Baba entered the cave and saw piles of gold coins, ornaments, and jewels. Treasures filled every corner. He was overjoyed. He understood that the thieves hid their stolen goods there. Ali Baba filled a bag with gold coins and returned home.
Back home, Ali Baba recounted the entire incident to his wife. She was astonished to see so many gold coins and began counting them. Ali Baba said, "There are so many coins that it will take the whole night to count them. I'll bury them in a pit so that no one suspects us." His wife replied, "I can't count them, but I can weigh them." Ali Baba's wife ran to Kasim's house and asked his wife for a balance scale to weigh the coins.
Seeing this, Kasim's wife suspected something. She wondered how these impoverished people suddenly had so much grain. She went inside, put glue under the scale, and gave it to Ali Baba's wife. That night, Ali Baba's wife weighed all the gold coins and returned the scale in the morning. Kasim's wife checked the scale and saw a gold coin stuck to it. She informed her husband. Kasim and his wife were furious. They couldn't sleep all night. Early the next morning, Kasim went to Ali Baba's house and demanded to know the source of his wealth.
Ali Baba said, "You seem to have a misunderstanding. I am just a simple woodcutter." Kasim said, "Your wife took a scale from our house yesterday to weigh some coins. Look, a gold coin is stuck to it. Tell me the truth, or I'll expose your theft." Ali Baba confessed the whole story. Kasim's greed took over. He planned to seize the treasure and went to the cave the next day, bringing a donkey to carry the loot.
He followed Ali Baba's instructions and said "Open, Sesame!" The cave's entrance opened. Upon entering, he was overwhelmed by the treasure. He filled sacks with gold coins. He forgot what to say as he exited the cave. He struggled to leave the cave. When the group of thieves returned, they saw a donkey tied outside. They understood someone had been there. They found Kasim and killed him.
Meanwhile, when Kasim didn't return home, his wife was distraught and went to Ali Baba's house to retrieve him. Ali Baba followed the trail to the cave. He saw Kasim's donkey grazing nearby. He understood that Kasim had gone inside the cave and been caught by the thieves. Ali Baba entered the cave and found Kasim's dead body. He brought the body home, declared it a natural death without revealing anything, and performed the funeral rites privately. At Kasim's wife's request, Ali Baba and his wife took over and managed Kasim's business.
When the thieves found no body, they realized that someone else knew about the treasure. They went to the village to find out who had recently died. They discovered Ali Baba's house. They placed a cross outside his home to easily identify it at night. Ali Baba, seeing the cross outside his house, understood that the thieves had located it. He placed similar crosses outside everyone's houses in the neighborhood. When the thieves returned, they found crosses outside everyone's homes, which confused them, and they left.
The leader of the thieves was not one to sit idly. He sent his men to determine who had recently become wealthy in the neighborhood. They discovered Ali Baba. The leader disguised himself as an oil merchant and arrived at Ali Baba's home at night. He brought forty oil barrels, 39 of which concealed thieves, and one containing oil. He planned to kill Ali Baba when everyone was asleep. He befriended Ali Baba and asked to spend the night.
Ali Baba's wife suspected the oil merchant. She tapped each barrel and realized that one contained oil and the rest were filled with people. She devised a plan. She poured oil from the genuine barrel into the other barrels and heated it. All the thieves were killed. When the leader signaled for the thieves to leave, none emerged. He opened the barrels to find all the thieves dead. Terrified, he fled. Ali Baba's wife informed him of the incident, and he was overjoyed. Now, Ali Baba was the sole owner of all the treasures of the forty thieves and became a wealthy man. He lived happily with his wife and children.
This story teaches us that – Greed is the enemy of humanity. Greed leads to ruin. Therefore, one should never be greedy.
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