An Eagle stayed his flight and entreated a Lion to make an alliance with him to their mutual advantage. The Lion replied, “I have no objection, but you must excuse me for requiring you to find surety for your good faith, for how can I trust anyone as a friend who is able to fly away from his bargain whenever he pleases?”
Credits
Aesop was an ancient Greek storyteller, believed to have lived around the 6th century BCE, whose fables have endured for over two and a half millennia. His tales typically feature animals whose interactions illuminate human nature and moral dilemmas with striking economy. "The Lion and the Eagle" is a fine example of Aesop's gift for distilling complex social truths — here, the nature of binding commitment — into a single, perfectly weighted exchange.
