It tells the tale of a hardworking and sincere woodcutter who lived a simple life.
One day, while chopping wood near a river, his axe slipped from his hands and fell into the deep water. Distraught, as his axe was his only means of livelihood, he knelt by the river and wept.
Hearing his cries, the river spirit appeared and asked him why he was so sad. The woodcutter explained his predicament, and the spirit, moved by his honesty, decided to help. She dived into the river and emerged with a golden axe, offering it to the woodcutter. However, he shook his head and said that it wasn’t his.
The spirit dived again, this time bringing up a silver axe, but once again, the woodcutter declined, insisting that his axe was made of simple iron. Finally, the spirit brought up his iron axe, and the woodcutter’s face lit up with gratitude and joy as he recognized his own tool.
Impressed by his honesty, the spirit rewarded him by giving him all three axes – the golden, the silver, and his original iron axe. The woodcutter thanked the spirit profusely and returned home with his newfound wealth, sharing his story with friends and family, who marveled at his integrity and the reward it brought him.
The moral of the story is clear: honesty and integrity are always rewarded, sometimes in the most unexpected ways.
