Aesop’s Fables are well loved the world over for their entertainment value and moral education. Here Sydney Solis adapts The Farmer and the Fox into a yoga story perfect for kids yoga classes. See also The Lion and the Mouse from last week.

From Sydney Solis of Storytime Yoga – See original post Mercy or Revenge? Aesop Stories and Yoga for Children

There was once a farmer who had a large wheat farm. One day he discovered that a fox had been eating some of his chickens. Furious, he vowed revenge. “I’ll get that fox!”

The farmer finally caught the fox.  ”Now you will pay for what you did to me!’ He soaked a rope in oil, tied it to the fox’s tail and set it on fire. The fox was aflame, but it squirmed and broke lose. It ran from the farmer and dashed into the wheat fields that were ready for harvest. All of the farmer’s wheat fields caught fire, destroying his farm and all of his crops.

Yoga Asana:

Who is this story about?

Farmer: Warrior I, virabrhadrasana I, II and III

Fox: Downward dog - adho mukha svanasana

What happens in this story?

Fire: Bound angle pose, baddha konasana

How does the story end?

Running through the fields on fire – Upward facing bow pose, urdva dhanurasana – then rolling side to side, spreading fire as you roll. Then run around the room!

Shavasana and Meditation:

See the farmer in your mind’s eye. See the fox. Think of someone that has harmed you and who bothers you. Smile at that person. Send love and forgiveness.

Discussion:

How are you like the farmer? Have you ever been angry about something someone did? What happened? What did you do? What was the outcome? How would you change what you did? How are you like the fox? Was there a time when you harmed another? What happened? What did you do to make amends for what you did? Is it ever too late to apologize or forgive? Does two wrongs make a right?

Think of a time when you were angry. Where do you feel the anger in your body? In your belly? Heart? Touch that spot. What is the emotion behind the anger? Were you shamed, afraid, betrayed?

How can we deal with the anger we may feel when we are wronged?

• Breathe
• Take a time out
• Talk about it with someone

For older children and teens: Contemplate and discuss the following quotes:

• “An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind.” – Ghandi
• “Mercy is setting the prisoner free only to discover the prisoner was me.”
• “In taking revenge, a man is but even with his enemy; but in passing it over he is his superior.” – Sir Francis Bacon.
• “If you are slapped on one check, turn the other too.” The Bible Matthew 5:43
• I mount the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.

Affirmation:

• I am peace in every step. I am peace in every breath. I am peace.

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