Fairy Tale Collection by: Brothers Grimm

Source: Kinder- und Hausmärchen

A hedgehog family cleverly positioned at both ends of a furrow while a proud hare races back and forth between them

Once upon a time, on a bright Sunday morning in early autumn, there lived a hedgehog who was taking a leisurely walk through the fields to inspect his turnip crop. As he waddled along the furrows, enjoying the crisp morning air, he encountered a hare who was also out for a morning stroll.

The hedgehog, being a polite and friendly creature, greeted the hare courteously. “Good morning, friend hare! What a beautiful day for a walk.”

The hare, however, was a proud and arrogant creature who looked down upon the hedgehog’s short legs and slow, waddling gait. Instead of returning the polite greeting, he laughed rudely.

“How can you be out walking on such fine, swift legs?” the hare mocked, looking at the hedgehog’s short, stubby legs with disdain. “Surely someone as slow as you should stay home rather than pretend to enjoy walking.”

The hedgehog, though hurt by these unkind words, maintained his dignity. “My legs may be short, friend hare, but they carry me wherever I need to go, and they serve me well.”

“Serve you well?” the hare scoffed. “Those stumpy little things? I’ll bet I could run circles around you without even trying. In fact, I challenge you to a race right here and now. I’ll prove how ridiculous it is for someone like you to think you can really walk with any speed at all.”

The hedgehog considered this challenge thoughtfully. He knew very well that he could never outrun the hare in a straight race, but he also knew that pride and arrogance often lead to carelessness.

“Very well,” the hedgehog replied calmly. “I accept your challenge. But I must first go home to eat my breakfast and attend to a few matters. Shall we meet back here in an hour to race?”

The hare laughed loudly. “An hour? Take two hours if you need them! The result will be the same. I’ll be waiting right here, and when you’re ready, I’ll show you what real speed looks like.”

The hedgehog nodded politely and waddled home as quickly as his short legs could carry him. When he arrived, he found his wife working in their garden.

“My dear wife,” he said, “I need your help with a matter involving our arrogant neighbor, the hare.”

He explained the entire situation to his wife, who was just as clever as he was. When she heard about the hare’s rude behavior and the challenge, she immediately understood what her husband had in mind.

“I see your plan,” she said with a smile. “The hare expects to race only you, but he didn’t specify that you had to be alone in this challenge.”

The hedgehog and his wife hurried back to the field where the hare was waiting, looking supremely confident and already stretching his powerful hind legs.

“Ah, there you are,” the hare said condescendingly. “I was beginning to think you had changed your mind and decided to hide at home where you belong.”

“Not at all,” the hedgehog replied. “I’m quite ready for our race. I propose we race the length of this furrow – from this end to that end. Do you agree?”

The hare looked at the long furrow, which stretched for quite a distance across the field. “Perfect,” he said. “That will give me plenty of space to show you the difference between real speed and your pathetic waddle.”

What the hare didn’t notice was that while he was boasting, the hedgehog’s wife had quietly positioned herself at the far end of the furrow. Since hedgehogs look very much alike, especially from a distance, the hare wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between husband and wife.

“Ready?” called the hedgehog from his end of the furrow.

“More than ready!” shouted the hare. “This will be the easiest race I’ve ever won!”

“Then let’s begin!” the hedgehog called out.

The hare took off like a shot, his powerful legs carrying him swiftly down the furrow. He was so confident of his victory that he didn’t even look back to see how far behind the hedgehog had fallen.

But when the hare reached the far end of the furrow, breathing hard from his sprint, he was amazed to see a hedgehog already there waiting for him.

“What took you so long?” called the hedgehog’s wife cheerfully. “I’ve been waiting here for quite some time!”

The hare was stunned. “How… how did you get here so fast? This is impossible!”

“Perhaps your speed isn’t as impressive as you thought,” replied the hedgehog’s wife. “Shall we race back to the other end?”

The hare, his pride wounded and his confidence shaken, immediately accepted. “Yes! This time I’ll run even faster!”

He raced back toward the starting point, pushing himself harder than before. But when he arrived, gasping for breath, there was the hedgehog waiting for him again.

“My goodness,” said the hedgehog (who had never actually moved from his original position), “you really are quite slow, aren’t you? I’ve been waiting here so long I almost fell asleep.”

The hare was now completely bewildered and exhausted. “This can’t be happening! Let’s race again!”

Back and forth the hare ran, each time finding a hedgehog waiting for him at whichever end he reached. The hedgehog and his wife simply took turns calling out to him, while he grew more and more tired with each sprint.

After the hare had made this exhausting run dozens of times, he finally collapsed in the middle of the furrow, completely out of breath and unable to continue.

“I… I don’t understand,” he panted. “How… how do you keep beating me?”

The hedgehog and his wife walked out to where the hare lay exhausted and sat down beside him.

“Friend hare,” the hedgehog said kindly, “the secret isn’t in having the fastest legs. The secret is in using your head. You were so busy being proud of your speed and looking down on others that you never stopped to think about what you were really racing against.”

The hedgehog’s wife added gently, “You assumed that being fastest meant being smartest, but cleverness and teamwork can accomplish more than speed alone.”

As the hare caught his breath, he began to understand what had happened. “You… you worked together. One of you was at each end of the furrow.”

“Exactly,” said the hedgehog. “You challenged me to a race, but you never asked if I would be racing alone. Your arrogance made you overlook the possibility that I might have advantages you hadn’t considered.”

The hare felt deeply ashamed of his behavior. “I was rude and unkind to you for no reason other than my own pride. You have taught me an important lesson about humility.”

From that day forward, the hare was much more respectful to all the creatures in the field, regardless of their size or speed. He learned that every animal had their own special talents and ways of solving problems.

The hedgehog and his wife became good friends with the hare, who often asked for their advice when he faced challenges that couldn’t be solved by speed alone.

And whenever young animals in the field became too proud of their own abilities and began looking down on others, the older animals would tell them the story of the hare and the hedgehog race.

“Remember,” they would say, “true strength comes not from being better than others, but from understanding your own abilities and using them wisely. And never underestimate someone just because they’re different from you – they might surprise you with their cleverness.”

The tale reminds us that pride goes before a fall, and that intelligence, teamwork, and kindness are often more valuable than any physical advantage we might possess.

Rate this story:

Comments

comments powered by Disqus

Similar Stories

The Buffoon and the Countryman

A buffoon performing on stage while a countryman stands with a real pig

A buffoon who was famous throughout the land for his clever imitations decided to perform at the local fair. He was particularly proud of his ability to imitate the squealing of pigs, which always brought roars of laughter from his audiences.

As he took the stage, the buffoon announced proudly, “Ladies and gentlemen, today I shall demonstrate the most perfect pig imitation you have ever heard! No one in this entire kingdom can match my skill!”

Read Story →

The Story of the Hundred-Knot Bamboo

Story illustration

In the prosperous kingdom of Dai Viet, there ruled a wise king who had only one child—a daughter named Princess Quynh Anh, whose beauty was matched only by her extraordinary intelligence. The princess could solve mathematical problems that stumped the court’s wisest scholars, compose poetry that moved listeners to tears, and debate philosophy with the most learned monks.

“My daughter,” the king would often say with pride, “you possess both the grace of a lotus flower and the sharp mind of a master strategist. Any man who wishes to marry you must prove himself worthy of both your beauty and your wisdom.”

Read Story →

The Monkey as King

A monkey wearing a crown sitting on a throne, surrounded by various forest animals

The animals of the forest decided they needed a king to rule over them and bring order to their woodland realm.

“We must choose our leader wisely,” said the wise old owl. “Who among us would make the best king?”

After much discussion, they agreed to hold a contest. Each animal would perform before the assembly, and the one who entertained them most would be crowned king.

Read Story →