Food * Support iranian.com * FAQ * Write for Iranian.com * Editorial policy Nader had a little lamb Better to eat the savage and be led by men, than to eat men and be led by savages By Korosh Khalili March 26, 2002 The Iranian   It seems to me that life is somewhat more complicated than heroes and villains. But if we were to conform to that simplification, I would have to respectfully contend that the hero in "Little lamb in fessenjoon" is not Niki Tehranchi's father, Nader. Nader had a little lamb Its fleece as white as snow. Nader played all over Rasht With his lamb in tow The amity of man and lamb can never be, such is also the case for wolf and lamb, for we are the predator, and it the pray. Nader loved his little lamb He ignored natural law. The kinship of lamb and man Will always be a flaw! To my eyes, the hero of that little tale was in fact Cyrus, who was unjustly portrayed as a villain. Enter Cyrus, fit and wise He knew the butcher's plan: No lamb has died of ripe old age In company of man. Cyrus may have been judged less cerebral, but he was certainly more realistic. The lamb was doomed from the beginning; Cyrus tried to teach his cousin a lesson from this tragedy: Cyrus sensed a lesson here To teach Nader 'bout life "Better learn it from me now Than later from his wife!" The lamb ended in fessenjoon, As always was its fate. Nader enjoyed his supper though And cleared off his plate You can't eat eggs and then go To pet your favorite hen. That's like dropping meal packets with bombs in Afghanistan! The lamb kept its silence through But Cyrus spoke the truth. Nader missed his lesson though His taste buds most uncouth! When you completely miss A lesson, bitter and plain, You are destined to retaste The bitterness again. Cyrus perhaps had heard about another Cyrus, whose grandfather wanted him dead! When Astyages, king of the Medes, learned of his doom by the hands of Cyrus, his grandson, he charged his commander to leave the infant Cyrus in the woods so that he may perish. The order was never fulfilled, and when the King learned of the disobedience, the commander was fed a stew made from the man's own son. It was this same commander who betrayed Astyages in the battle against Cyrus. Better to eat the savage and be led by men, than to eat men and be led by savages. Comment for The Iranian letters section Comment to the writer Korosh Khalili ALSO By Korosh Khalili Khalili's features index RELATED Little lamb in fessenjoon Why my father became a vegetarian By Niki Tehranchi A big beautiful lamb Memoires of a sacrifice By Mehrnaz Mahallati For Bambie's sake We have "culture shock" and we have culture shock By Sepehr Haddad Food features in iranian.com SECTIONS * Recent * Covers * Writers * All sections

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