The Thief and His Mother

There was a boy, born to a poor widow, who early in his youth fell into dishonest ways. His mother, grieving at his thefts, would scold him severely when he brought home stolen goods. Yet even as she rebuked him, she accepted his stolen offerings and used them to support their meager household. Years passed, and the boy grew into a man, skilled in the art of theft. He stole from merchants, from travelers, and from the homes of the wealthy. His mother, though she wept and lamented, never entirely refused the fruits of his wickedness. Rather, she would accept what he brought, even as she expressed her disapproval of how it was obtained. One day, the thief was caught by the authorities and condemned to death. As he was led to the place of execution, his mother followed, weeping and wailing. In his final moments, he called out to her and asked that she approach close to his face, as though to hear his final words. But instead of speaking, he seized her ear with his teeth and bit it off, causing her great pain and anguish. The crowd cried out in horror, and the mother fell to her knees, bleeding and wounded by her own son's hand. When asked why he had committed this terrible deed upon the woman who bore him, the thief replied: "I do this to fulfill the justice that is due. My mother should have struck me down and refused my stolen goods when I was young and first turned to thievery. By accepting my crimes, she became my partner in wickedness. Every theft I committed thereafter, she shared in the guilt. In wounding her now, I repay to her the wound that her own neglect of justice inflicted upon both our souls." Thus was the terrible consequence of failing to repay evil with correction made manifest.