THE HEART AND THE TONGUE: OF ALL THINGS THE BEST AND THE WORST

Luqman the Wise, an Abyssynian slave, was once asked by his master to slaughter a goat and bring him two pieces of its best meat. Luqman did as he was bid, then cooked the goat and brought his master its tongue and heart. A few days later, his master asked him to slaughter another goat and, this time, bring him two pieces of its worst meat. Luqman again did as he was bid, but presented his master with the same two parts of the animal-its tongue and its heart. His master then inquired as to why it was that he had brought him the same parts on both occasions. “If both these parts are sound,” replied Luqman, “then there is nothing to
compare with them. But if they are both defective, there is nothing worse.”