He was strong of bone, thick of hide and obstinate of mind, and as all donkeys before him from the dawn of donkey history, he was born into the service of a human master.

His master placed heavy loads on his back — goods and produce to take to the marketplace. But the donkey just stood there, munching grass.

A man walked by and said to the donkey’s master: “What a stubborn beast! Beat him with your whip.” But the donkey just dug his heels deeper into the earth and refused to budge.

Another man walked by and said to the donkey’s master: “Your beast needs to be taught his purpose. His burden is too light — so he thinks that all that’s required of him is to munch his grass.” So they brought more pots and pans and cabbages and books to increase the donkey’s load. The load grew and grew until the donkey collapsed.

A third man arrived and said: “Who needs that silly animal, anyway? You’re much better off without him. All that stuff on his back is quite useless, too, for men of the spirit. Forsake your beast and its load and follow me, and I’ll show you the gateway to heaven.”

Still the donkey’s owner hesitated. He liked his donkey. He also liked his pots and his pans, his cabbages and his books. Perhaps he could carry them himself? But he knew he couldn’t do it on his own.

A fourth teacher arrived on the scene. “Don’t beat your beast,” he said to the donkey’s master. “Don’t overload him and don’t abandon him. Help him.”

“Help him?” asked the man.

“Help him carry his load. Show him that your burden is a shared burden — that it’s not just him doing the shlepping and you reaping the profits, but a joint venture in which you both toil and both benefit. When you regard him as a partner rather than a slave, your beast will be transformed. His obstinacy will become endurance, his strength will turn from a resisting force into a carrying force.”

The man put his shoulder to his donkey’s burden. The beast rose from the ground and tensed its brawn; the man, too, heaved and strained. Together they transported their merchandise to the market.