Calila e Dimna
Old Castilian collection of animal fables translated from Arabic.
A collection of Old Castilian tales, Calila e Dimna was created in 1251 when the future King Alfonso X, still a prince, ordered a translation from the Arabic Kalila wa-Dimna. That Arabic work was itself an 8th-century translation by Ibn al-Muqaffa' of a Middle Persian version of the Sanskrit Panchatantra, which dates to around the 2nd century BCE. The book belongs to the tradition of princely education manuals, using an Eastern question-and-answer format between a king and a philosopher to introduce animal fables. Most tales are told by two jackals, Calila and Dimna, alongside an ox and a lion. This framing later influenced Don Juan Manuel's Tales of Count Lucanor.
Quick Facts
- Original language
- Old Castilian
- Year of composition
- 1251
- Patron
- Future King Alfonso X (then infante)
Facts from the source article.
Authorship
The work survives in two manuscripts, A and B. The final part of manuscript A, from the first third of the 15th century, states that the book was translated from Arabic into Latin and later Romanised by order of Don Alfonso in 1261. Because the Spanish version closely follows the Arabic, a Latin intermediary is considered unlikely. Alfonso is called infante in the text, indicating composition before his coronation in 1252; this places the date at 1251, making it the first prose-fiction work written in the Iberian Peninsula.
Structure
The main narrative frame is a conversation between King Dabshalem and the philosopher Burduben. The work has three clearly differentiated parts: the introduction by Al-Muqaffa, an apology for knowledge and its practical nature; the story of Bercebuey, covering his trip to India in search of knowledge and a contemptus mundi theme; and the story of Calila e Dimna itself. This last part divides into chapters III through VI, which are closest to the Panchatantra, and the remaining chapters, which follow simpler organisational schemes with Oriental parallelisms.
Summary
King Dabschelim is visited by the philosopher Bidpai, who tells him a collection of stories with important morals for a king. The stories are given in response to Dabschelim's requests for parables and follow a Russian doll format, with stories interwoven within stories. The first main story concerns a person who infiltrates a friendship to break it up. In this tale, the ox Shatrabah is abandoned by his master after becoming stuck in a mud pit; a servant left to watch him also abandons him, falsely reporting his death. Shatrabah frees himself and reaches a lush pasture, but his loneliness causes him to moo loudly. The lion king, who rules the area, hears the wails. At the lion's court are two jackal brothers, Kalila and Dimnah. Dimnah, ambitious, gains the lion's favour with his eloquence and becomes the king's closest advisor. When the lion grows anxious about the ox's wails, Dimnah calms him and then confronts Shatrabah, describing the fierce lion and his court. Shatrabah, awed, returns with Dimnah. However, the ox and lion become close friends, and Shatrabah replaces Dimnah as the king's confidant. Jealous, Dimnah resolves to destroy Shatrabah, despite his brother Kalila's warnings.
More in Spanish Folklore
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced