Dear colleagues,

A monkey, not so old, was obese. His Parents were worried. So they sent him to the forest doctor, the donkey, for consultation. The donkey advised the obese-monkey that it should not over eat, do regular exercise and observe fast for a day once in a week. The monkey returned and decided to go on a fast the very same day.  

Before starting the fast, it decided to do two things. The first one was to eat enough food before fasting. The second one was to keep enough food ready to eat after breaking the fast. Immediately, it went to a banana plantation and started eating several ripe bananas. While returning, it collected some more bananas which it could use later after breaking the fast.

It sat comfortably on tree top for observing fast. The aroma from the bananas kept nearby was tempting and by seeing them, the monkey started feeling hungry. It thought “I will be terribly hungry when I complete the fasting. I can peel one banana now and keep it ready to eat when I complete the fast”. 

It peeled one banana and kept it nearby. 

The sight of peeled banana was all the more tempting. It was slowly turning brownish. On seeing this, the monkey thought, “The banana will turn more brownish, become soft and it will not taste good later; so why not I keep it in my mouth without eating it?” I can chew it immediately when I break the fast. I don’t have to waste time later to peel it and put it in my mouth”. So, the monkey put the bananas in its mouth. Now it could not control the desire to eat it. It thought “I will chew a very small bit of banana but will not swallow it since I am observing fast”. 

The taste of banana was very delicious and the monkey not only ate the peeled one but other s also. 

The monkey’s maiden fasting ended this way!