Alexander dan Bucephalus

Suatu hari Raja Philip membeli seekor kuda bagus bernama Bucephalus. Kuda itu adalah hewan yang mulia, dan sang raja membayar harga yang sangat mahal untuknya. Namun, ia liar dan galak, serta tidak ada seorang pun yang bisa menungganginya, atau berbuat apa pun sama sekali dengannya.

One day King Philip bought a fine horse called Bucephalus. He was a noble animal, and the king paid a very high price for him. But he was wild and savage, and no man could mount him, or do anything at all with him.

Mereka mencoba mencambuknya, tetapi hal itu hanya membuatnya makin parah. Akhirnya sang raja memerintahkan para pelayannya untuk membawanya pergi.

They tried to whip him, but that only made him worse. At last the king bade his servants take him away.

“Sayang sekali merusak kuda sebagus itu,” kata Alexander, putra muda sang raja. “Orang-orang itu tidak tahu cara memperlakukannya.”

“It is a pity to ruin so fine a horse as that,” said Alexander, the king’s young son. “Those men do not know how to treat him.”

“Mungkin kamu bisa berbuat lebih baik daripada mereka,” kata ayahnya dengan nada mencemooh.

“Perhaps you can do better than they,” said his father scornfully.

“Aku tahu,” kata Alexander, “bahwa jika Ayah mau memberiku izin untuk mencoba, aku bisa menangani kuda ini lebih baik daripada siapa pun.”

“I know,” said Alexander, “that, if you would only give me leave to try, I could manage this horse better than any one else.”

“Dan jika kamu gagal melakukannya, lalu bagaimana?” tanya Philip.

“And if you fail to do so, what then?” asked Philip.

“Aku akan membayarmu seharga kuda itu,” kata anak laki-laki tersebut.

“I will pay you the price of the horse,” said the lad.

Sementara semua orang tertawa, Alexander berlari mendekati Bucephalus, lalu memutar kepalanya menghadap ke arah matahari. Ia telah memperhatikan bahwa kuda itu takut pada bayangannya sendiri.

While everybody was laughing, Alexander ran up to Bucephalus, and turned his head toward the sun. He had noticed that the horse was afraid of his own shadow.

Ia kemudian berbicara dengan lembut kepada kuda itu, dan menepuk-nepuknya dengan tangannya. Ketika ia telah sedikit menenangkannya, ia melakukan lompatan cepat, dan melompat ke punggung kuda itu.

He then spoke gently to the horse, and patted him with his hand. When he had quieted him a little, he made a quick spring, and leaped upon the horse’s back.

Semua orang mengira akan melihat anak laki-laki itu tewas seketika. Namun, ia tetap bertahan di posisinya, dan membiarkan kuda itu berlari secepat yang ia mau. Lama-kelamaan, ketika Bucephalus sudah lelah, Alexander menarik tali kekangnya, lalu menungganginya kembali ke tempat ayahnya berdiri.

Everybody expected to see the boy killed outright. But he kept his place, and let the horse run as fast as he would. By and by, when Bucephalus had become tired, Alexander reined him in, and rode back to the place where his father was standing.

Semua orang yang ada di sana bersorak ketika mereka melihat bahwa anak laki-laki itu telah membuktikan dirinya sebagai tuan dari kuda tersebut.

All the men who were there shouted when they saw that the boy had proved himself to be the master of the horse.

Ia melompat ke tanah, dan ayahnya berlari lalu menciumnya.

He leaped to the ground, and his father ran and kissed him.

“Putraku,” kata sang raja, “Makedonia adalah tempat yang terlalu kecil untukmu. Kamu harus mencari kerajaan yang lebih besar yang layak untukmu.”

“My son,” said the king, “Macedon is too small a place for you. You must seek a larger kingdom that will be worthy of you.”

Setelah itu, Alexander dan Bucephalus menjadi sahabat terbaik. Mereka konon selalu bersama-sama, karena ketika salah satu dari mereka terlihat, yang lainnya pasti tidak jauh dari sana. Namun, kuda itu tidak pernah mengizinkan siapa pun menungganginya selain tuannya.

After that, Alexander and Bucephalus were the best of friends. They were said to be always together, for when one of them was seen, the other was sure to be not far away. But the horse would never allow any one to mount him but his master.