Of Iuno the goddesse and of the pecok and of the nyghtyngale

4.04. De pavone et Iunone et liscinia
Caxton: Of Iuno the goddesse and of the pecok and of the nyghtyngale
Every one oughte to be content of kynde / and of suche good as god hath sente vnto hym / wherof he must vse Iustly / As reherceth this fable of a pecok whiche came to Iuno the goddesse / and sayd to her I am heuy and sorowful / by cause I can not synge as wel as the nyghtyngale For euery one mocketh and scorneth me / by cause I can not synge / And Iuno wold comforte hym and sayd / thy fayre forme and beaute is fayrer and more worthy and of gretter preysynge than the songe of the nyghtyngale / For thy fethers and thy colour ben resplendysshyng as the precoius Emerawd And ther is no byrde lyke to thy fethers ne to thy beaulte / And the pecok sayd thenne to Iuno / All this is nought / syth I cannot synge / And thenne Iuno sayd ageyne thus to the pecok for to contente hym / This is in the diposycion of the goddes / whiche haue gyuen to eyther of yow one propyrte / and one vertue / suche as it pleasyd them / As to the they haue gyuen fayr fygure / to the egle haue they gyuen strengthe / and to the nyghtyngale fayr & playsaunt songe / And so to all other byrdes / wherfore euery one must be content of that that he hath
For the myserable auarycious / the more goodes that they haue the more they desyre to haue
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The Peacock to Juno

3.18. THE PEACOCK TO JUNO. A Peacock came to Juno, complaining sadly that she had not given to him the song of the Nightingale; that it was the admiration of every ear, while he himself was laughed at the very instant he raised his voice. The Goddess, to console him, replied: “But you surpass the nightingale in beauty, you surpass him in size; the brilliancy of the emerald shines upon your neck; and you unfold a tail begemmed with painted plumage.”
“Wherefore give me,” he retorted, “a beauty that is dumb, if I am surpassed in voice?”
“By the will of the Fates,” said she, “have your respective qualities been assigned; beauty to you, strength to the Eagle, melody to the Nightingale, to the Raven presages, unpropitious omens to the Crow; all of these are contented with their own endowments.”
Covet not that which has not been granted you, lest your baffled hopes sink down to useless repinings. [more info]

The Peacock's Complaint

021. THE PEACOCK’S COMPLAINT. The peacock presented a memorial to Juno, importing how hardly he thought he was used in not having so good a voice as the nightingale; how that pretty animal was agreeable to every ear that heard it, while he was laughed at for his ugly, screaming noise, if he did but open his mouth.
The goddess, concerned at the uneasiness of her favourite bird, answered him very kindly to this purpose: “If the nightingale is blest with a fine voice, you have the advantage in point of beauty and largeness of person.”
“Ah!” says he, “but what avails my silent unmeaning beauty, when I am so far excelled in voice!”
The goddess dismissed him, bidding him consider that the properties of every creature were appointed by the decree of fate: to him beauty; strength to the eagle; to the nightingale a voice of melody; the faculty of speech to the parrot; and to the dove innocence. That each of these was contented with his own peculiar quality: and unless he had a mind to be miserable, he must learn to be so too. [more info]

Juno and the Peacock

3.16. JUNO AND THE PEACOCK.
Her fav’rite bird to Juno came,
And was in dudgeon at the dame,
That she had not attuned her throat
With Philomela’s matchless note;
“She is the wonder of all ears;
But when I speak the audience sneers.”
The goddess to the bird replied,
(Willing to have him pacified,)
“You are above the rest endued
With beauty and with magnitude;
Your neck the em’rald’s gloss outvies,
And what a blaze of gemmeous dies
Shines from the plumage of your tail!”
“All this dumb show will not avail,”
Cries he, “if I’m surpass’d in voice.”
“The fates entirely have the choice
Of all the lots—fair form is yours;
The eagle’s strength his prey secures;
The nightingale can sing an ode;
The crow and raven may forebode:
All these in sheer contentment crave
No other voice than Nature gave.”
By affectation be not sway’d,
Where Nature has not lent her aid;
Nor to that flatt’ring hope attend,
Which must in disappointment end. [more info]

The Peacock's Complaint

077. THE PEACOCK'S COMPLAINT. The peacock presented a memorial to Juno, importing how hardly he thought he was used in not having so good a voice as the nightingale; how that pretty animal was agreeable to every ear that heard it, while he was laughed at for his ugly, screaming noise, if he did but open his mouth.
The goddess, concerned at the uneasiness of her favourite bird, answered him very kindly to this purpose: “If the nightingale is blest with a fine voice, you have the advantage in point of beauty and largeness of person.”
“Ah!” says he, “but what avails my silent unmeaning beauty, when I am so far excelled in voice!”
The goddess dismissed him, bidding him consider that the properties of every creature were appointed by the decree of fate: to him beauty; strength to the eagle; to the nightingale a voice of melody; the faculty of speech to the parrot; and to the dove innocence. That each of these was contented with his own peculiar quality: and unless he had a mind to be miserable, he must learn to be so too. [more info]

The Peacock Complaining to Juno

02.17: THE PEACOCK COMPLAINING TO JUNO.
The peacock to the queen of heaven
Complain'd in some such words:—
'Great goddess, you have given
To me, the laughing-stock of birds,
A voice which fills, by taste quite just,
All nature with disgust;
Whereas that little paltry thing,
The nightingale, pours from her throat
So sweet and ravishing a note,
She bears alone the honours of the spring.'
In anger Juno heard,
And cried, 'Shame on you, jealous bird!
Grudge you the nightingale her voice,
Who in the rainbow neck rejoice,
Than costliest silks more richly tinted,
In charms of grace and form unstinted,—
Who strut in kingly pride,
Your glorious tail spread wide
With brilliants which in sheen do
Outshine the jeweller's bow window?
Is there a bird beneath the blue
That has more charms than you?
No animal in everything can shine.
By just partition of our gifts divine,
Each has its full and proper share;
Among the birds that cleave the air,
The hawk's a swift, the eagle is a brave one,
For omens serves the hoarse old raven,
The rook's of coming ills the prophet;
And if there's any discontent,
I've heard not of it.
'Cease, then, your envious complaint;
Or I, instead of making up your lack,
Will take your boasted plumage from your back.'
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The Peacock and Juno

33. THE PEACOCK AND JUNO. A Peacock once placed a petition before Juno desiring to have the voice of a nightingale in addition to his other attractions; but Juno refused his request. When he persisted, and pointed out that he was her favourite bird, she said: "Be content with your lot; one cannot be first in everything." [more info]

The Peacock and Nightingale

077. THE PEACOCK AND NIGHTINGALE. You will find the fable in English on this page; scroll down to see if there are multiple English versions. [more info]

The Peacock's Complaint

33. THE PEACOCK'S COMPLAINT.
The Peacock considered it wrong
That he had not the nightingale's song;
So to Juno he went;
She replied, "Be content
With thy having, and hold thy fool's tongue."
DO NOT QUARREL WITH NATURE
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The Peacock's Complaint

THE PEACOCK'S COMPLAINT. The peacock begged Juno to give him a sweet voice like the nightingale's. But the goddess said, "You cannot have everything. Everybody has some gift. Your feathers are very beautiful. Be content with what you have, and you will be happy." Envy no one. [more info]

Perry 509: The Peacock and Hera / Juno

Boothby: Juno and the Peacock
A Peacock once upbraided heaven,
Who, little favouring, had not given
To him the nightingale's sweet note:
"Whene'er," he says, "I stretch my throat,
All laugh, but stand enchanted round
To listen to his charming sound."
"To thee," says Juno in reply,
(Her favourite bird to satisfy,)
"Nature has grace and colour lent,
Enough the vainest to content;
A neck that with the emerald vies;
A train thick gemm'd with golden eyes."
"Without a voice, ah! what avail,"
He says, "the crest or gaudy tail!"
"To each," the Goddess answers, "Fate
Has given what best becomes his state;
Strength to the Eagle, form to thee,
To Philomel sweet melody,
To the wise Raven times to know,
And divination to the Crow;
Each with his lot contented lives,
Nor asks for more than nature gives."
Learn to enjoy the goods possess't;
And leave unenvied all the rest.


L'Estrange: A Peacock to Juno
The Peacock, they say, laid it extremely to Heart, that being Juno’s darling Bird, he had not the Nightingal’s Voice super-added to the Beauty of his own Plumes. Upon this Subject he petition’d his Patroness, who gave him for Answer, that Providence had assign’d every Bird its Proportion, and so bad him content himself with his Lot.
The Boundaries of Heaven are in such manner distributed, that every living Creature has its share; beside, that to desire Things against Nature, is effectually to blame the very Author of Nature itself.


Aesop's Fables: Caxton (1484)
4.4. Of Iuno the goddesse and of the pecok and of the nyghtyngale
Every one oughte to be content of kynde / and of suche good as god hath sente vnto hym / wherof he must vse Iustly / As reherceth this fable of a pecok whiche came to Iuno the goddesse / and sayd to her I am heuy and sorowful / by cause I can not synge as wel as the nyghtyngale For euery one mocketh and scorneth me / by cause I can not synge / And Iuno wold comforte hym and sayd / thy fayre forme and beaute is fayrer and more worthy and of gretter preysynge than the songe of the nyghtyngale / For thy fethers and thy colour ben resplendysshyng as the precoius Emerawd And ther is no byrde lyke to thy fethers ne to thy beaulte / And the pecok sayd thenne to Iuno / All this is nought / syth I cannot synge / And thenne Iuno sayd ageyne thus to the pecok for to contente hym / This is in the diposycion of the goddes / whiche haue gyuen to eyther of yow one propyrte / and one vertue / suche as it pleasyd them / As to the they haue gyuen fayr fygure / to the egle haue they gyuen strengthe / and to the nyghtyngale fayr & playsaunt songe / And so to all other byrdes / wherfore euery one must be content of that that he hath
For the myserable auarycious / the more goodes that they haue the more they desyre to haue


Aesop's Fables: Townsend (1867)
210. The Peacock and Juno
THE PEACOCK made complaint to Juno that, while the nightingale pleased every ear with his song, he himself no sooner opened his mouth than he became a laughingstock to all who heard him. The Goddess, to console him, said, 'But you far excel in beauty and in size. The splendor of the emerald shines in your neck and you unfold a tail gorgeous with painted plumage.' 'But for what purpose have I,' said the bird, 'this dumb beauty so long as I am surpassed in song?' 'The lot of each,' replied Juno, 'has been assigned by the will of the Fates--to thee, beauty; to the eagle, strength; to the nightingale, song; to the raven, favorable, and to the crow, unfavorable auguries. These are all contented with the endowments allotted to them.'


097. THE PEACOCK AND JUNO
The Peacock was greatly discontented because he had not a beautiful voice like the nightingale, and he went and complained to Juno about it. "The nightingale's song," said he, "is the envy of all the birds; but whenever I utter a sound I become a laughing-stock." The goddess tried to console him by saying, "You have not, it is true, the power of song, but then you far excel all the rest in beauty: your neck flashes like the emerald and your splendid tail is a marvel of gorgeous colour." But the Peacock was not appeased. "What is the use," said he, "of being beautiful, with a voice like mine?" Then Juno replied, with a shade of sternness in her tones, "Fate has allotted to all their destined gifts: to yourself beauty, to the eagle strength, to the nightingale song, and so on to all the rest in their degree; but you alone are dissatisfied with your portion. Make, then, no more complaints. For, if your present wish were granted, you would quickly find cause for fresh discontent."