The old man of the sea is an ancient Eastern story that has many versions but the simplest of all goes something like this. There is a young sailor walking the cliff paths who happens upon an old beggar sitting by the path, wizened and small, who asks the sailor if he would give him a helping hand to the next village. The sailor readily agrees and hoists the main onto his shoulders. But the old man of the sea never lets go and immediately he starts kicking the sailor and holds on so tight he could barely breathe and he had to go wherever the old man told him to go like a donkey responding to his kicks.
This goes on for months until one day the sailor slips and falls and the old man hits his head and is slightly dazed. Feeling the death grip lessen the sailor makes off to enjoy his freedom.
You may take many ideas from this amongst which might be: good deeds can cause us grief, you can get out of almost any situation depending upon how cruel you want to be, and people do not like being treated the same way they treat animals.