The Panchatantra - Story 42

STORY NO. 42. FROGS RIDE A SERPENT

Mandavisarpa(Slow-glide The serpent was slowed down by age. In some manuscripts he is named Mandavisarpa or slow-poison) was an old serpent, He whose speed had slowed

down. He thought to himself, 'How can I now get a comfortable livelihood ?' Thinking out a working plan, ha went to the banks of a lake full of frogs and behaved like one in profound misery. He was seen thus by a frog which came to the edge of the waters. It asked him, 'Uncle, why don t you wander about for food to-day as usual ?' He replied, 'Friend, what desire for food can an unfortunate wretch like me have ? Last night, I went in search of food and saw a frog. I got ready to spring on him and seize him. Urged by the fear of death, he jumped into the middle of some Brahmins who were reciting scriptures near the edge of the water, and I could not see clearly the course of his flight. I searched for him and in my hunger and folly bit the toe of a Brahmin boy standing on the brink of the water, mistaking the toe for the frog. The boy died at once. Then I was cursed by his sorrowing father thus. "Oh, wicked one, you have bitten and killed my innocent son. For this crime, you are condemned for the rest of your life to carry frogs on your back and to live on whatever they are pleased to give you. So I have come to carry you".

The frog at once went and told all the other frogs. Then all went with joyous hearts to Jalapada, the King of frogs and told him everything. He and his ministers were astonished

and delighted at the news and soon came out of the water and took their seats on the snake's uplifted hood. The remaining frogs got on the back of the snake according to their order of precedence. Those who could not get seats ran behind the snake as he sped along. 

Mandavisarpa, with an eye to his future interests, displayed many and varied modes of progression. Jalapada was pleased with all this and said to him, 'I have never had such a delightful ride either on an elephant or on a horse or in palanquin carried by men.' The next day, Mandavisarpa, when ridden by Jalapada and the frog notables, went very slow with a cunning and fraudulent intent. Seeing the slowness of his gait, Jalapada asked him, 'Friend Mandavisarpa, why is it that you do not run fast to-day as usual?' Mandavisarpa said, 'Sire, owing to lack of food I am unable to bear this heavy burden and run fast.'

Jalapada said, 'Friend, eat some of the low-caste frogs.' Mandavisarpa was overjoyed and said, 'The Brahmin's curse is also this, that I should eat whatever you, the noble frogs, give me. So I am much pleased at this your order. After this, Mandavisarpa used to eat frogs incessantly and in a few days became very strong*. Contented with himself, and with a suppressed smile, he said to himself, 'These frogs which have been obtained by my fraud appear to be inexhaustible in spite of my incessantly eating them.' Jalapada, deluded by the hypocritical words of Mandavisarpa, never understood anything. 

After some time, another big serpent passed by the spot. Seeing Mandavisarpa carry frogs, he was astonished and said to him; 'Friend, these frogs are our legitimate food. It it therefore highly improper that you should carry them on your back as if you were their slave. Mandavisarpa replied, T know everything. I bide my time carrying these frogs as the Brahmin bode his time pretending to be blind with ghee. The other snake asked. What is that story ?' Mandavisarpa then related the story of "The ghee-blinded Brahmin".

Mandavisarpa said, 'So, like the Brahmin, I too am biding my time.' He smiled to himself again and said, 'How many nice different tastes frogs have! and licked his lips. Jalapada heard the talk between the serpents but could not understand it, being ignorant of the serpent tongue in which it had been carried on. Vaguely distressed in mind, he asked Mandavisarpa, 'What is it that you were saying?' Mandavisarpa replied hypocritically, 'Oh nothing very important; the usual small talk we serpents indulge in on seeing each other.' The King of the frogs was deceived by these hypocritical words and was unable to understand the wickedness of the speech. In due course, Mandavisarpa ate up all the frogs including Jalapada, and not even a single frog was left in that lake to continue the race. 

The Panchatantra - Story 41

STORY NO. 41. THE CAVE WHICH TALKED

There was once a lion named Kharanakhara(Fierce Mane) in a great forest. One day, after wandering in the forest till sunset, he found no animal to kill and eat. Just as the sun set, he saw a huge mountain cave and went into it and lay down saying to himself : "Surely

some animal will come into this cave for shelter in the night, I will hide here and spring on it and kill it when it arrives." Presently, the owner of the cave, a jackal came to the door and cried out, "Hullo cave, hullo cave!" Then after a minute's silence, he repeated his cry. There was no reply. A third time he repeated the cry and added. 

"Don't you remember our agreement that you were to say,

"hullo!" in return every night before I entered you. Well, if you are not going to keep it, I will go to another cave and make a similar agreement with it". When he heard this, the lion thought, "Obviously this cave replies to his greeting. l must say, "hullo!" lest he should go away and I go hungry for the whole day." So, he cried, 'hullo!". The roar of the lion resounded loudly and there was also a terrific echo. The jackal laughed and said : "So, that is it, is it ? I never heard a cave talk all my life," and departed from there at top speed.

The Panchatantra - Story 40

STORY NO. 40. THE BIRD WITH DUNG OF GOLD

There was once a bird living on a mountain side which used to drop dung of gold. One day, a hunter saw this phenomenon and was amazed, as he had never seen such thing before. He trapped the bird and caught it. Then he thought that if he kept the, bird to himself the secret would leak out and the king, who had made the production of gold a state monopoly, would punish him. 

So, he took the bird to the king and gave it to him saying, "Sir, this is a valuable bird which will drop dung of pure gold. I have brought it to Your Majesty as a present."The King said to his ministers, "What a wonderful phenomenon ! Let us watch it."The ministers said : "Sir, whoever heard of a bird which dropped dung of gold ? How can you believe that illiterate fool, who speaks such an incredible thing?"The king was taken in by the advice of the ministers and he freed the bird. 

The Panchatantra - Story 39

STORY NO. 39. MOUSE MADE MOUSE AGAIN

On the banks of the Ganges, where it flows down from giant masses of rock with a deafening noise which frightens the fish, where the river is covered with white foam and waves are unceasing, there was a hermitage. In that hermitage there were several sages

who were engaged in pious readings and recitations and sacrifices, who drank only the pure water of the river, ate only roots, bulbs and green leaves, and wore only the barks of trees. The head of the hermitage was Yagnavalkva. One day, he finished his bath in the river and was about to return when a hawk above his head dropped on him a female baby mouse.

The gentle sage, moved by pity, put it on a banyan leaf and bathed again to purify himself from the touch of this animal. He then transformed the mouse into a tiny female baby by the power of his austerities and took her to the hermitage and said to his childless wife, "My dear, take this baby, tend her as if she were

born from your own womb, and bring her up with every care/ She accordingly brought up the baby most carefully and affectionately. When the girl became twelve years old, Yagnavalkya's wife said to her husband, "Dearest, why are you not bestirring yourself? Your daughter's marriage is overdue". He replied, 'Darling, you are right. She has now attained the age prescribed in our Sastras for marriage. She has learnt how to keep her body clean with proper ablutions, music has been taught to her, she is an adept at cooking, and she has been initiated into the mysteries of learning.

Now is the time to seek out a suitable bridegroom for her. Marriages have to be entered into with persons of equal wealth and birth. The seven things to be considered in marriage are family, character, relations, learning, wealth,, physical fitness and age. Wise men can only look to these things. The rest are too uncertain to be considered. So, if the girl is agreeable to it, I shall call the sun and marry her to him.' His wife said, ' What harm

is there? Do so,' So the sage sent for the sun. The sun came and asked, ' Venerable sir, why have you called me?' He replied, 'Here is my daughter. Kindly marry her., Then, turning to his daughter, he said, ' Daughter, what do you say to the idea of your marrying this god who lights the three worlds(Earth, Heaven, and nether regions)?". She replied, 'Father, he is too hot. I do not therefore like him. Please send for a greater one than he".

Hearing this, the sage asked the sun, ' Who is greater than you?' The sun replied, "The cloud is greater than I. If he covers me, I am completely hidden and rendered invisible". The sage sent for the cloud and asked his daughter, 'Child, shall I give you in marriage to this powerful being?' She replied, 'He is black and very

moist. Ascertain from him who is more powerful than he and give me to him.' The sage asked the cloud, ' Is there any one greater than you?' The cloud replied, 'Yes, the air is greater than I for he is making me fly about from place to place.' The sage then called the air and said to his daughter, 'Child, I shall give you to this being.' She replied, 'Father, he is very fickle and undependable. So get me some one more powerful than he.' The sage asked the air, 'Is there any one greater than you?' The air replied, 'The mountain is far stronger than I, for my best efforts to move him fail miserably.' 

So the sage sent for the mountain and said to his daughter, ' Child, shall I give you in marriage to him?' She replied, 'Father, he is hard-hearted and is also motionless like a

pillar despite the sight of my great beauty. Give me to another.' The sage asked the mountain, 'Is there any greater than you?' He replied, 'The mouse is more powerful than I, for he burrows holes in my sides.' The sage sent for the mouse and asked his daughter, 'Child, shall I give you in marriage to him ?' She saw the mouse, a sense of kinship and same caste overwhelmed her, she had horripilation(the erection of hairs on the skin due to cold, fear, or excitement), and she said shyly to her father, 'Father, make me into a mouse and give me in marriage to him. I shall discharge all the duties of the household when happily married to him.' The sage made the maiden a mouse again by the power of his austerity and gave her in marriage to the mouse. 

The Panchatantra - Story 38

STORY NO. 38. A FOOL'S REJOICING

There was once a carpenter whose wife was an adulteress. Rumours of her unchastity were prevalent everywhere and was common knowledge in the town. The carpenter was troubled by these rumours and wanted to test how far they were true. He thought to himself, "How can I test her? What is the use of testing her chastity? It is so much useless

labour spent. Nothing is gained by scrutinising the origin of a river, or a family, or a sage, or a Mahatma, or testing the chastity of a woman. From the casual union of a sage born of a demi-god and a maiden born of a fish came the immortal Vyasa(Vyasa was the result of a casual union between Parasara, a sage born of a demigod, and Satyavati. a lady recovered from the belly of a fish) with a hundred good qualities and unparalleled intellectual brilliance, the progenitor of the extinct famous race of the Kurus, and the model on earth of a good man.

The ways of Fate are indeed curious and inexplicable. Now, let us take the family. The celebrated family of the Pandavas consisted of five sons all of whom were born to a woman by others than her husband. The inquiry into the alleged unchastity of a woman only brings about the many bad qualities of women and casts suspicion on the whole race. Fire may become cool and the Moon hot. but a wicked woman will never be chaste. But it is still desirable that I should find out the truth of these rumours about my wife. I now know her to be pure or otherwise only from what people say and not from my own knowledge, and no wise man should trust mere hearsay. It is wonderful how rumour works. That which is not in the Vedas or the Sastras, that which was never seen or heard, all that concerning the whole of this Universe is known to Dame Rumour". 

Thus thinking he told his wife, 'Beloved, I am going abroad tomorrow morning and shall be absent from home for some days. So, please get ready for me the provisions for my journey.' Hearing this, she was delighted and with an energy born of joy, got ready for him in no time various kinds of sweetmeats and ready-made foods. Well has it been said,

'Great is the delight felt by an adulterous woman on rainy days and dark nights when the streets are rendered impassable and on days when her husband is abroad.' Early in the morning of the next day, the carpenter started on his journey. As soon as he had gone, his wife put on her best dress and ornaments, and went to the house of her admirer Devadatta, who had often cast yearning glances at her, and told him, 'The devil of my husband has gone abroad and will not return for some days. So come tonight to my house and let us enjoy to our hearts' content.' He had not hoped for such an easy conquest, and agreed with delight. The carpenter passed the whole day in a wood adjoining the town, and at dusk, when his wife was busy adorning herself for the encounter with her lover, entered the house by the back door which was left open by her, and, unseen by her, went and hid himself under the cot. 

Devadatta came shorty afterwards and sat upon the cot over which the bed had already been spread. On seeing him, the carpenter was filled with anger and said to himself, 'Shall I rise up at once and do this villain to death? Or shall I wait till he and she consort together and sleep and then dispatch them both with ease? Well, let me first watch their movements and hear what she talks to him,' Soon, his wife came to the room, bolted the door, and eagerly mounted the cot. In doing so, her right leg touched the carpenter's body. With remarkable intuition characteristic of such women, she said to herself, 'Surely, this must be the devil of ray husband concealing himself here in order to test my chastity, I shall show him how clever a woman can be.' 

When she was thinking thus, Devadatta was dying with eagerness to embrace her. She folded her bands in supplication to him and said, ' Oh great soul, I am the model of chastity and am ever faithful to my husband.' He was nonplussed by this and asked, 'If that is so, why did you send for me?' She said, ' Listen attentively. I go everyday to the Kali temple near by for worshipping. This morning when I was in the temple the goddess said

to me, "Daughter, what can I do for you ? You are my devoted worshipper, but Fate has ordained that your husband shall die within six months from to-day and you become a widow." I then said, " Oh goddess, you who know about this calamity must surely also know how to avert it. Pray, suggest to me some way by which ray husband will live for a hundred years." 

She said, " Daughter, there is a way to avert it but it is almost impossible for you to follow it." At that I asked her, " Goddess, please tell it to me. Even though it costs me my life, I shall do it." Then the goddess said to me, "You will have to sacrifice more than your life if you are to save him. To a chaste woman like you, your chastity is more precious than a hundred lives. If you are to save your husband, yon must make the supremest sacrifice that can be demanded of a chaste woman. You must invite to your bed a man other than your husband and embrace him there. By doing this alone will your husband be saved from this untimely death and live for a hundred years." I told her, " Goddess, no sacrifice is too dear for saving the life of my precious husband though the one you have named is the cruellest of all." I returned from the temple and sent for you in order to adopt the only course to save my husband. So, at once embrace me and be done with it. I am firmly convianced that what the gods say cannot but be true.' 

Then Devadatta and she embraced each other. When this was over, 'she told Devadatta, 'Great soul, you have saved my husband by complying with my request. I too, by doing the cruellest sacrifice a chaste woman can do, have saved my beloved husband who is ray god, my beloved, and my soul's salvation. Go thy way now and let me await for the return of my husband now assured of a hundred years. I only wish that he were dere now to embrace me in this new joy and to console me in this, my terrible sacrifice.' The foolish carpenter was deluded by his wife's tale. At these last words of hers, he sprang up from underneath the cot and said to his wife, 'Oh beloved, oh model of chastity, oh soul of purity, oh delight of my family, embrace me forthwith and forgive me for my lie to you. Misled by the rumours of the malicious populace, I suspected your chastity and wanted to test it. So I told you falsely that I would be going abroad for some days and crept slyly under this cot in the evening, entering the house through the back door when you were engaged otherwise. Forgive me for my suspecting such a model of chastity who has all the while been thinking of my welfare and has made the cruellest sacrifice a chaste woman can make in order to save me from untimely death and to make me live a hundred years.' He then caught her in his arms and embraced her fervently. Then he told Devadatta, 'Oh great soul, you have come here by my good fortune. Owing to your acceding to ray wife's desire, I am now assured of a hundred years.' With that he embraced him also Then taking his wife and the bewildered and unwilling Devadatta on either shoulder, he danced about in the house in a delirium of joy and from there rushed on into the street exhibiting them at every door to the wonder and astonishment of all householders. 

The Panchatantra - Story 37

STORY NO. 37. THE SNAKE IN THE PRINCE'S BELLY

There was a king called Devasakti in a certain kingdom. He had an only son who was the crown prince. But this prince was afflicted by a snake in his belly(Round worms and several worms which can be almost as long; as small snakes will have this effect) and began to grow thinner and thinner and waste away. Devasakti was stricken with sorrow. He went to several temples and prayed to the deities there to rid his son of the snake in

the belly. On the advice of his ministers he also got his son married to a princess from a neighboring kingdom. 

That princess was an intelligent girl. One day, when she returned after shopping, she found her husband asleep with his head resting on an ant-hill. The snake in the belly was jutting out its head from the mouth. The snake from the ant-hill had also jutted its head through the hole and the two snakes saw each other, They become angry with one another. 

The snake from the ant-hill cried out to the snake in the prince's belly : You fellow, you are possessing this handsome prince." The snake in the prince's belly cried out to the snake in the ant-hill : "You fellow, you are possessing two pots of gold in that ant-hill." The snake in the ant-hill cried out: "You fool, if a concoction of black mustard, long pepper and omum is drunk you are finished." The snake in the princess belly cried out : " Boiling water poured into your hale will finish you off, you fool The princess heard this conversation. She gave her husband a concoction of black mustard, long pepper and omum, and killed the snake in his belly and made him hale and hearty. She poured pots of boiling water into the ant-hill and killed the snake there and dug up the ant-hill and got the two pots of gold. 

The Panchatantra - Story 36

STORY NO. 36. THE BRAHMIN, THIEF AND OGRE

There was once a poor Brahmin in a certain village. He lived on the gifts he got. He had few luxuries. He did not even have money enough to have a shave every day, or to have

his nails pared, Heat and cold, wind and rain and lack of proper nourishment dried him up. One day, a rich man, who had lost his father, gifted this Brahmin two calves for the departed soul's benefit. The Brahmin tended them carefully on fine grass and gave them good nourishment and made them very plump.

They soon grew up to be hand some cows. A thief had his eye on them and wanted to steal them. As he was approaching the house, he saw an ogre, with sharp protruding teeth and lage eyes and hollow cheeks. The thief was frightened at this sight and asked him: " Who are you. Sir?" The ogre said, "I am an ogre going to that Brahmin's house in order to

eat him up. Who are you?" The thief said that he was a thief going to the Brahmin's house to steal his cows. Then they both proceeded to the Brahmin's house and hid in a convenient place inside, waiting for an opportunity to start their operations. When the Brahmin went to sleep, the ogre rose in order to go and eat him. The thief said to him : "Wait a minute, let me steal his cows before you eat him up and raise an alarm." The ogre said : " Let me do the eating first. If you do the stealing first, an alarm will be raised, and my eating will be frustrated." 

They both began to argue long and loud as to who was to move first and achieve his object. The hubbub woke up the Brahmin. The thief cried out to him : "Brahmin, this ogre wants to eat you up." The ogre said: "Brahmin, this thief wants to steal your cows." The Brahmin then uttered a mantra and made the ogre flee. He raised a shout and took a club and rushed at the thief who fled to save himself.