There was once a powerful lion called Bhasuraka who ruled the jungle. He was merciless and killed other animals indiscriminately.


One day, all the animals went together to the lion to surrender. They said, "O Master, you kill many of us every day without necessity. One animal a day is enough to satisfy your hunger. Please come to an understanding. Starting from today, we promise to offer one amongst us to you every day. In this way, you will not have to hunt and many of our lives will be spared."

Hearing this, the lion agreed, "It is true, but I warn you, if I do not receive an animal every day, I shall proceed to kill every one of you."

In accordance to the understanding, the animals drew lots, and the unlucky animal that got chosen was sent to the lion. The others roamed about the jungle without any fear of being attacked by the lion.

One day, a hare was chosen. Unwilling to become the lion's food, he started for the lion's den. He walked as slowly as possible.

On the way, the hare came across a well. It peeked down from the edge and when it saw it's own reflection, he hit upon a plan.

He thought, "I have a plan that will not fail. I will deceive the lion and lead him to his death". On this, the hare walked towards the lion's den, even slower than before.

Finally, when the hare reached the lion's den, the lion was hungry and furious. He had been waiting for his food for the entire day.

He licked his lips in hunger, and thought of killing as many animals the next morning as he could. While he was thinking so, the hare approached the lion and humbly bowed.

The furious lion began to shout, "You are a miserable animal. You are not only late, but also very small. I will first kill you and satisfy my hunger, and then kill all the rest of the animals for doing this to me".

The hare replied humbly, "O Master, It is neither my fault nor the fault of any other animal. Please allow me to explain before you kill me".

The lion roared, "Be quick. Give me an explanation fast for I am very hungry".

The hare started, "Today it was my turn to be offered to you. But because I am small and would not be able to satisfy your hunger, four more hares were sent along with me".

On the way, we met a lion who came out of his den and roared, and got ready to eat us. We pleaded to him that we were going to fulfil our master's hunger as promised every day.

He roared, "I am the master of this jungle. From today, you will offer yourselves to me and none other. The other lion is an imposter. If not, let him accept my challenge to a trial of strength. Whoever proves to be stronger, will rule the jungle. I will allow one of you hares to carry this message to him, and hold the rest of you as hostages."

The hare humbly continued, "This is the reason only I, among the five of us, am here. I have arrived late for the same reason. Please take action that you think will be best". On hearing this, the lion grew even more furious. He roared, "Take me to this pretender at once. I will destroy him. Only after that will my anger be quenched."

The hare quickly replied, "O master, I must warn you that this lion stays inside a very strong den. It is difficult to attack someone who takes shelter in a stronghold. Furthermore, I have seen him myself, he seemed very strong".

The lion roared, "That is not your concern. Take me to him at once".

The hare then led the lion to the well he had come across on his way.

On reaching, the hare pointed towards the well and said to the lion, "O master, we have no doubt on your powers. The lion has hidden himself inside that stronghold".

The witless lion stood at the edge of the well, and saw his own reflection in the water below. He thought it to be the lion who had challenged him.

He roared at his reflection with all might and fury. The roar sounded back, re-echoed from the well.

On hearing this, the lion got furious and leapt inside the well to attack his own reflection. He got drowned.

The hare was very happy that his plan had worked successfully. He danced his way back to the other animals and told them what had happened.

The other animals gave the hare a hero's welcome and praised his cleverness. From then onwards, the animals roamed about the jungle happily.

The wise indeed say:
Deceive the wicked and destroy them without mercy.

A heron lived near a big lake, which was full of fishes and other water creatures.


The heron had grown so old, that he could not catch fishes from the lake anymore.

He became lean and weak with every passing day due to lack of food. Unable to bear the hunger anymore, he hit upon a plan.

As planned, he sat at the edge of the lake for everybody to see, and began crying.

On seeing this, a crab took pity on him and went near, "Uncle, What is the matter? Why are you crying instead to catching fishes?"

Continuing to pretend, the heron replied, "My child, I would not touch any fish anymore. I have decided to renounce all worldly matters, and vowed to undertake a fast unto death".

The crab asked, "If you have indeed renounced worldly matters, why is it that you cry?"

The heron explained, "My child, I have been in this lake from my birth. I have grown here. And it now that I have grown so old that I hear that this lake will dry up as there will be no rains for the next twelve years".

The crab was surprised to hear this, "Uncle, please tell me if it is true. Please tell me where you have heard such thing."

The heron replied, "I have heard the news from a wise astrologer that there will be no rains for the next twelve years. You see, there is already not much water in the lake. And very soon, due to lack of rains, the lake will dry up completely very soon."

The crab was taken aback by the news of what is to befall on them, and went to tell this to the other water creatures. On hearing this piece of news, everybody started to panic.

They believed the heron, as he was not trying to catch any fish at all. So, they met the heron to seek advice, "Please guide us to save us from this disaster"

The heron said, "There is indeed a lake not far from here. It is full of water, and beautifully covered with lotus flowers. There is so much water in the lake, that it would not dry even if it did not rain for twenty four years. I can take you there, if you can ride on my back."

He had already gained their confidence. So, they gathered around him and requested to carry them one at a time to the other lake and save them.

The wicked heron had succeeded in his plan. Every day, he would carry one of them on his back pretending to take them to the other lake.

After flying a little away from the lake, he would smash them against a rock and eat them up. He would then return after some time to the lake and relate false messages how they are happy in the other lake.

This happened for many days, when the crab said to the heron, "Uncle, you take others to the lake but it is me who is your first friend. Please take me to the other lake to save my life."

The heron was happy to hear this. He thought to himself, "Having a fish everyday has become monotonous. It is good that I will get to eat a crab today, for a change."

Having thus decided, the heron started carrying the crab to the same rock. The crab looked down from above and saw the heap of bones and skeletons. At once, the crab understood what the heron was up to.

He remained calm, and said to the heron, "Uncle, the lake seems far and I am quite heavy. You must be getting tired, let us stop for some rest".

The heron was confident that there was no way the crab can escape from him in the sky. The heron replied, "There is no lake for real. This trip is for my own meal. As I do every day, I will smash you against a rock and make a meal out of you."

When the heron confessed the truth, the crab got hold of the heron's neck with its strong claws, and strangled him to death.

The crab laughed at himself that he had saved himself and the other water creatures from the trick played by the heron. He dragged the heron back to the lake.
  The other water creatures in the lake were surprised to see him back. They became curious, and asked all sort of questions.

The crab laughed and replied, "We were being made fools! The heron was an imposter and what he told about the lake drying up was all false. He was taking one of us every day for his meal in a rock not far from here."

He proudly said, "I understood what he was up to, and have killed the trickster. There is no need to worry, for we are safe in this lake. It is not going to dry up at all."


The wise indeed say:
When things go wrong, use your wit to overcome the situation.

There was a big banyan tree, where two crows - husband and wife, had prepared a nice nest and made it their home. In the hollow of the same tree, lived a black cobra.


The crows had a problem because the black cobra would climb up the tree and eat the newborns, whenever the female crow hatched her eggs. They could do nothing to save them.

The crows went to a jackal, who lived in a nearby banyan tree, to seek his advice. They narrated everything to him and requested his advice for them to get rid of their problem.

They said, "O Friend, It has become dangerous to live here. Please tell us how we can protect our children from being eaten up by the wicked black cobra."

The jackal replied, "Please don't give up. Even powerful enemies can be overcome with the use of wit."

On hearing this, the crows requested, "O Friend, please tell us how we can overcome and destroy this wicked cobra."

The jackal told them a plan, "Fly into the capital of the kingdom, not far from here. Visit the house of someone who is wealthy and careless at the same time. Notice if something of value is lying around. If you find so, pick it up when the servants are watching you."

He continued, "You will need to fly slowly so that the servants can follow you. Return back to your tree and drop it in the hollow of the tree where the cobra lives. When the servants reach, they will kill the cobra when they see it."

The crows decided to follow the jackal's advice and flew off immediately according to his plan.

As they flew above the capital, the female crow noticed wealthy women swimming in a lake. They had left gold and pearl necklaces on the banks of the lake, which were guarded by royal servants.

At once the female crow swooped down, and picked up a big necklace in her beak, and started flying slowly.

When the royal servants noticed her, they picked up sticks and stones, and started throwing at her, and ran to chase her.
  As planned, she dropped the necklace in front of the hollow of the tree, where the black cobra was asleep. She sat on one of the branches for the royal servants to notice.

When the royal servants arrived, the black cobra came out of the hollow of the tree to see what all the noise was about. The black cobra confronted the king's servants with swelling hood, but the servants attacked the cobra with sticks and stones to recover the necklace.

They killed the wicked cobra, and returned with the necklace. And the crows, having gotten rid of the cobra, lived happily.

The wise indeed say:
Even a very powerful enemy can be destroyed through deceit.
 

One day while a sage was going through a jungle, he saw two golden rams (billy goats) fighting each other.


Even though both were wounded, and blood was oozing out from their heads and bodies, they did not stop fighting and rammed at each other.

At the same time, a hungry jackal was passing by. When he saw all the blood, he started licking the blood from the ground without caring for the fighting rams.

Watching all this, the sage thought to himself, "This jackal is a fool as it has become greedy by the smell of blood. If he comes between the fighting rams, it will get rammed and get hurt himself".
No sooner had the sage thought of it, the jackal craving for more blood came nearer to the fighting rams, and got caught in the middle of their fight.

Both the rams rammed into him by mistake. He got hit on his head, and fell down because he was severely wounded.


The wise indeed say:
Do not close your eyes to the impending danger due to greed.

Once upon a time, there was a sage called Deva Sharma who lived in a temple in the outskirts of a town.


He was widely known and respected. People would visit him, and offer him with gifts, food, money and garments to seek his blessings. The gifts that he did not need for himself, he would sell off, and got rich on the proceeds.

And by nature, he trusted nobody.

He never trusted anybody. So, he kept all his money in a bag which he carried under his arm all the time. He would not part with the bag for a single moment.

One day, a swindler came across the sage, and he became sure that the bag this holy man was so possessive of, must surely contain a lot of treasure.

He planned on stealing the bag from the sage, but could not think of a way to do so. He thought, "I cannot make a hole in the temple wall, or jump over the high gates. But I can charm him with sweet words to accept me as his disciple."

He wondered, "If I can stay with him as a disciple, I can win his confidence. When I get an opportunity, I will rob him, and leave this place."

Having planned so, the swindler approached the holy man with reverence, "Om Namah Shivaya! (I bow before Lord Shiva, the God of Destruction)"

With these words, he fell on the sage's feet and said, "O Guruji, Please guide me to the right path of life. I am fed-up with life, and want to seek peace."

The sage kindly replied, "My son, I will surely guide you. You are blessed because you have come to me to seek peace at this young age".

This was the opportunity the swindler was seeking, and he at once touched the feet of the sage for blessings, "O Guruji, please accept me as your disciple. I will do whatever you ask me to do."

The sage accepted the swindler as his disciple, but only on a condition. He said, "A holy man as me is recommended to spend the night alone without company. This helps me to meditate also. So, you will not be allowed to enter the temple at night. You will sleep in a hut at the gate of the temple."

The swindler agreed, "I shall willingly serve your wishes in every way that you ask me to."

In the evening, the sage initiated the rituals and formally took the swindler as his disciple.

The swindler in return proved himself an obedient disciple. He massaged his hands and feet, washed his feet, and helped him with all the rituals along with cleaning the temple. Although the sage was happy with his disciple, the swindler could not gain enough confidence for the sage to part with his bag when he was around.

As days passed by, the swindler started getting frustrated, "He does not trust me enough to leave the bag with me. I can gain access to the bag if I kill him with a knife or feed him with poison."

When he was thinking all this, the swindler saw a young boy visit the sage. He was the son of one of the sage's followers. He invited the sage, "O Guruji, I have come here personally to invite you to our house for the ceremony of sacred thread. Please accept the invitation to sanctify the ceremony with your kind presence."

The sage accepted the invitation, and after some time started off for the town with the swindler. On the way, they came across a river, where the sage thought of relieving himself. He folded the bagful of money in his robe. He asked his disciple to look after it, "My child, Look after the robe until I return".

This was the opportunity that the swindler was seeking all the while. As soon as the sage went behind the bushes, the swindler ran away with the bagful of money.

When the sage returned, he did not find the disciple around but found his robe lying on the ground. Shocked and anxious, he peered inside only to find his bag of money was gone.

At once he knew what had happened, and began to shout, "Oh. Where are you, you rascal. You have robbed me."

The sage then started trailing the swindler's footsteps, but he reached town. He knew he will not be able to catch hold of him. He stayed the night in town to return empty-handed to his temple next morning.


The wise indeed say:
Do not be taken in by the sweet words of a swindler.

In a city called Vardhamana, lived a very efficient and prosperous merchant.


The king was aware of his abilities, and therefore made him the administrator of the kingdom.

With his efficient and intelligent ways, he kept common man very happy, and at the same time he impressed the king on the other side. Such a person, who can keep everybody happy, is rarely found.

Later, there came a time that the merchant's daughter was getting married. He arranged for a lavish reception.

The merchant not only invited the king and the queen, who obliged by attending, but he also invited the entire royal household and all respected people of the kingdom.

During the reception, he ensured to provide his guests with the best of treatments. He gave out gifts to guests to show them respect for attending to his invitation.

A servant of the royal household, who used to sweep the palace, was not invited but attended the reception.

He took a seat which was reserved for royal nobles, not meant for common invitees.

This made the merchant very angry. He caught him by the neck and ordered his servants to have him thrown out.

The royal servant felt very insulted, and could not sleep all night. He thought, "If I can have the king to disfavour this merchant, I will have my revenge. But what can I, a common fellow, do to harm a powerful person as him". Thinking such, he suddenly had a plan.

Several days later, the servant was sweeping the floor near the king's bed early in the morning. He observed that that the king was still in bed, half awake. The servant started mumbling, "Good heavens! The merchant has become so carefree now that he dared to embrace the queen!"

When the king heard this lying in his bed, he jumped up and asked the servant, "Is it true? Have you seen the merchant embrace my queen yourself?"

The servant at once fell at the king's feet, "O Master, I was gambling all night. I feel drowsy for I didn't sleep last night. I don't know what I have been mumbling, but I said anything improper, please forgive me."

The king spoke no more, but the servant knew he had sowed the seed of distrust. The king thought, "It can be true! The servant moves about the palace freely, and so does the merchant. It is possible that the servant has seen something."

The king was troubled with jealousy. From that day onwards, he withdrew his favours from the merchant and even forbade him to enter the palace.

One day, when the merchant was entering the gateway to the palace, he was stopped by the guards. The merchant was surprised due to this sudden change in the king's attitude.

The servant was nearby, and mocking shouted at the guards, "Ho Guards! That merchant is favoured by the king. He is a powerful person. He can have people arrested or released or even thrown out, just like he had me thrown out of his daughter's reception. Beware, for you may suffer the same fate."

On hearing this, the merchant understood that the servant has caused all this trouble somehow. He felt dejected, and returned home upset over the incident.

He gave everything a second thought, and then he invited the royal servant to his house. He treated the servant with utmost respect, and flattered him with gifts and garments. He said kindly, "O friend, that day I did not have you thrown out due to anger, but it was improper of you to occupy the seat reserved for the royal nobles. They felt insulted, and out of compulsion I had to throw you out. Please forgive me."

The servant was already flattered with all the gifts, and he was full of joy, "Sir, I forgive you. You have not only expressed your regrets, but also honoured me with utmost respect".

He ensured the merchant, "I will prove you how clever I am. I will have the king favourable towards you, like he was before". The servant went back home. Early next morning, when he started sweeping the floors of the palace, he waited till when the king was lying half-awake.

When the opportunity came, he started sweeping around his bed and started mumbling, "Our king is crazy, he eats cucumber in the lavatory!"

On hearing this, the king was taken aback. He got up angrily and shouted at the servant, "What nonsense do you talk about? Had you not been by royal servant, I would have punished you dearly. Have you ever seen me doing such thing yourself?"

Once again the servant fell on his knees and prayed, "O Master, please forgive me if I said something improper. I was gambling all last night and didn't sleep. I feel drowsy and I don't know what I have been mumbling."

The king thought to himself, "I have never eaten a cucumber in the lavatory. What he mumbled about me is ridiculously false. Surely then, what he mumbled about my trusted merchant the other morning must have been ridiculously false too. It was improper of me to mistreat the merchant."

He wondered, "After all he has been so efficient in the whole administrative system, that without him it has become slack."

Thus, having considered carefully, the king invited the merchant to the palace and flattered him with gifts, jewels and garments. He re-appointed the merchant to his previously held position, and favoured his services as before.

The wise indeed say:
One should treat one and all, even the lowest, with respect.
 

One day, a jackal called Gomaya was very hungry, and was wandering about in search of food.


After some time, he wandered out of the jungle he lived in, and reached a deserted battlefield.

In this deserted battlefield, a battle was fought recently. The fighting armies had left behind a drum, which was lying near a tree.

As strong winds blew, the branches of the tree got rubbed against the drum. This made a strange noise.

When the jackal heard this sound, he got very frightened and thought of running away, "If I cannot flee from here before I am seen by the person making all this noise, I will be in trouble".
  As he was about to run away, he had a second thought. "It is unwise to run away from something without knowing. Instead, I must be careful in finding out the source of this noise".

He took the courage to creep forward cautiously. When he saw the drum, he realized that it was only the wind that was causing all the noise.

He continued his search for food, and near the drum he found sufficient food and water.

The wise indeed say:
Only the brave succeed in life.

There was once a merchant who employed many carpenters and masons to build a temple in his garden. Regularly, they would start work in the morning;
and take a break for the mid-day meals, and return to resume work till evening.

One day, a group of monkey arrived at the site of the building and watched the workers leaving for their mid-day meals.

One of the carpenters was sawing a huge log of wood. Since, it was only half-done; he placed a wedge in between to prevent the log from closing up. He then went off along with the other workers for his meal.

When all the workers were gone, the monkeys came down from the trees and started jumping around the site, and playing with the instruments. There was one monkey, who got curious about the wedge placed between the log. He sat down on the log, and having placed himself in between the half-split log, caught hold of the wedge and started pulling at it.

All of a sudden, the wedge came out. As a result, the half-split log closed in and the monkey got caught in the gap of the log.

As was his destiny, he was severely wounded.

The wise indeed say:
One, who interferes in other's work, surely comes to grief.