Panchatantra Stories – Part -3 Third Strategy: -2

Panchatantra Stories 

 Third Strategy: - 

Loss Of Gains:

The Croc and The Monkey

Vishnu Sarma begins his fourth Tantra with the following stanza:

“He overcomes all problems
Who does not lose his cool
Even in the face of adversity
Like the monkey in the water.”

Raktamukha was a monkey living on a blackberry tree near the coast. That tree was always full of fruits. One day a crocodile named Karalamukha came out of the waters and loitering on the sands came to the tree.
Seeing the croc, the monkey said, “O croc, you are my guest. I will feed you with these delicious blackberries. Enjoy the fare. The learned have said,

“That man is blessed who hosts
A lover or an enemy or a fool.
Angels will desert the home
That fails to host a guest.”

The monkey then gave the crock a lot of berries. After he had his fill, Karalamukha went home. Thereafter, it became a habit with the croc to daily visit Raktamukha, enjoy the fruit he offered, spend time with him discussing the world and then go home.
One day, the croc’s wife asked her husband, “Where do you get this fruit, they are so sweet. I have never tasted such mouth-watering fruit.”
“I have a close friend, a monkey, who gives me the fruit every day,” said the husband.
“If the fruit are so sweet, the heart of your friend who eats them everyday must be as delicious as the fruit. Please get his heart for me, if you have love left for me. I will always be young and immortal if I eat that fruit,” said the wife.
“My dear, it is improper for you to speak like that. I have accepted him as my brother. It is not possible for me to kill such a host. Please be reasonable. The elders have said,

“From mother we get our first relative,
A good word brings the second relative
Who is more precious than a brother.”

 

Angry, the wife said, “You have never defied my word. It must be a female monkey who is your friend. That’s why you are spending so much time with him every day. I have now understood you thoroughly. Your heart is full of that monkey. You are a cheat.”
Karalamukha, wanting to pacify his wife, said, ““My dear, why are you angry? I am your most obedient servant and ready to carry out your order at any time.”
“No, she is dear to you. If you really love me, why don’t you kill her and get me her heart. If you don’t get it, I will fast and die,” threatened the wife.
Worried, the croc went to the monkey. Seeing that the croc was late for his daily meeting, Raktamukha said, “You are late and do not seem to be cheerful. What’s the matter?”
“O my friend, how can I tell you what happened at home. My wife is very angry. She told me that I am an ungrateful friend and that every day I eat the fruit you offer but never had the courtesy of inviting you home. You have no redemption; she told me and warned me that if I did not bring you home, I would see her only in the other world. These arguments with her have delayed me. Please come with me. My wife has decorated the house fit to receive you. She has hung welcome buntings at the entrance. She is eagerly waiting for me to bring you home.”
The monkey said, “Your wife has said the proper thing. You should leave a man who loves you for your wealth like the spider attracts his prey. She might as well have quoted the elders saying,

“Where there is no give and take
Where there is no exchange of secrets
And of hospitality either
There is no true friendship.”

“There is a problem, however. We are all land animals. You live in water. It may not be possible for me to accept your kind invitation. I advise you to bring her here,” said the monkey.
“It’s really no problem,” said the croc. “Our house is on a sandbank. It’s a beautiful place. Sit on my back. I will carry you.”
The monkey happily sat on the back of the croc and the journey began. As the croc was entering deep waters, the monkey got scared and told the croc to go slowly.
Thinking that the monkey was his prisoner now, Karalamukha told Raktamukha, “It is now safe to tell you our plan. My wife wanted me to create trust in you first and persuade you to accept our invitation and then kill you so that we may have the good fortune of feasting on your heart.”
With great presence of mind, the monkey said, “My friend, if this is what you and your wife wanted, why didn’t you tell me in the beginning itself? My heart is safely stored in the burrow of the tree. What is the use of your taking me home without my heart? Let us go back. There is nothing happier for me than giving my heart to your wife.” Happy, the croc turned back and brought the monkey to the shore.
The monkey at once leapt to the top of the blackberry tree and thought, “We should not trust an untrustworthy person, even if we did, it should not be total. Such trust will destroy us completely. This is a rebirth for me.”
The croc was in a hurry and asked the monkey, “What is the delay? Get you heart. My wife will be very happy.”
The monkey angrily told him, “You idiot, have you seen anyone who has two hearts? You are ungrateful. Get out of my sight and never come this way again. People who are hungry stoop to any level like Priyadarsana.” The croc asked him to tell the story of Priyadarsana.
Raktamukha told him the following story.

The Greedy Cobra and The King Of Frogs

A big well was the home of Gangadatta, king of frogs. Unable to bear harassment by his relatives, the king abandoned his kingdom and came out of the well and thought,

“He who certainly retaliates
Him who harmed him in peril
And ridiculed him in misery
Is a man without rebirth.”

Deeply lost in such thoughts, the frog king saw a big cobra entering the burrow of a tree and thought, “We must set an enemy to fight an enemy, set a strong person to crush another strong person. Their end will bring us happiness.”
With this aim in view, he went to the burrow and called the cobra, “Priyadarsana, please come out.”
The cobra, however, was careful. He thought, “Who is this fellow? He does not seem to be one of us. I don’t have any friends outside my circle. I will stay inside and find out who the caller is. He could be a magician or someone seeking my help in killing his enemy.”
Then, the cobra shouted from inside, “Who are you, sir?”
"I am Gangadatta, king of frogs. I have come to seek your help,” said the caller.
“I cannot believe you. Can there be friendship between a blade of dry grass and fire? Haven’t the learned said that he, who is natural prey to the predator never, even in a dream, gets closer to him? I cannot trust your words,” said the cobra.
“O Priyadarsana, what I tell you is true. You are my born enemy. But I have come to you seeking help to avenge my humiliation. The learned have said,

“When your life is under threat
When danger stares you in the face
It is better to bend before an enemy
And save life and property.”

“Who humiliated you,” asked the cobra.
“It is my relatives.”
“Where do you live? Is it a well or a pond or a tank?”
“It is a well with stone walls.”
“But I have no legs. How can I reach the well and kill your enemies?”
“Sir, please don’t say no. I will show you how to enter the well. There is a crevice in the wall that opens into the well. It’s a nice hiding place for you. Come, I will show you,” said Gangadatta, king of frogs.
The cobra then thought, “I have become old. Rarely can I get a frog to eat. This fellow has come to give me a new lease of life. I will go with him and have a daily feast of frogs.”
Addressing the king of frogs, the cobra said, “Let’s go.”
“But there is a condition,” said Gangadatta, “Priyadarsana, I will take you there and show you the place. But you should spare frogs that are close to me. You should eat only those I select as food for you.”
The cobra replied, “You are now my friend. I give you my word. I will eat only those marked by you as my food.”
The cobra then emerged from its burrow and accompanied the king of frogs to the well. The frog king showed him the crevice in the well and his relatives who deserved to be killed. The cobra happily settled in the crevice and finished in course of time all those frogs their king had marked for extermination.
Now, without frogs to eat, the cobra told the king, “I have destroyed all your enemies. Now show me prey for food. It is you who brought me here.”
Gangadatta told him, “You have done your job to help me. Now, it is time for you to leave this place.”
“How can I leave?” protested the cobra. “Someone else will occupy my place. So, I will not go, I will stay here only. You offer me one frog every day from your circle of relatives.”
Repenting for making friends with a natural enemy, Gangadatta thought it was better to offer the cobra one friend a day, remembering the saying that “he who befriends a stronger enemy invites certain death. A wise man does not lose all his wealth to save a paltry sum.”
Accordingly, the king of frogs began offering the cobra a frog a day. But the wicked cobra swallowed all the frogs. One day, it was the turn of Yamunadatta, son of the king of frogs. The king cried bitterly over the loss of his son. His wife then told him that there was no point in crying over the past and that he should immediately leave the place and look for ways to end the menace of the cobra.
As days passed, the cobra finished off the entire tribe of frogs with the exception of king Gangadatta. So, he asked Gangadatta, “Look, my friend, there is now no frog left for me to eat. I am very hungry. Show me where and how can sate my hunger.”
The king replied, “Priyadarsana, don’t worry about food as long as I am your friend. You get me out of this well. I will go and look for wells full of frogs. I will tempt them to come here and you can have your fill.”
The cobra said, “You are like a brother to me, Gangadatta. I can’t kill you. But if you bring me food, you will be as good as my father. I will get you out of this well.” Thus, the king came out and disappeared. The cobra was eagerly waiting for the king to bring him food. When Gangadatta failed to turn up even after a long time, the cobra sought the help of a chameleon.
“My friend, you know Gangadatta very well. Please go to him and tell him that it does not matter if he cannot bring me a frog. Let him come. I cannot live without such a trusted friend.”
The chameleon carried the message of the cobra to the king of frogs and told him, “Your friend Priyadarsana is eagerly looking for you to return.”
Gangadatta told him, “Excuse me sir, who can trust a hungry man. You may please go.”
Concluding the story, Raktamukha, the monkey, told the crocodile, “You wicked creature, I will never visit your home.”
Karalamukha, the croc, pleaded with him, “My friend, this is not proper. Please come and sanctify my home. Otherwise, I will be guilty of ingratitude. If you don’t come, I will fast and die.”
The monkey said, “You are an idiot to think that I would, like Lambakarna, invite death knowingly.”
“O my friend, let me hear that story of Lambakarana,” asked the croc.
Then the monkey told the croc the story of Lambakarna.

The Lion and The Foolish Donkey

A lion named Karalakesara was living in a forest, loyally served by Dhoosaraka, a jackal that used to accompany the lion wherever he went. One day, an elephant badly injured the lion in a fight. The injuries were so serious that the lion could not go out hunting. As a result, the jackal also had to go without food. Both the master and the servant became very weak. Unable to bear hunger, the jackal pleaded with the lion to get him some food.
“You know my plight. I cannot move out of this place. However, if you manage to lure some animal to come here, I will kill him and both of us can have a good meal,” said the lion.
So, the jackal set out in search of some animal and saw a donkey feeding himself on weeds. The jackal approached him and said, “O my friend, please accept my regards. I have not seen you for a long time. You have become very weak. What is the reason?”
The donkey said in sad tones, “How shall I tell you my suffering? The washer man is tormenting me by placing too much weight on my back. He does not feed me at all. I exist on weeds. That is why my body is weak.”
The jackal said, “If that is the case, why don’t you come with me? I shall show you a place where you can have your heart’s fill of green and fresh grass. We can happily spend our time there.”
“You have given me good news. But there is a problem. We are domestic animals and you are all wild animals. One of them will certainly kill me,” said the donkey whose name was Lambakarna.
Allaying his fears, the jackal said, “O uncle, don’t say like that. This place is in my control. Nobody can enter this area. Just like you are suffering at the hands of the washer man, there are three female donkeys in this area, which are waiting for a suitable husband. They are all young and told me, “If you are really our uncle, go and get a suitable husband for us.” It is on that mission I have come here and seen you.”
The donkey replied, “If that is the case, let’s go now.”
That is why the elders have said,

“If the very thought of a woman
Brings ecstasy to a young man
How thrilled would he be?
If he actually is in her presence.”

In the end, the jackal and the donkey reached the forest and came to the lion. When Lambakarna saw the ailing Karalakesara, the lion, he began running away from him. The lion made a great effort to reach him and strike him with his paw but failed to get the donkey.
Angry at the lion’s failure, Dhoosaraka, the jackal protested, “O my lord, you are useless. If you cannot tackle a foolish donkey, how can you fight an elephant? I have now realised how powerful you are.”
Ashamed, the lion told the jackal quietly, “O my friend, I was not ready for attack. Otherwise, even an elephant cannot escape my strike.”
Satisfied, the jackal said, “All right, let us forget the past. I will bring the donkey here again. You must be ready and strike him this time.”
“But how can Lambakarna forget his experience and come back here again,” asked the lion.
“You leave it to me,” said the jackal and set off to look for the donkey. Lambakarna was there on the bank of a lake feeding on grass.
He came to the jackal and said, “Friend, you have taken me to a nice place. I escaped death by inches. Who is that animal who had nearly killed me?”
“You are mistaken,” said Dhoosaraka, “It is, after all, the female donkey I promised to take you to. She was getting up to come and embrace you. You ran away in scare. She cannot live without you and so was trying to reach out to you. She told me that if you do not marry her, she would commit suicide. So please come and spare me the sin of causing the death of a woman. The God of Love will punish you if you do not heed my word.”
Beguiled, the donkey followed the jackal. The lion was prepared for the attack this time and when the donkey came; he fell on him and killed him instantly. The lion asked the jackal to keep an eye on the donkey’s body and left to take a bath in the river. Unable to resist the temptation of fresh flesh, the jackal snipped off the ears of the donkey and scooped his heart out and made a good meal of them. When the lion returned, he noticed that the ears and heart of the donkey were missing.
The lion angrily asked the jackal to tell him what had happened to the ears and heart of the donkey. Dhoosaraka told him that the donkey had no ears and heart. If he had, he would not have come again. The foolish lion believed every word of the jackal and shared the donkey with him.
“So, like the donkey in the story, you too are a fool,” said Raktamukha, the monkey to Karalamukha, the croc.
“You have deceived me but like Yudhishtira in the story I am going to tell you, you too spoke the truth when you ought not to and lost everything.”
“Please tell me everything about this Yudhishtira,” pleaded the croc.

The Story of The Potter

Once upon a time, there lived in a village a potter named Yudhishtira. One day, he drank a lot of liquor and got intoxicated and began running. He lost his balance and fell on broken pieces of a pitcher. The sharp edges of the pot pieces cut a big and bloody gash in his forehead. Somehow, he got up and went home. The wound took a long time to heal because he neglected to follow the instructions of the doctor.
Suddenly, a famine struck the whole country. The potter left the country with some others of the royal household. In the new country, he found a job with the king of that country. The king saw the mark of the big wound on his face and thought that Yudhishtira must have been a great warrior who suffered wounds in a battle. The king began showering special attention and affection on the potter, which the king’s sons envied. They could not harm him because he was the king’s favourite.
When everything was going smoothly for the potter, a war came and the king was summoning all known warriors to honour them and prepare them for the war. The king’s men were readying the elephants and horses for the combat while the soldiers were busy staging rehearsals. It was now time for the king to know everything about Yudhishtira.
He sent for the potter and asked him when no one was around, “What is your name, o warrior? In what battle were you injured?”
The potter told the king, “My lord, this is not a wound inflicted on me in a battle. I am a potter and my name is Yudhishtira. One day, when I was drunk, I ran and fell on sharp pieces of a broken pot. This scar on my face is the result of that fall.”
Ashamed that he deceived himself by the speech and garments of the potter, the king asked his servants to throw out the potter.
But Yudhishtira appealed to the king, “My lord, please don’t throw me out. See how well I will fight.”
The king said, “I admit you are a warrior. But you are born in a potter community and hence cannot kill an elephant.”
“How is that,” asked the potter.
The king then told him the following story.
A lion couple lived in a forest. In course of time, the lioness delivered two lion cubs. Every day, the lion went out and brought food for the lioness. One day, the lion wandered all over the forest in search of food but could not find any prey at all. At sunset, the lion gave up his search and was returning home when he found a jackal cub. The lion took a fancy for him and took him home and gave him to his wife.
The lioness asked her husband, “Did you get us any food today?”
“I found this cub. That’s all,” said the lion.
“I haven’t killed him because he is a child. But if you are very hungry, you can have this child for your meal.”
The lioness was angry and asked her husband, “How can I kill him when you spared him his life?”
The elders have said:

“Don’t do an unworthy deed
Even in the face of death;
Don’t give up a worthy deed
Even if it means suicide.”

“I will treat him like my third son,” said the lioness.
Thereafter, the new jackal cub became one of the family and the three ate, drank, played and slept together. One day when they were playing, an elephant passed by. At once, the two lion cubs got ready to attack the elephant. The jackal cub told them that the elephant was an enemy of the lions and that it was better for them to leave. The lion cubs were disappointed at the words of their jackal brother.
They went home and told their father the details of how the jackal brother fled from the scene. The father was not happy with his children and admonished them. The lion took the jackal cub aside and told him not to discourage the lion cubs who, she said, were his younger brothers.
The jackal was hurt and asked his lion mother, “How am I different from them in beauty or education or bravery? Why should the two ridicule me? I will kill both of them.”
Amused by the words of the jackal cub and wishing him long life, the lioness said, “You are still a child. I brought you up taking pity on you. Your brothers are also young. Before they grow old and know that you are different from them, leave this place and join your own folk.”
Realising the danger ahead, the jackal cub left the lion family in search of his own folk.
“That’s why, before other warriors find out that you do not belong to the warrior caste, leave this place,” the king advised Yudhishtira. The potter immediately left the palace.
Raktamukha, the monkey, told Karalamukha, the croc, “You have tried to kill me heeding your wife’s plea. But one should never trust women. I deserted my family for the sake of a woman and gave her half of my life. But in the end she left me to join a lame lover. That’s why never trust a woman.”
“Interesting,” said the croc and asked the monkey to tell him that story.
They went home and told their father the details of how the jackal brother fled from the scene. The father was not happy with his children and admonished them. The lion took the jackal cub aside and told him not to discourage the lion cubs who, she said, were his younger brothers.
The jackal was hurt and asked his lion mother, “How am I different from them in beauty or education or bravery? Why should the two ridicule me? I will kill both of them.”
Amused by the words of the jackal cub and wishing him long life, the lioness said, “You are still a child. I brought you up taking pity on you. Your brothers are also young. Before they grow old and know that you are different from them, leave this place and join your own folk.”
Realising the danger ahead, the jackal cub left the lion family in search of his own folk.
“That’s why, before other warriors find out that you do not belong to the warrior caste, leave this place,” the king advised Yudhishtira. The potter immediately left the palace.
Raktamukha, the monkey, told Karalamukha, the croc, “You have tried to kill me heeding your wife’s plea. But one should never trust women. I deserted my family for the sake of a woman and gave her half of my life. But in the end she left me to join a lame lover. That’s why never trust a woman.”
“Interesting,” said the croc and asked the monkey to tell him that story.

Om Tat Sat

                                                        

(Continued...) 

_{(My humble salutations to Katha varatha and  Hinduism dot org for the  collection)} 

(A Tribute to the great Bharatiya Samskruti)