Tuesday 1 February 2022

28 MORAL FABLES FROM SANSKRIT LITERATURE-TALE 1

Blogchatter is organizing a month long campaign-#write a page a day in which I will be presenting a blogpost every day with a moral tale for all the 28 days of this month February.

 

  

A hare and a lion

There was a lion by name Durdhaanta(uncontrollable) in the forest called Mandara. He was always killing the animals. Then all the animals joined together and requested thus: “Why are you killing all the animals? We ourselves will give you one animal every day for your prey”. The lion said ‘let it be so’. Then, the lion was eating an animal every day which was sent for him.

Afterwards, once upon a time that was a turn of an old hare. It thought thus: “With the desire to live let me do something to frighten the lion, if I am going to die, what is the use of pleasing the lion? Therefore I shall make delay to go near that lion”. 

By thinking so, the hare reached near the lion. Then the lion which was suffering from hunger asked the hare with anger thus: “What is the reason for your late arrival?”  Then the hare said thus: “I have not committed any fault. I was seen and forcible caught by another lion.  After having promised that lion to come back.  So I have come here to inform you”. 

On hearing the words of the hare, the angry lion said thus: “Show that immediately.  Where is that rogue reside?” Then the hare took that lion near a deep well.  “Please come here and see for yourself Master!” Saying so, the hare showed the lion its own reflection in the water of the well. Then the lion being puffed with its pride, jumped into the well out of anger.  With legs upwards and head downwards, the lion got drowned in the water and breathed its last.

The moral of the story:-

“Buddhir yasya balam thasya

Nirbuddhestu kutho balam l

Vane simho madhonmatthah

Sasakena nipaathithahah ll”

“He who possesses intelligence as strength and there is no strength for a person devoid of intelligence.  In the forest the powerful lion which was intoxicated with pride was easily killed by a weak hare”.

         (This story is taken from the titled Suhrudbhedhah the 2nd volume of the book Hitopadesa which has four volumes viz., Mitralaabhah, Suhrudbedhah, Vigrahah and Sandhi written by Narayana Pandita who lived in later part of the 14th Century A.D.)


(#WriteAPageADay, today's word count = 366)

This is a part of Blogchatter's write a page a day campaign.

https://www.theblogchatter.com/campaign-registrations/write-a-page-a-day

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