‘A tiger declared himself the “monarch of the forest of Sompuri and he did anything he liked. All the creatures of the forest were disgusted with him. But nobody could do anything hick it. The tiger would slap or kick anybody who came before him. To maim and injure the weaker creatures became a habit with him, “Why am I king if I can’t do this?” he said gleefully.
In a cave, halfway up a hill lived a mother jackal with her baby jackal. “I must go and play down in the valley,” said the little jackal.
“No, my son, that is the place where the tiger takes a stroll when he suffers from a headache—and he catches headaches often!” said the mother.
“Why should we not drive the tiger away from our forest?” asked the little jackal.
His mother grew grave. “My son, never say such a thing before the others. They will take you to be mad!” said she.
The little jackal was not convinced. “I mean what I say, Mother, I know that the tiger is quite strong, but that strength is only in his muscles. And muscle is not the only source of strength. We have our brains, haven’t we?” he argued.
“These new generation jackals are brazen!” commented the mother.
One day the little jackal sneaked away from the cave and began romping round the valley. But he stopped when he
we the tiger coming. He picked up a string of rope stood on two legs and held it against his chest, leaning on a tree.
“Hey you, what are you doing?” asked the tiger.
“Your Majesty, I’m trying to tie myself to this tree!” said the little jackal and he added, “but it is so difficult to do it! Will you kindly help me?”
“You audacious chap! How can your monarch serve you? But that is a different matter. First, tell me, why you must tie yourself?” asked the tiger.
“Your Majesty, just now the spirit of this tree told me that if do so, I shall get rid of my headache once and for all!” said the little jackal, lowering its voice.
“I see!” commented the tiger thoughtfully. “All right. I’ll tie you. Tell me if you really get any relief.”
The tiger tied the little jackal to the tree. The little jackal shut his eyes while the tiger waited focusing his eyes on him.
Hardly two minutes had passed when the little jackal opened his eyes and exclaimed, “What a relief! What a relief!” He looked up and said, “Thank you, the spirit of the tree!”
The tiger’s eyes brightened, “Little jackal, I too am suffering from a headache, a bad one at that. Will you please tie me to the tree?”
“Your Majesty, it may be difficult for me to do it alone. Can I call for my mother’s assistance and the assistance of some other jackals?” asked the little jackal.
“Call them saying that it is my order!” said the tiger.
The jackals were called. They tied the tiger to the tree as firmly as possible. “Keep your eyes shut,” said the little jackal.
Then, turning to the other jackals he said, “Now, call all the creatures of the forest and also run to the nearby forests and invite all the tigers to come and witness this spectacle, what we the jackals have done to His Majesty!”
“What’s all this? Release me!” shouted the tiger.
“No, Sir, you must Pay for your snobbery. You know, we can stone you to death now. But we won’t do that. We will be
happy if you only leave this forest,” said the little jackal.
“I will leave this forest. Just untie me!” pleaded the tiger.
“Who knows? Let all the creatures and all the other tigers come and see you,” said the little jackal.
Hundreds of creatures gathered to see the situation. Then came a few respectable tigers from the neighbouring forests. They hung their heads in shame.
“All right, all right, untie him and he will go away!” said the senior-most tiger.
The tiger was set free. Indeed, he ran away at lightning speed, never to be seen again.
