The Lion and the Jackal

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Duraya. North-western Province.




HOW THE JACKAL CHEATED THE LION. (VARIANT.)

In a more ancient time than this, a Lion King dwelt in a certain
forest. A Jackal who lived in that very forest, establishing a friendly
state with the Lion began to reside near him. Should I state the mutual
trust of them both [it was this]--the Lion knew that although by the
aid of the Jackal's means of success (that is, advice and stratagems),
the Lion was seizing and eating the flesh of other animals, he did
not get from the Jackal any other assistance that ought to be given.

When a little time had passed in that way, it was evident that the
Jackal's body was becoming very fat. The Lion saw it, and assuming
a false illness remained lying down at the time when the Jackal
came. Having seen it, the Jackal made obeisance to the Lion, and asked,
"What, O Lord, are you lying down for? Has some ailment befallen Your
Majesty? Are you not going to hunt to-day?"

Then the Lion said, "My friend Jackal, a headache having afflicted me
to-day, I am in a very serious state. From this time onward, having
hunted, and eaten only the small amount of the brains of the animals,
I will give thee all the rest of the flesh. Do thou subsist on it. For
the reason that I am not well enough to go to hunt this day, thou
and I, both of us, must remain hungry. Art thou unable to go hunting
[alone] this day only?" he asked.

Thereupon the Jackal said to the Lion, "O Lord, is that which should
be done a difficult thing? Your Majesty will stay thus. I will go,
and will return calling some animal or other [to come] near Your
Majesty." Having instructed him to spring up and seize it as soon as
it comes, the Jackal went to seek animals.

While going for this purpose [it saw that] a Goat was tied in a
field. Having told many falsehoods to the Goat it returned, inviting it
[to come] near the Lion. Then the Lion sprang to seize it. Thereupon
the Goat, having become afraid, ran away. The Jackal went [after it],
and causing it to turn back again, returned [with it].

Then the Lion, having killed the Goat, went to bathe in order [to
purify himself, so as] to eat the small quantity of brains. In the
meantime the Jackal removed the brains, and having eaten them replaced
the skin.

The Lion having returned after bathing, when he came to split open the
skin in order to eat the brains, saw that there were no brains. Having
seen it, the Lion asked the Jackal, "Where are my brains?"

Thereupon the Jackal said, "O Lord, if this one had any brains would
it have come twice near Your Majesty? It came twice because it had
no brains." So saying the Jackal ate the small quantity of flesh also.


Western Province.



Improbable as the notion appears that an animal, other than insects or
fishes, would return into the same danger shortly after escaping from
it, one instance of this has come under the observation of myself and
a friend, with whose approval I insert this account of the occurrence.

As Mr. H. E. H. Hayes, late of the Public Works Department, Ceylon,
was walking one day near the water, at the embankment of the Vilankulam
tank in the Northern Province, a crocodile made its appearance suddenly
in the water near him, apparently attracted by his young terrier. He
fired a charge of snipe shot at its head, and it disappeared.

He and I went to the spot on the following day. I remained on the
look-out on the top of the bank, while he was partly hidden behind a
tree nearer the water. There he tweaked or pinched the dog so as to
make it yelp a little. Then we observed a crocodile's head raised
among some weeds far out in the tank. Not many minutes afterwards
the crocodile's head appeared out of the water only a few feet away
from the dog. Mr. Hayes at once shot it with his rifle; and when he
recovered it found the shot marks of the previous day in its head.

In this case it might almost be said with truth that the animal had no
brains, since the brain of an ordinary tank crocodile is only about the
size of a large walnut. When I split the skull of one, the men who were
with me could not find the brain cavity, and thought it had no brains.

In Indian Nights' Entertainment, Panjab (Swynnerton), p. 268, a Tiger
with a broken leg takes the place of the Lion, and a Jackal brought
an Ass to eat what he represented to be the superior grass at the
place. After the Tiger had killed it and eaten part of it, he crawled
to a spring for a drink, and in his absence the Jackal ate the heart
(which the Tiger wanted itself), and gave the same explanation of
its absence. The author added a note, "the heart among the Punjabis
being the seat of reason."

In the Panchatantra (Dubois), an Ass was brought to a sick Lion King
in order that he might eat the heart and ears, as a remedy for his
illness. When he was brought back the second time by a Jackal, the
Lion killed him and ate the heart and ears.

In the Katha Sarit Sagara (Tawney), p. 85, there is a similar
story, except that after killing the Ass the Lion went to bathe,
and the Jackal then ate the heart and ears. He told the Lion that
"the creature never possessed ears or a heart, otherwise how could
he have returned when he had once escaped?"