The Story of the Hare and the Partridge

” ‘Once upon a time, I was living in a certain tree. In the hollow, at the foot of the tree, lived a partridge, by the name of Kapinjala. In the course of time, webecame good friends. Every day, at sunset, we wouldreturn h Qme and tell each other stories about Rishis and such things, and talk over together what hailhappened during the day. In this way, we passed ourtime very contentedly; ” ‘One day, Kapinjala went off, with some otherpartridges, to another part of the country, which wasfull of ripe rice. When he did not return at nightfall, I became very worried and 1 thought to myself; “Oh dear, why hasn’t Kapinjala returned home today? Has he beencaught ih a trap or has somebody killed him? I a.m surehe would have returned if he was safe, for he can’t hvewithout m’e! ” ” ‘And so, I spent several days worrying.. ” ‘One day, at nightfall, a hare, by the name of Sheeghraga, came and took over the hole in. the tree. As I had given up all hope of ever seeing Kapinjalaagain, I did not object in any way to his occupying the /, place. ” ‘Meanwhile, Kapinjala, who had become fat fromeating the ripe rice, suddenly remembered his formerhome and came back; When he, found the hare livingin his house, he objected very strongly and said to him, ” Hare! You have taken my home! That’s very unfair ofyou! Leave immediately! ” -“Oh, but this place i s mine now,” said the hare, “for they say: ‘A well, a pond, a temple and a tree, Once given up by their owners, Cannot be reclaimed.’. -“Now, this precept, enjoined by the sages for humanbeings, is also applicable to birds and animals. So this

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place is mine and not yours.” -“Hare! “. said Kapinjala. “If you are quoting theshastras, then let us approach someone who is wellversed in them and we’ll let him decide who is to havethe place. ” ” ‘Both agreed to this suggestion and set off togetherto have their dis pute decided by a Shastri. -‘Out of curiosity,’ continued the crow, ‘I followed them, thinking to myself, “I would very much like tohear the decision in this easel ” ‘ ” ‘Now, a wild tomcat, by the name of Teek

shadaunstra, came to know about their dis pute. Hewent and stood in their path, on the bank of the river. In his paw he held a blade of Kusha grass.. He dosedhis eyes, stood on his hind legs, facing the sun, andbegan giving a discourse on morals. -“Ahl Life is tt; ansitory and this world is futile. Thecompany of loved ones is nothing but a dream and thepresence of the family like the trick of a conjurer. Theysay: ‘Our bodies are perishable. And even our money does not last for ever, We face death ontinually, So we must live according to the shastras. A man who pasl)es his days irreligiously, Is like an ironsmith’s bellows Which breathes, yet has no life. 1 -“Why make a long story of it? I’ll tell you what religionis, in a nutshell. To do good to others is virtuous butharming others is a sin.” ” ‘When the hare heard this religious discourse, hesaid to the partridge, “Kapinjalal This fellow, sitting on the bank of the river, is a Tapasvi and an exponentof religion. Let us go and ask his opinion.” -“All right,” said Kapinjala, “but he is a wild tomcatand our natural enemy, so we should talk to him froma very long way off.”. ‘And so, standing at a distance, they both said to

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him, “Tapasv H There is a dis pute between us. Give usyour opinion, in accordance with the shastras, andwhichever of us is in the wrong, you can eat up.” -“My friends,” said the tomcat, “please dori’t talk likethat! I have given up that violent way of life whichleads directly to hell. The sages have declarednon-violence to.be the essence of true religion. It’s wrongto kill even lice, bugs and mosquitoes, so I shall certainlynot kill you. However, I will decide who wins and wholoses in this dis pute. But I am old and I can’t hearwhat it’s all about from so far away. So come neare rand present your case, so that I can decide in such away, that I am not held blameworthy in the next world, for they say: ‘He who arbitrates unjustly, Out of pride, avarice, anger or fear, Shall surely go to hell.’ -: c-“So, have confidence in me and speak the facts clearlyin my ears. What more is there for me to say?” ” ‘And so, this wicked tomcat inspired so muhconfidence in the partridge and the hare, that they cameand sat close to him: Immediately, he seized one ofthem in his teeth and the other in his claws, killed themboth and ate them up. -‘And so,’ continued the crow, ‘that’s why I said, “The hare and the partridge were destroyed Because they chose a sly arid vicious arbitrator.” –‘-‘Now, if you choose this blind-by-day owl to be yourking, you are following the path of the hare and thepartridge. Realise this and act accordingly.’ “When the birds heard the crow, they said to oneanother, ‘He is right. We’ll meet some other time andselect another king.’ And then they all flew off, exceptthe crow, the owl and the owl’s wife, Krikalika. “The owl was still waiting to be crowned king. Heturned to his wife and said, ‘What is all this? Why hasn’tthe ceremony to crown me begun yet?’ -‘This crow has put an obstacle in the way of your

being crowned,’ said his wife. ‘All the other birds haveflown away., only this crow has stayed behind, for somereason. And so we had better go home too.’ “_When the. owl heard this, he was disappointed andsaid to the crow, “Wicked crow! What harm have Idone you, that you should. put obstacles in the way ofmy being crowned king. From now on there shall beenmity between you and me; and between your kindand my kind, for they say: “The wound caused by an arrow or a sword mayheal, But not the wound caused by sharp words.” ‘ “With-these words, the owl returned to his place, withhis wife. “When they had gone, the crow thqught to hlmself, ‘Whyever did I talk like that and pick up a quarrel with the owl? They say: “A wise man, even if he is very strong, Never makes enemies for himself.” And, “No wise man should speak ill of others In an assembly, even if it is the truth, For it may lead to his own downfall.” ‘ “With this thought, the crow too went home. -“And that, Your Majesty,” continued Sthirajeevi, the ‘ -l minister, “is the reason why, ever since, there hasenmity between crows and owls.” bet Then Meghavarana, the crow king, said to him, “Tata, as this is how thin, gs stand, what should we do?” -“Your Majesty,” replied Sthirajeevi, “intrigue is theonly thing that will work. I mean to use this methodpersonally and so destroy the enemy. As they say: ‘Through intrigue, three shrewd crooks Robbed.a Brahmin of his goat.’ ” -“How was that?” asked Meghavarana. And Sthirajeevi told:

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What is the moral of THE STORY OF THE HARE AND THE PARTRIDGE?

The moral is: To value wisdom and make thoughtful decisions. This story teaches us that every action has consequences, and we must think carefully about the impact of our choices on ourselves and others.

What collection does THE STORY OF THE HARE AND THE PARTRIDGE belong to?

THE STORY OF THE HARE AND THE PARTRIDGE is from the Jataka Tales, an ancient literary work. The Jataka Tales is a timeless collection of stories that teaches important life lessons through memorable tales.

What age group is THE STORY OF THE HARE AND THE PARTRIDGE suitable for?

THE STORY OF THE HARE AND THE PARTRIDGE is best suited for Ages 8-12. Younger children will enjoy hearing it read aloud for its engaging narrative, while older children can read it independently and explore the deeper meanings and moral lessons embedded in the story.