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Once upon a time a tiger was caught in a cage. He tried to get out through the bars, but they were too strong for him. He was so angry that he rolled and bit with rage. Just then a poor Brahman came by.
“Let me out of this cage, good Brahman. Oh! do let me out!”cried the tiger.
“Oh, no! my friend, I dare not do that,” replied the Brahman,“You would eat me, if I did.”
“Not at all!” cried the tiger, “How can you think such a thing?Let me out! Do let me out! I will thank you all my life.”
Then the tiger sighed and wept and threw himself against the bars. The good Brahman felt so sorry for him that at last he opened the door of the cage. Out jumped the tiger and seized the poor man.
“How foolish you were to let me out!” he said. “I have been in that cage a long time, and I am so hungry that I shall eat you for my dinner!”
The Brahman was terribly frightened. “Give me a little time,” he begged, “Let us talk it over. I think you are not treating me fairly. Is this the way to repay kindness? There is a village near by. Let us go there and find three men. We will tell them the story and let them decide.”
“No, indeed!” said the tiger, “I never go to the village by day.And why should men decide? They are often foolish. But I will agree to this: You may walk down the road and choose three things that you see on the way; tell them what has happened, and ask them if I am more unjust than men are. Then you must come back to the cage. I will do as they decide.’’
So the Brahman walked along until he came to a fig tree. He told his story to the tree. “Now, has the tiger treated me fairly?” he asked.
The fig tree looked at him coldly. “What have you to complain about?” it said, “Just see how I am treated! I give food and shelter to everyone who passes by. But what do I get in return? Men tear down my branches to feed their cattle. The tiger is treating you as well as men treat me.”
Then the Brahman, sad at heart, went on until he saw a buffalo.One end of a long pole was tied over the buffalo’s head, the other was fastened to a great wheel. All day long the buffalo was made to go round and round, turning the heavy wheel of the well that watered the fields.
The Brahman told his story to the buffalo. “Am I not treated very badly?” he asked, “Is the tiger doing right to reward my kindness in this way?”
“You are foolish to expect anything better,” said the buffalo,“Look at me! While I gave milk, men fed me on cotton-seed and oil-cake. Now that I am old, what do they do? They yoke me here to turn this heavy well-wheel all day long, and they feed me on scraps. The tiger treats you as well as men treat me.”
The Brahman felt very unhappy. “I have one more chance,” he said, “but I will go no farther; I will ask the road.” So he told his story to the road.
“My dear sir,” said the road, “you do not know men as I do.Here am I, useful to everyone. Rich and poor, great and small,tread on me as they go by. What do they give me in return?Nothing but the ashes of their pipes, and the husks of their grain!”
“I may as well go back,” said the Brahman, “and let the tiger eat me.” But on the way he met a jackal.
“Why do you look so unhappy?” asked the jackal. Then the Brahman told him all that had happened.
“I don’t understand you,” said the jackal, “Tell it all over again. I seem to get it all mixed up.”
Then the Brahman told it all over again, but the jackal shook his head. He did not seem to understand.
“It’s very odd,” he said sadly, “But it seems to go in at one ear and out at the other. Let us go back to the place where it all happened.Then perhaps you can make me understand.”
So they went back to the cage. The tiger stood there, waiting for the poor Brahman.
“You have been away a long time.” he growled.
“Give me five minutes more,” begged the Brahman, “I want to explain things to this jackal.”
“I’ll give you just five minutes.” said the tiger.
So the Brahman told everything all over again to the jackal,making the story as long as he could.
“Oh, my poor brain!” cried the jackal, wringing his paws, “Let me see; how did it all begin? You were in the cage, and the tiger came walking by—”
“Pooh!” cried the tiger. “How stupid you are! I was in the cage.”
“Of course!” cried the jackal, “Yes! I was in the cage. No, I wasn’t. Dear, dear! where are my wits? Let me see—the tiger stood by the Brahman, and the cage came walking by. No, that’s not right,either! Well don’t mind me, but begin your dinner, for I shall never understand!”
“Yes, you shall understand!” cried the tiger in a rage, “I’ll make you understand! Look here! I am the tiger. Do you understand that?”
“Yes, Sir Tiger.” answered the jackal.
“This is the Brahman. Do you understand that?”
“Yes, Sir Tiger.”
“And this is the cage. Do you understand that?”
“Yes, Sir Tiger.”
“And I was in the cage. Do you understand that?”
“Yes—no. Please, Sk Tiger—”
“Well, what is it?” cried the tiger, in great anger.
“Please, Sir Tiger,” said the jackal, “how did you get into the cage?”
“How did I get into the cage?” growled the tiger.
“Why, there is only one way to get into the cage!”
“Oh, dear me!” said the jackal, “What a poor head I have! It is beginning to whirl again. Please don’t be angry, Sir Tiger, but what is the only way to get into the cage?”
At this, the tiger was filled with rage. He jumped into the cage.“This way!” he roared, “This ia the only way to get into the cage.Now do you understand?”
“Oh, yes, I understand perfectly,” grinned the jackal, as he fastened the door quickly. The tiger was caught again, and the good Brahman was saved.
( A Tale from India )
seized : grabbed quickly
fastened : tied to
husks : skins of vegetables or grain
A) Answer the following questions.
1) What things did the brahman speak about on his way to the village?
2) Who saved his life and how did he do it?
3) Did the fig tree, the buffalo, and the road treat others as they wished to be treated?
4) Have you ever been mistreated? Explain what you did.
5) What can we learn from reading this story?
B) Missing information—Fill in the missing information from the story.
1) three animals in the story _____________________________________
2) he let the tiger out of the cage _________________________________
3) what the tiger felt at the end of the story ________________________
4) he trapped the tiger in the cage ________________________________
5) the jackal pretended he had a problem with this __________________
C) Summary—Write a short summary of this story.