The Brahmin, Thief and Demon - Panchatantra Stories

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Since upon a time in a certain town, lived a Brahmin named Drona. He was God-fearing hence he gave up wearing fine clothes, using perfumes and all the other luxuries of life.

His hair and nails grew long and his body lean, due to rigorous discipline in the cold, hot and rainy seasons. A certain devotee of his, out of sheer pity, presented him with a pair of young calves.

Right from the beginning, he fed them on butter, oil and grain, and they grew very fat.

A thief saw these two calves and he thought to himself, ‘This very day, I shall steal away these to calves belonging to the Brahim.

So he took a rope to tie them up and started off to steal young calves.

On the way, he met a Demon of hideous appearance. His teeth stuck out of his mouth, his nose was very long, his eyes burnt frighteningly with fire, He had knotty muscles and a glowing red beard on his ugly face.

“When the thief saw him, he got frightened and said, Who are you?

I am a Demon called Satyavachan, he replied, ‘Now you too introduce yourself.’ - I’m a thief called Krurakarm,’ replied the thief, and I am on my way to steal two calves from the house of a poor Brahmin.’

Both spoke the truth, the two of them developed faith in each other.

The Demon said to the thief, ‘I’m extremely hungry today, I think I shall eat that Brahmin. As you are going to steal his calves, it’s a very good thing, for our work will be accomplished at the same place. They started off together.

When they reached the Brahmin’s home, they slipped inside and hid themselves, waiting for an appropriate moment.

The Brahmin fell asleep, the Demon got ready to eat him but the thief restrained him and said, ‘That’s not fair! You have to wait until I have taken the calves! Otherwise, if he wakes up when you are about to eat him, my object will not be fulfilled.

“On the contrary,’ retorted the Demon if the calves cry out when you are leading them away and the Brahmin wakes up, I shall be the loser!’

Thus they began to argue “because of the hot argument that developed between the two, the Brahmin did wake up. The thief said to the Brahmin, ‘Brahmin, this Demon wants to eat you.’

The Demon said, ‘Brahmin, this thief wants to steal your calves.’

The Brahmin became very wide awake and prayed to his chosen deity, whereupon the Demon ran off.

The Brahmin picked up a stick and chased the thief away.

Moral of The Story “And so,” continued Vakranas, “that’s why I said, ‘If discord arises between your enemies, you stand to benefit-In the same way, the thief and the Demon quarreled and the Brahmin saved his life and his calves as well’.”

Arimaradan heard what Vakranasa had to say, he turned to Prakarakarn and asked him, “Tell me, what is your point of view?”

“My Lord,” he replied, “this crow should not be killed. Perhaps a friendship will develop between him and us and we shall live very happily together, for it is said, Those who refuse to cooperate, shall be destroyed like the two snakes’.”

“How was that?” asked Arimaradan. Prakarakarn told this story. THE STORY OF THE SNAKES

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