Week 11: Reading Notes B- Jataka
The lion in bad company
Image Details: Image, Source: Pixabay
There was once a young
lion who met a wolf in the woods. Since the wolf was not able to escape the
lion, he flatters the lion and pledges him his loyalty. This impresses the lion
and he takes the wolf home with him even though he warned not to make friends
with a wolf. The lion’s father tells his son that he doesn’t approved his
choice of friend, but the young lion refused to listen to him. The wolf wants
to eat horse-flesh, so he convinces the lion that they should go hunt horses
for their meat. The lion is hesitant, but the wolf convinces him to go hunting
near the river bank where the horses lived. At first, the lion caught a small
pony and took its body back to his den.
The lion’s father is
disappointed with his son’s behavior as the ponies belong to the king and that
he will get into trouble by the kings and his archers. However, the lion begins
to enjoy the taste of horse meant and begins to kill more ponies. The king
hears of the lions actions and built a tank inside the town. However, the lions
killed the ponies when they bathed in the tank. Then, the king places the
ponies inside the stables, but he lion manages to kill them again. Fed up with
the lion’s action, the king hires an archer to kill the lion. When the wolf and
lion go to kill the horses, the wolf stays behind to see what would happen to the
lion. As the lion sprang over the wall, the archer shot an arrow at him. The
wolf is content with himself as after the lion dies, he can go back home in the
woods.
This was a very
interesting story as we see the clear deception between the lion and the wolf.
The wolf pleases the lion, only to turn his back on him and deceive him even
though the lion called the wolf his friend. Even though the lion was not the noblest
character, he was very loyal to their friendship. When the lion’s parents tell
him that wolves are not good characters, he should have listened to them as he
would have been able to save himself.
Bibliography: Babbitt, Ellen C. "The Lion in Bad Company."
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