The Wise Carpenter

 The kingdom of Snalong was ruled by King Genchog. King Genchog’s father was Gendong. 

When Gendong had been alive, he had also been a very good king of his times. 

In the same kingdom lived a painter and a carpenter. They were both masters in their respective fields. But the carpenter and the painter hated each other.

One day the painter went to the court of King Genchog with a very special letter.

The letter was from King Genchog!

‘Dear son,

I am in the heavens and I am very happy there. 

However, I wish to build a temple for the Gods here. There are no good carpenters in Heaven. Please make arrangements to send a carpenter to heaven. 

The painter through whom I have sent this letter can make the necessary arrangements for my wishes to be carried out.’

King Genchog did not doubt the letter. His father would definitely want to build temples for the Gods and there was no reason for him to doubt the contents of the letter.

That very day, the king sent for the carpenter.

The carpenter was very surprised when he looked at the letter. When he saw the mention of the painter, he grew even more suspicious. But he did not voice any of his suspicions. He studied the King. “How am I supposed to get to heaven, your majesty?”

King Genchog called for the painter to court and that confirmed the carpenter’s suspicions. 

“How is the carpenter supposed to go to Heaven?”

The painter nodded at the king, smiling slyly at the carpenter “The carpenter and his tools are to be laid on the ground. Then they are all burnt. Using the smoke of the fire, the carpenter can ride up to the heavens with his tools.”

The carpenter stared blankly at the painter as fear clutched his heart. With great difficulty he caught himself and nodded slowly at the king. “Your majesty, I… work from my home… I hope that all this is done there.”

The innocent king nodded much to the glee of the painter.

However the carpenter was not yet done talking. “I have some work here too, your majesty. Kindly give me about a weeks’ time to finish my work on earth, before I go to heaven.”

The king agreed to this request too. 

The date for burning the carpenter and his tools to be sent to the heavens was fixed to the next week.

In his fields, the carpenter worked hard for the next seven days in a secret mission.

On the seventh day, the carpenter and his tools were burnt on the pyre.

The painter went back home smirking happily thinking that he had got rid of his enemy.

Three months later, King Genchog was in court. 

He was surprised to see the carpenter walk in hale, hearty, happy with divine looking wonderful garments.

The king welcomed the carpenter happily. “How was the trip to the heavens, carpenter?”

The place is amazing, your majesty.” The carpenter nodded at the king. “I could find all the materials and build a magnificent temple for the Gods. Your father is very happy with my efforts.” The carpenter handed over another letter to the king. “He asked me to give me this letter to you.”

‘Dear son,

The carpenter that you have sent has done a magnificent job. 

Now I need a good painter to finish the temple. Kindly make the necessary arrangements to send a painter.’

The painter heard this and he was stunned. He was in awe when he saw the attire of the carpenter. He genuinely believed that attire was made in heavens. The foolish painter did not know that the carpenter had used his one week well and had built a tunnel leading away from the place of burning to an underground chamber. The carpenter had stored the underground chamber with enough rations and provisions to last him for the three months. In those three months, the carpenter had the attire prepared in the underground chamber.

The painter knew none of this. He genuinely believed that he was being called to the heavens.

As the painter was not as quick thinking as the carpenter, he met his end that day.

Folk stories from Tibet

The Three Fishes

 In a pond there lived three fishes. One of the fishes believed in fate. He believed that whatever had to happen would happen and that nothing could change it. The second fish was wise. He thought long and hard about any problem and then acted on it. The third fish trusted in his ready wit and intelligence to get him out of any trouble.

Though the three fishes believed in different things, they were best of friends.

Once as the wise fish was swimming near the surface of the water it heard two fishermen talking.

'Look at this! Look at how many fishes there are in the pond.'

The other fisherman nodded his head.

'We will come tomorrow and lay our nets in this pond.'

The fishermen walked off talking.

The wise fish hurried to its friends. 'Do you know what happened today?'

He told the other two fishes everything that he had overheard.

'So tomorrow, the fishermen are going to come.'

The wise fish was agitated. 'We have to do something.'

The fish who believed in fate shook his fate. 'Whatever will happen, will happen, my friend. There is no point in worrying about it.'

The wise fish called out. 'The fishermen are going to come tomorrow. You just cannot ignore it. They will catch all of us, if we stay here.'

The fish who believed in fate waved its fin. 'We cannot change what is going to happen. I will accept whatever is in store for me.' The fish who believed in fate, left, with those words.

The other two fishes stared at each other.

The wise fish looked at its other friend feeling sad.

The fish who believed in its own intelligence said to the wise fish. 'We cannot change his mind.' He turned to look at the other fish. 'What do you plan to do?'

The wise fish was silent for a long time.

'There is a passage from this pond to the nearby pond. I am going to the next lake.' The wise fish looked at the last fish. 'What are you going to do?'

The intelligent fish smiled. 'I am going to stay here.'

The wise fish was aghast. ‘But..’

The intelligent fish shook his head. 'Don't worry, I have a plan.'

The wise fish looked at its two friends. It knew that it could not change their mind.

That very night, it went to the nearby pond.

The next day, the fishermen came.

The wise fish escaped.

The fish who believed in fate was caught in the net and was killed immediately.

The intelligent fish was also caught in the net.

Immediately it thrashed around and pretended to be dead.

The fishermen saw it.

'This fish is already dead! We cannot take it.' The first fisherman looked disgusted as it was studying the limp fish.

'Throw it back inside the pond.' The other fisherman shrugged.

Picking the fish, the fishermen threw it back in the river.

The intelligent fish grinned as he swam down and waited there till the fishermen were gone.

-From the Panchatantra

The Dragonflies and the Monkeys

Once in a huge forest, in Luzon, there was a strong tree. The tree had families of monkeys living in it.

The forest was very hot at that time of the year.

A dragonfly had been flying in the forest all day and she was tired. She came to the branch of the strong tree and realized that she needed to rest for some time.

She landed on the branch of the tree and that was when she saw a huge monkey smirking down at her.

“What do you think you are doing?” The monkey demanded angrily from her.

The dragonfly caught her breath and looked earnestly at the monkey. “Please sir, let me rest here. I am tired and the forest is too hot.”

“I will not let a weak creature like you rest on my tree!” The monkey told the dragonfly angrily and the monkey threw a twig on the little dragonfly.

The dragonfly was faster and she dodged the twig. She was shaken, but not hurt.

She flew to her brother, who was the king of the dragonflies and told him all that had happened.

The king of the dragonflies was very angry after hearing his sisters. He sent three of his messengers to the monkeys and asked them to make amends for treating dragonflies with cruelty.

Naturally, the monkey scoffed at the messengers of the dragonflies. The dragonflies were too tiny and the monkeys felt that there was nothing that the dragonflies could do to them.

The king of the dragonflies heard the story of the messengers and decided to attack the monkeys. So with no weapons and relying only on their flying skills the dragonflies flew to the strong tree of the forest.

The monkeys were ready with their clubs to swat down the dragonflies.

That was when the king of the dragonflies had an idea.

“Land on the heads of the monkeys.” The king told his soldiers.

That is what the dragonflies did.

They landed on the head of every monkey. The monkeys were waving their clubs haphazardly, trying to bring it down on the dragonflies.

But the dragonflies flew off because they were very quick.

The club instead landed on the head of the other monkeys.

One by one, the monkeys hit each other with their own clubs and fell off the tree and fell down.

That was how the little dragonflies won against the big monkeys.

Folk Tales from Philippines

The Old Woman and the Physician

 There lived an old woman in a city. Added to her old age, she was beginning to lose her eye-sight as well.

She was worried that she would lose her vision completely. So she visited a physician in her city to cure her.

The physician was new and young. But he looked at the old nearly blind woman and had an idea. He readily agreed to cure her blindness.

The old woman was taken aback with his eagerness and smelt a trap. “I shall pay you ten silver coins only when you completely cure me.” She told the physician carefully. “I will not pay you anything, if your treatment does not work.”

The physician did not even hesitate. “I agree to the conditions.” He shrugged to himself. “Your treatment will start tomorrow. Since you cannot see properly, I would advise you not to come here daily. I will come to your house and treat your eyes.”

The old lady could not find any flaw in the physician’s words and agreed.

So daily the physician came to the old lady’s house.

Though he treated her properly, the physician was greedy.

Realizing that the old woman could not see properly, the physician stole some precious trinkets from the old woman’s house, daily.

A month later, the old woman’s vision had improved considerably and the physician had stolen many precious items from her house.

Finally the treatment was over and the physician demanded his fees.

The old woman refused to pay him.

Angry, the physician took the lady to court.

“I treated her properly.” The physician told the court the next day. “She promised to pay me ten silver coins. Now, she completely refuses to pay me.”

The judge was puzzled as he looked at the physician and the old woman.

“Did you have trouble with your vision, grandma?” The judge asked the old woman.

“Yes.”

“Did you go to the physician?”

“Yes.”

“Did you promise to pay him on successfully completing your treatment?”

“Yes.”

“Can you see better now?”

“I cannot say that for certainty, my judge.”

“She lies!” The physician yelled. “She can see much better than she could when she came to consult me first.”

The judge studied the physician and then looked at the old woman.

“Why do you say that you cannot see better, grandma?” The judge asked finally.

The old lady smiled. “Over the years when I was younger and could see better, I had gathered many treasures. I adorned my house with them, judge.” The old woman looked at the physician with a cold smile. “I do not see any of those treasures around my house. If I do not see them, that means I have not gained my vision, isn’t it?”

Needless to say, the physician was forced to return all the old woman’s jewelry. He was not paid for his treatment, because he was imprisoned for his thievery.

(The story is of Greek Origin and was included in many books including the Fable of Aesop’s)

-Aesop’s Fables.

Wild and Domestic Animals

 Long ago, there was a very rich miller. The miller was so rich that during his marriage, not only did he invite his friends, he even invited the wild animals in the forest near his house.

On the day of the wedding, the Bear got up early, brushed his hair. It looked smart and handsome and his fur glistened. Then as it would take a long time to travel, it set off early to the miller’s place. 

On the way the Bear met a little boy.

“Where are you going, Bear?” The boy was curious.

“To the miller’s wedding.” The Bear said proudly. “I do not like weddings. But I was invited, so I am just being polite.”

The boy worriedly shook his head. “Do not go Bear.” The boy waved towards the direction of the miller’s house. “If the humans see your skin, they will kill you for it. Do not go there.”

The Bear stopped still for a few seconds. The boy’s words made sense, but the Bear did not want to admit it openly. 

But the Bear slowed down and let the boy walk ahead. 

After that, the boy paid no further heed to the Bear and walked on. After the boy had completely walked to the end of the road and could not be seen, the Bear turned around and walked back home. The Bear had decided not to go to the wedding. 

The boy met the wolf and fox next. 

Both the wolf and the fox were going to the Miller’s wedding and when the boy asked them not to go because according to the boy, the humans may want the lovely fur of both the animals 

The animals listened to the boy. Both the animals did not go to the wedding.

The boy then met a horse. The horse was proud and majestic and trotted through the forest, in great hurry.

“Are you also going to the miller’s wedding?” The boy asked the horse.

The horse did not even have the time to nod. “I am in a hurry. I am so beautiful and majestic looking. I want to meet the people at the wedding and show them how fast I can run.”

The boy smirked and shook his head. “Do not go, horse.”

The horse was shocked.

“If you go there, the humans would bind you with ropes. You will never be able to run through the forest of your own free will. Once they know how fast you are, they will never let you go.”

The horse snorted. “You lie, boy.” The animal told the boy. “The humans will do no such thing. Besides, I am strong enough to break any rope.”

The horse did not listen to the boy’s instruction and went to the miller’s wedding.

Similarly the boy also met the cow. The boy tried to stop the cow from going because the boy was sure that once the humans knew how sweet the milk of the cow was, they would never let the cow go. However, the cow did not listen to the boy and she also came to the miller’s wedding.

The goat, the sheep and the reindeer did not heed to the boy’s warning and went to the miller’s wedding.

The reindeer was in fact sure that it was so strong that no ropes could bind it, or no arrow was swift enough to reach it.

Till this day, the animals which went to the wedding, never came back to the wild.

But the animals which stayed away always remained wild in the forests.

From Andrew Lang’s Fairy Tales

The Hare and the Lions

 There was an ancient castle, at the edge of the forest. The castle had been abandoned a long time back. Now, the castle was more or less broken down, ruined and dilapidated. All that remained was a well in the front and certain standing walls. One of the walls had a small hole as a window, but the wall was still pretty strong.

Now the forest had more or less grown over the castle and in that forest lived a Lion and Lioness. The animals were fierce and ferocious. The Lion and the lioness attacked any animal which they saw and soon, the two animals were feared all over the forest. The other animals trembled merely on hearing the roars of the lions.

Once during the hunt, the Lion came across a hare which was sleeping beside a tree, near the broken down castle.

“Uncle Lion!” The Hare told the Lion, swallowing its fear. “I did not expect you here. Considering this place is so close to … another lion.”

Angrily the Lion roared loudly. “What other lion?”

The Hare pointed a trembling paw at the well. “Inside that, my Lord.”

The foolish lion angrily went to the well and seeing its own reflection, it thought that it was another lion and roared loudly at it. As its roar reflected back, the Lion in a fit of rage and frenzy jumped inside the well. When the Lion tried to come up, the Hare threw stones at the Lion, making sure that the Lion could not come up. Finally, the Lion drowned and died in the well.

After that, the Hare went to the Lioness.

She was impatiently pacing her den, wondering why the Lion was not yet back.

The Hare saw her in the cave and bravely walked up to her. “Aunt Lioness, why are you worried?”

The Lioness did not reply to the Hare, but she snarled angrily.

“Are you worried about the Lion?”

The Lioness stiffened as the Hare continued. “I had an argument with the Lion yesterday and I hurt him very badly during our fight…”

The Lioness roared and pounced on the Hare.

The Hare was swift and ran, dodging the angry Lioness.

Soon, the Hare led the Lioness to the damaged wall of the castle with the single hole in the middle. The Hare was smaller and jumped right into the hole.

The Lioness was angry through and through and did not think as she also tried to jump inside the hole. However, as the Lioness was bigger, she got stuck in the hole. She could not move from there. She roared loudly, but none of the other animals came any closer to help the Lioness.

The Hare also left the Lioness there, where the animal subsequently died as she could not come out of the hole.