Tibetan Folk Tales, A. L. Shelton [early reader books txt] 📗

the one that gets here first and gets in the pot shall have it, to-morrow to be the day of the race.”

The rabbit was sure of success because he knew he could run and was certain the frog couldn’t. The frog knew well enough he couldn’t possibly win in that kind of race, so he thought of a scheme. He found two of his friends exactly like himself in every way. One, he took to the top of the mountain and put in the pot, the other he placed half way down the mountain, and located himself at the base. When the rabbit came next morning and they were ready to start on the race, the frog gave a few hops while the rabbit skipped on ahead. Much to his astonishment, when he got half way up the mountain, there was the frog hopping wildly along in front of him. He said to himself, “I must do better than this,” and away he flew like the wind. But on reaching the summit there sat the frog in the pot. The rabbit had lost the race and also the gold.

Now, the frog didn’t know how to get that big pot down the mountain, and while he was puzzling over it, a big duck, very dark in color, with mouse-colored breast, flew over him, stopped a minute, and asked his trouble. The frog told him what was the matter and asked if he could carry the pot to the bottom of the mountain. The duck said he could and would do so if he might have half. As there was nothing else to be done, the frog agreed and the duck carried it down for him, so there it was divided and the duck thought it was so beautiful that he took his half and smeared it on his breast, and that’s where the sacred duck got his beautiful golden breast. They are very tame and have no fear of people, as they are held to be sacred by the Tibetans, who believe them to be a reincarnation of some holy man because of the beautiful yellow color, which is their sacred color.

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THIRTY-ONE The Two Little Cats 1

An arrow aimed straight will find the heart of your foe. But if you have no foe it does not matter about the arrow.

Tibetan Proverb.

IN the early, early days a very long time ago, there were two little cats going after some salt to put in their butter tea, for you must know that little cats in the early days didn’t drink tea without salt. As they trotted along they met a Handre, and a Handre is the worst thing you could meet anywhere, for he has great big teeth that he crunches up little folks with, and horrid big eyes and clawlike hands and feet, so they were very much frightened and ran on faster than ever until they met a cow and the cow said, “Where are you going so fast, little cats?” and they answered, “Oh, we just met a Handre and he is going to come to our house and eat us up.” “Never mind,” said the cow, “I’ll go with you and help protect you from the Handre.” So they all ran on together. Soon they met a dog and he asked, “Where are you all going?” and the little cats said, “We are running away from the Handre.” “Never mind,” said the

dog, “I’ll go with you and help protect you.” They ran on and met a crow, and he said, “Stop a minute and tell me where you are going so fast.” “Oh, we are running away home as fast as we can,” said the little cats, “for the Handre is coming to eat us.” Then they met a panful of ashes and it said, “Wait a minute and take me with you, for I can help too.” Then they found a package of 100 needles, who asked if they might go and help against the Handre. Then a snake all curled up by the side of the road called out, “Where are you going, little cats?” “Oh, we are running home as fast as we can because the Handre is coming.” And the snake said, “Take me along and I’ll bite the Handre.” As they trotted along they saw on a bench a little bowl of hard black peas. “Where are you going so fast, little cats?” asked the peas. “Oh, we are running home as fast as we can, for the Handre is coming.” “Take me with you, little cats, and I’ll help protect you from the Handre.” So in front of their gowns they took the bowl of peas and all together soon came home. The cow they placed by the stair steps, the dog by the doorway, the peas on the stair steps, the crow in the water kang and the snake in the bread trough, the 100 needles in the bed and the pan of ashes on the ceiling and the little cats hid behind the door.

Soon the Handre came, I presume he flew in at the window, and he thought he would like to have a drink of water and when he went to get it the crow nipped him good and hard. Then he thought he would make some bread, and when he went to the bread tray the snake gave him a bite. Then he thought he would go upstairs and lie down on the bed and the needles stuck him dreadfully. He was getting madder and madder. He looked up to the ceiling to see if the little cats were hiding up there and the ashes spilled on him and filled his eyes full. Then he started to run down the stairs and he stepped on those hard peas and they hurt his feet dreadfully. Then he fell on the horns of the cow and she tossed him to the dog, who ate him up immediately, and the little cats came out from behind their door and had their supper in peace.

Footnotes

128:1 Told to me by little Lora MacLeod, now age six, who had been out of Tibet for about eight months.

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THIRTY-TWO Story of a Juggler’s Tricks

If you fight in the morning do not talk about it in the evening.

Tibetan Proverb.

ONCE upon a time, in a great city, lived a king who ruled over many, many people. In this city dwelt a powerful juggler who could make them cry or laugh, at his will. The king sent for him one day and said, “I have heard you can do wonderful things, that there is nothing beyond your ability [though he doubted it], and I want you to change my heart.”

“Oh,” said the juggler, “I have done this to the people, but I don’t dare do this to you.”

The king said, “You need not fear, just so you do not make me poor for the rest of my life. I will give you a paper agreeing not to punish you if you so wish.” So he gave the paper to the juggler, returned to his home and forgot he had given such a promise.

One day the king heard that in his big hay field on the side of the mountain were a lot of people with horses and cattle, that there were all classes of men cutting his grass, and he had not given them permission to do so.

He called one of his head-men and said, “There are a lot of people cutting my grass and I want you to go and see who it is and what they are doing it for, without my consent.” The head-man went, and when he arrived at the field saw a golden throne, a silver throne, servants and men and so much grandeur that he was afraid to ask the ones in command what it all meant, so slipped around and asked a servant who these grand people were and what they were doing. The servant said that they were the king and his son of the lower regions, and the reason he was there now was because he was on his way up to heaven and had just stopped on the road. The head-man returned and reported to the king, who said, “Well, if this is the king of the lower regions I must go and take him some gifts.” So he got his presents ready, went and presented them and asked, “If you are the king of the lower regions, why are you come to earth?” The king of the lower regions answered, “I am dwelling in the dark and live where the roots of the fig trees grow; the top is in the light where the gods par-take of the fruit, while I am the owner of the trees and tend to the roots and make the trees produce the fruit, but I never get any of it. So I am going up to ask the gods about it.”

The king of men on earth said, “I am glad you have come, we used to be neighbors and exchange gifts; in fact, we are somewhat related. I have a very nice daughter and you have your son, let me have him as a husband for my daughter.”

The king of the lower regions answered, “I have only three sons and this is the youngest, and I am much pleased with him and love him very much, but if you want him for your daughter, I will give him to you, as heretofore there has been a custom of this kind between kings such as we.”

So he gave him his son and said, “I am going up to heaven now to see what the gods are going to do about all this fruit, and you watch the heavens and see whether we have any trouble or not.”

The king of men took the son and returned to his palace, and in two or three days began to watch the skies. The heavens in a little while became as black as iron, dead men and hands and arms and legs and heads began to fall. He exclaimed, “Ah, I guess they are fighting sure enough.”

One day a head that looked exactly like the king of the lower regions fell down, so he was quite sure that it was the king’s head, and he thought he had better take it and burn it before his son-in-law found it, because he would be grieved. So he went off to burn it and his son-in-law saw the fire, and, calling one of the servants, who was a half-witted girl, asked what the big fire meant and all that smoke. She said, “Oh, you know your father’s head fell down from heaven some time ago and they are burning it now.”

When the son heard this, he gave a great cry and tried to rush to the fire, but they held him, though he finally broke away and ran and threw himself in the flames and perished.

In a few days here came the king himself down from heaven, for it had not been his head at all that had fallen. He went to camp in the same place in the hay field, where the king of men went to see him again and asked how the fight had ended. He answered, “We fought a little while, but one of the older gods intervened and fixed it up between us. They have acknowledged my right to part of the fruit, as the roots of the trees are in my kingdom. Why did not you bring my son out with you to see me?”

And the king of men said, “Well, dead men and a lot of things fell down from the