The story starts in a jungle. A jungle that was ruled by a merciless, powerful lion. All were scared of him. One day, the animals got together and asked him why he was randomly killing animals. They said that just one animal a day was enough for him. If he promised not to kill any more, the group would send one animal to him every day as his meal. The lion said he was fine with this, but if on any one day, an animal did not come to him, he would then kill all the animals. The animals promised him this would not happen. One animal would be sent to him, every day.
Animals started going to him, one a day. One day it was the turn of a hare. He was reluctant. Who would want to go and become a meal of a lion? Much against his will, he went to the lion, thinking how he could possibly trick the lion.
The hare had an idea. He roamed around and went to the lion when the sun was about to set. The lion, in his den, was getting furious. He thought: "The animals broke their promise. Tomorrow I will kill all the animals." At that moment, the hare arrived there.
The lion was furious. He growled: "First, you are small, and on top of that, you are late. I will kill you now and tomorrow I will kill the other animals." The hare said: "But it is not my fault, nor is it the fault of those animals. Listen, I will tell you the reason for the delay." The lion said: "I am hungry. Hurry up, tell me fast. I am losing my patience."
The hare said: "Sir, I am a small animal. The other animals knew that. So, they sent four other hares with me. We all had started to come here when another lion appeared. He seemed very strong. I told him we were coming to you. He said he was the king of the jungle. He also said he would hold the four hares hostage. He asked me to come to you and tell you that he is challenging you. Whoever wins can have all the hares. I have come here to tell you this. It is because of that lion that I got delayed, and also why I came alone."
The lion was enraged. He shouted: "I want to see this lion!" The hare said: "This lion lives in a strange fort. He waits there and attacks from his fort." The lion said: "I don't care about his fort! Take me to him. I will kill him immediately!" The hare asked: "Should you not try and find out how strong that other lion is before attacking him?" The lion replied: "No, that's not your worry. Take me to him."
The hare then led the lion to a well. He then said: "That lion was here. He may have heard that you are on your way, so he has gone inside his fort. This is the fort." The lion looked inside and saw his own reflection. He growled, and the reflection also growled. The sound was louder, coming from inside the well. Hearing this, the lion jumped inside the well and drowned.
The hare then happily went back to the other animals and told them what had happened. All were very pleased to hear the end of the cruel lion, and they all praised the hare.
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Ending the story, the jackal told his brother: "That is why the clever person is the powerful one. I can easily create a misunderstanding between the lion and the bullock." "See if you can do it," said his brother.
One day, the jackal saw the lion and bullock. Instead of sitting together, they were sitting apart. This was the opportunity the jackal was looking for. He went to the lion. The lion was happy to see him and asked: "Why have you not come and met me? Where have you been?" The jackal said: "I did not come as you were busy. I now had to come and meet you. I can see you are bringing about your destruction yourself, and I cannot bring myself to see this." The lion said: "What is this? Do tell me."
The jackal said: "The bullock hates you. You consider him your friend. He told me one day that he knew all your strengths and weaknesses. He would now kill you, and then he would become the king of the jungle. Then he would make me his minister." The lion was shocked to hear this. "I don't believe he would deceive me," said the lion. "I trust him more than myself. I am not sure I should believe you." The jackal said: "You are making a mistake. What qualities does the bullock have? He cannot help kill your enemies. Find some offense and kill him."
The lion said: "I have given him my word that I will protect him. So how can I then kill him? He is my friend, and I am not angry with him. I probably should not have made a grass-eater my friend, but now that I have made him my friend, I cannot hurt him, even if he betrays me."
The jackal said: "You have taken pity on him and have stopped killing animals. Where will the meat-eaters get meat from? Do not make friends with one whose character you are not fully aware of. The bedbug was at fault, but the flea got killed." "How did this happen?" asked the lion. The jackal began telling the story.
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Key Take-Aways (Corrected)
1. Cleverness and wit can defeat physical power. The hare used his mind to defeat the lion.
2. The hare understood the lion's traits: arrogance and temper. By exploiting them, the hare made the lion's reflection the weapon against him.
3. The lion's fury and impatience led directly to his downfall.