Reading Notes: Tibetan Folk Tales, Part A

 

Photo by Ratanjot Singh

The Tiger and the Frog

- In this story, a little frog distracts a tiger out of eating him by tricking him. 

- The frog even uses the tiger to perform his tricks, causing the tiger to fear him and run away. 

- the tiger fears him so badly that when he went back down to challenge the frog with a fox, he still runs away taking the fox with him.

The Cony Who Got into Bad Company

- a rabbit and a rat become friends with a lama, but soon trick the lama and steal from him in the night.

- the lama figures this out and catches them, cutting off their whiskers, ears, and tails

- the rabbit and the rat go back to their people asking for an army to take out the lama but the rabbit's people disagree and say that the rabbit folk do not steal and that the rabbit should have never become friends with a rat who does steal.

The Donkey and the Rock
- This story had such a plot twist ending that was very pleasant! 

- there are two men, one with expensive oil, and one with a donkey.

 

- the man with the oil was laying on a rock when the man with the donkey came by and accidentally knocked the oil over breaking the jar. 

- the men fought over who was to blame but eventually took it to the king, who decided that the only things to be blamed were the donkey and the rock, so he had them both imprisoned.

- the king held a trial for the donkey and the rock and once the courtroom was packed full of people, the king demanded the people pay to leave, and then gave the money to the man who lost his expensive oil.

How the Fox Fell a Victim to His Own Deceit

- A mother tiger brings her baby two playmates to grow up with, a calf, and a fox. 

- the fox becomes jealous of the tiger and the calf's relationship and plots a way to divide them

- the fox whispered lies into both of their ears, making them dislike each other. 

- one day the tiger and the calf confront each other and learn that the fox had been lying to them both, so the plan to attack the fox 

- the tiger's plan works so he kills the fox then eats him.

Covetousness 

- In this story, a bear, a fox, a rabbit, and an elephant all die in hunters traps.

- when the hunters come along they have greedy hearts and end up planning to kill one another so all die from eating things that were poisoned.

Story Source: Tibetan Folk Tales by A.L. Shelton with illustrations by Mildred Bryant (1925).