Reading Notes: Week 2 Anthology

The Turtle and the King

A king built a lake for his two sons to play in. One day he filled the lake with fishes, but a turtle ended up in the lake too. The sons were afraid of the turtle, thinking it was a demon, so the king ordered his men to kill the turtle. His men offered many suggestions to kill the turtle, all the while the turtle remained silent. When an old man who was afraid of water suggested they kill the turtle by throwing it back into the lake, the turtle protested. Because of his protests, the king decided that was the best way to kill the turtle. The turtle was thrown into the lake; instead of dying, the turtle swan back to his home
Turtle used his wits to trick the king into setting him free – clever and tactical
The king knew the turtle was not a demon but ordered its death anyway just to appease his sons – complacent in teaching his sons

I really enjoyed this tale and how it illustrated the juxtaposition of how being a ruler does not assume he is intelligent or superior nor does being an animal automatically make the turtle unintelligent and submissive at the hands of others. And, this story revealed that smart thinking and smart actions will help you more in life than just idly letting things happen.

"How the Turtle Saves His Own Life" from Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt

Goblin City

A ship wrecked off the coast of a city populated by rakshasis (she-goblins). The goblins brought food and other provisions to the sailors in an effort to persuade them into the city. They used magic to make it appear that men also populated the city so as not to frighten away the sailors. The men felt more comfortable upon seeing these illusions, so they joined the goblins and eventually agreed to marry them. In the middle of the night when the goblins were eating the previous group of men they imprisoned, the captain woke up and discovered that he and his men were all in danger. They had no way to flee the city until a fairy who did not like the goblins offered them an escape on her flying horse. The men who believed the captain left on the horse while the men who did not believe their captain were killed and eaten by the goblins later that night.
She-goblins - deceitful
Sailors - gullible and easily manipulated, especially those who stayed

This tale really honed in on the messages of 'don’t trust blindly' and 'appearances can be deceiving'. While reading, I was speechless that these men thought they were safe; even though the goblins used magic to transform the city, and I am assuming their appearances as well, the sailors really had no spatial awareness and accepted the goblins’ company so easily when they had never even met them before! I do understand that this is a tale, though, so I am projecting my own concerns right now. Aside from that, I did enjoy this story, which is why I wanted to write about it. I thought the morals and underlying takeaways are very important to consider when in new and unfamiliar environments. Always think critically in these situations.

"Goblin City" from The Giant Crab, and Other Tales from Old India by W. H. D. Rouse

Sailors on the flying horse: W. Robinson

Epics of India