killed a young deer. He ate it and still he was not satisfied.
So, the lion thought for a plan. He went and sat leisurely beside a huge tree.
Meanwhile, a sheep was passing by. The Lion asked the sheep, "O sheep,
tell me the truth. Does my mouth have bad breadth? Lion opened his mouth, and
sheep replied "Yes, O king, your mouth has a bad breadth."
Lion was angry and said "what did you say? Does anyone say that
to king of the jungle. Do you have etiquettes or not?"
Saying so, the lion slapped the sheep with his paws and the sheep lost her
life.
After a while, a jackal was passing by. The lion asked him, "O jackal,
tell me the truth. Does my mouth have bad breadth?" Saying so, the lion
opened his mouth. Jackal thought "If I say that your mouth smells, then
angrily the lion will tear me apart." At that moment, the jackal saw the
dead sheep.Seeing this, the jackal said "O king, can your mouth ever have
bad breadth? Your mouth does not stink of flesh even a bit." The lion
furiously said "I just now ate a young deer and I have not even drank
water. How is it possible that my mouth does not stink? You have lied and there
is no place for a liar in my kingdom."
Saying this, the lion slapped the jackal with his paws and sent him to the
abode of Yamaraj.
After a while, a fox was passing by. The lion called him and asked. "O fox
tell me the truth. Does my mouth has bad breadth. The fox saw that the sheep
and the jackal were lying dead near the lion. Fox went near the lion and
smelled his mouth. Then he kept his hand on his head and raising the nose he
said, "O king please forgive me. I have such bad cold that I cannot even
understand whether your mouth has bad breadth or not?" Hearing this, the
lion was bewildered. He did not know what to do. Meantime, the fox bowed down
and quickly walked off.
Moral: One has to deal intelligently with people who have power
--- A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Thanks to Tripti Madhavi Devi mataji for sharing the nice story.
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