The Heron and the Crab
A Clever Tale from the Panchatantra
Chapter 1: The Old Heron’s Problem
Once upon a time, in a beautiful pond surrounded by green trees and colorful flowers, there lived an old heron named Bagula. He had once been a magnificent bird with snow-white feathers and a long, sharp beak that could catch fish faster than lightning!
But now, poor Bagula was getting very old. His once-bright eyes had grown dim, his neck moved slowly, and his legs shook when he tried to stand in the shallow water.
“Oh dear, oh dear!” sighed Bagula one morning, standing sadly by the edge of the pond. “I used to catch ten fish before breakfast, but now I can barely catch one fish all day!”
The pond was full of plump, juicy fish swimming happily in the clear water. There were golden carp, silver rohu, and tiny minnows that sparkled like jewels. But no matter how hard Bagula tried, they were all too quick for his old, tired body.
“Splash, splash!” went the fish as they darted away from his slow-moving beak.
“I’m getting weaker every day,” Bagula worried. “Soon I won’t be able to catch any fish at all! What will happen to me then?”
As he stood there feeling sorry for himself, Bagula’s crafty mind began to work. “There must be a way to get these fish without having to chase them,” he thought. “But how?”
Suddenly, his eyes lit up with a mischievous idea. “I know! I’ll use my brains instead of my beak!”
Chapter 2: The Clever Trick Begins
The next morning, Bagula stood at the edge of the pond looking very sad and worried. Instead of trying to catch fish, he just stood there with big tears rolling down his long beak.
“Boo-hoo, boo-hoo!” he cried loudly, making sure all the fish could hear him.
Soon, a curious little fish named Goldie swam close to the surface. “Mr. Bagula,” she called out, “why are you crying? You look so sad!”
“Oh, my dear little friends!” Bagula wailed dramatically. “I have terrible, terrible news! The worst thing in the world is about to happen!”
More fish began to gather, their eyes wide with worry. “What is it, Mr. Bagula? What’s wrong?” they asked.
Bagula made his voice shake with fear. “I overheard some men talking yesterday. They said they’re going to drain our beautiful pond completely! They want to catch every single fish and take you all away to the big market in the city!”
“WHAT?!” gasped all the fish together. The little ones started crying, and even the big fish looked terrified.
“Oh no, oh no!” cried Goldie. “What will happen to us? Where will we live?”
“They’re coming with their big nets and pumps tomorrow!” Bagula continued, pretending to wipe tears from his eyes. “Our lovely pond will be empty, and you’ll all be… sold in the market!”
The fish were so scared they were swimming in circles. “Mr. Bagula, you’ve lived here longer than anyone! Please, please help us! What can we do?”
Bagula pretended to think very hard. “Well,” he said slowly, “there is ONE thing that might save you…”
Chapter 3: The False Promise
All the fish swam closer, hanging on to every word Bagula said.
“There’s another pond,” Bagula announced, “deep in the forest where no humans ever go. It’s even more beautiful than this one, with crystal-clear water and plenty of food. You would be completely safe there!”
“Really?” asked Goldie hopefully. “But how can we get there? It’s too far for us to swim!”
Bagula nodded wisely. “That’s the problem, my dear friends. The only way to reach the safe pond is by flying. And I’m the only one here who can fly…”
“Will you help us, Mr. Bagula?” pleaded a young carp named Shiny. “Will you take us to the safe pond?”
Bagula pretended to look very tired and weak. “Oh, I don’t know if I can manage it. I’m so old and frail. Flying such a long distance with passengers would be very difficult for me…”
“Please, please!” cried all the fish together. “We’ll do anything! We promise to be very good!”
“Well,” said Bagula thoughtfully, “I suppose I could try to help you. But I can only carry one fish at a time. It will take many trips, and I’ll have to rest between each journey.”
“Oh, thank you, thank you!” the fish cheered. “You’re the kindest bird in the whole world!”
Goldie swam up eagerly. “Can I go first, Mr. Bagula? I’m small and won’t be too heavy for you!”
Bagula smiled his sweetest smile. “Of course, dear little Goldie. Climb onto my back, and I’ll take you to your new safe home right away!”
Chapter 4: The Terrible Truth
Little Goldie was so excited and grateful that she quickly climbed onto Bagula’s back. “Hold on tight!” said the heron, and up, up, up they flew into the bright blue sky.
“Oh my!” gasped Goldie as they soared above the trees. “I never knew the world looked so beautiful from up here! Are we flying to the safe pond now, Mr. Bagula?”
“Oh yes, my dear,” chuckled Bagula in a voice that suddenly didn’t sound quite as kind as before. “We’re going to a very special place indeed!”
But instead of flying to another pond, Bagula flew to a large, flat rock hidden behind some thick bushes. As soon as they landed, his whole behavior changed completely!
“Welcome to your new home, little fish!” he laughed wickedly, and before poor Goldie could understand what was happening, Bagula gobbled her up in one quick gulp!
“Delicious!” he said, licking his beak. “Much easier than chasing fish around the pond! Why didn’t I think of this wonderful trick sooner?”
All around the rock, Goldie would have seen something very frightening if she had looked carefully—the bones of many other fish who had trusted Bagula before!
“This is perfect!” Bagula said to himself happily. “I can eat one fish every day without any effort at all. Those silly fish will keep volunteering to be my meals! What a brilliant plan!”
He carefully cleaned his beak and flew back to the pond, practicing his sad, worried expression.
Chapter 5: More Fish Disappear
When Bagula returned to the pond, all the fish swam up to him eagerly.
“How is little Goldie?” asked Shiny. “Did she reach the safe pond okay?”
Bagula put on his most caring voice. “Oh yes, she’s absolutely wonderful! You should have seen how happy she was when she saw the beautiful new pond. She’s swimming around joyfully with lots of new fish friends!”
“Hooray!” cheered all the fish. “When can the rest of us go?”
“I need to rest a little,” Bagula said, pretending to pant from exhaustion. “Flying such a long distance is very tiring for an old bird like me. But tomorrow I can take another one of you to safety.”
The next day, Shiny volunteered to go. “I can’t wait to see Goldie again and swim in the safe pond!” he said excitedly as he climbed onto Bagula’s back.
But poor Shiny met the same terrible fate as Goldie. Bagula flew him to the rock and ate him up too!
This went on day after day. Each morning, Bagula would return with wonderful stories about how happy the previous fish was in the “safe pond.” And each day, another trusting fish would volunteer to be taken to “safety.”
“Ravi is having such fun in the new pond!” Bagula would report. “And yesterday I saw Moti playing hide-and-seek with some colorful new friends!”
The fish were so happy to hear these stories that they never suspected the truth. One by one, their friends were disappearing, but they thought they were all living safely in a wonderful new home.
Chapter 6: The Wise Crab Speaks Up
Now, living at the bottom of the same pond was a very old and very wise crab named Karka. He had seen many things in his long life and was much too clever to be fooled easily.
Karka had been watching everything that happened, and he was growing more suspicious every day.
“Something fishy is going on here,” he said to himself, wiggling his big claws thoughtfully. “And I don’t mean the fish! Why would a heron, who has always eaten fish, suddenly become so helpful and kind?”
He decided to investigate. Early one morning, when Bagula was sleeping, Karka carefully crawled out of the pond and followed the path the heron took when he flew away with the fish.
Using his strong claws, Karka climbed over rocks and through bushes, following Bagula’s scent. Finally, he reached the flat rock where Bagula had been eating his victims.
“Oh my goodness!” gasped Karka when he saw the pile of fish bones scattered around the rock. “Just as I suspected! That wicked heron has been eating all the fish instead of taking them to safety!”
Karka counted the bones sadly. “Poor Goldie, poor Shiny, poor Ravi, poor Moti… all my friends have been tricked and eaten by that evil bird!”
He hurried back to the pond as fast as his legs could carry him. He had to warn the remaining fish before it was too late!
Chapter 7: The Warning
When Karka reached the pond, he found Bagula getting ready to take another fish to the “safe pond.” A young fish named Bubbles was excitedly climbing onto the heron’s back.
“Stop!” shouted Karka as loudly as he could. “Don’t go with him, Bubbles! It’s a trap!”
“What?” said Bubbles, confused. “But Mr. Bagula is taking me to the safe pond where all our friends are!”
“No, he’s not!” Karka declared, his voice shaking with anger. “I followed his trail and found the terrible truth! There is no safe pond! He’s been eating all the fish who trusted him!”
All the remaining fish gasped in horror. Bagula’s eyes flashed with anger at being discovered.
“Don’t listen to that silly old crab!” Bagula said quickly. “He’s just jealous because crabs can’t fly! I’ve been helping your friends, and I was about to help you too!”
But Karka stood his ground bravely. “If you’re really taking them to a safe pond, then take me there too! I want to see this wonderful place for myself!”
“Crabs are too heavy,” Bagula said nervously. “I can’t possibly carry you that far!”
“Then prove you’re telling the truth!” demanded Karka. “Show us where this safe pond is!”
The fish began to murmur among themselves. “Yes, show us!” they said. “If our friends are really safe, we want to see them!”
Chapter 8: The Crab’s Brave Plan
Bagula realized his trick was about to be discovered completely. His kind mask slipped away, and his eyes became cold and cruel.
“You troublesome crab!” he hissed. “You’ve ruined my perfect plan! Fine, I’ll take you to see the ‘safe pond’ and then I’ll eat you too!”
“I’m not afraid of you!” declared Karka bravely. “I know you’re lying, and I’m going to prove it to everyone!”
Even though he was terrified inside, Karka climbed onto Bagula’s back. “Take me to this safe pond of yours!”
The fish watched nervously as Bagula spread his wings. “Be careful, Karka!” they called out.
“Don’t worry about me,” Karka replied. “Just remember everything I told you!”
Up into the sky they flew, Bagula flying angrily and roughly, trying to scare the brave crab. But Karka held on tightly with his strong claws.
“You’re a very foolish crab,” Bagula snarled as they flew. “When we land, I’m going to eat you just like I ate all those delicious fish! They were so stupid to trust me!”
“So you admit it!” said Karka. “You really did eat all our friends!”
“Of course I did!” laughed Bagula wickedly. “And they tasted wonderful! I’ve been having the easiest meals of my life thanks to my brilliant trick!”
But Karka was ready for this confession. As they flew over the terrible rock covered with fish bones, he was preparing his own surprise for the evil heron.
Chapter 9: The Clever Revenge
“Here we are!” announced Bagula as they landed on the rock. “Welcome to your final destination, you meddling crab!”
But Karka was much cleverer than Bagula expected. The moment they landed, Karka used his powerful claws to grab Bagula’s long neck in a grip as strong as iron!
“Ow! Ow! What are you doing?” squawked Bagula, trying to shake the crab off.
“Teaching you a lesson about tricking innocent creatures!” Karka replied firmly. “You thought you were so clever, but you forgot that crabs have very strong claws!”
Bagula tried to fly away, but Karka’s grip was too tight. The more the heron struggled, the tighter Karka held on.
“Let me go!” cried Bagula. “I’m sorry! I promise I’ll never trick anyone again!”
“Too late for apologies!” said Karka. “You ate all my friends, and now you must pay for your wickedness!”
With his powerful claws, Karka squeezed tighter and tighter until the evil heron could no longer breathe. Soon, Bagula fell down, never to trick another innocent creature again.
“That’s what happens to those who use lies and cruelty to hurt others,” said Karka firmly.
The brave crab then made his way back to the pond, carrying the sad news about their friends but also the good news that the danger was over.
Chapter 10: The Lesson Learned
When Karka returned to the pond, all the remaining fish gathered around him anxiously.
“What happened, Karka?” asked Bubbles. “Did you find our friends?”
Karka’s voice was sad but strong. “I’m sorry, my dear friends. Our companions Goldie, Shiny, Ravi, Moti, and all the others are gone. The wicked heron ate them all instead of taking them to safety.”
The fish began to cry. “Oh no! Our poor friends! How could we have been so foolish to trust him?”
“But,” continued Karka, “the evil heron will never hurt anyone again. I made sure of that. We are all safe now.”
“You saved us all, Karka!” said Bubbles gratefully. “If you hadn’t been so wise and brave, he would have eaten every single one of us!”
Karka nodded sadly. “I learned something very important from this terrible experience. We should never trust someone just because they say nice things to us. We must watch what they do, not just listen to what they say.”
“What do you mean?” asked a young fish.
“Think about it,” explained Karka wisely. “Herons have always eaten fish—that’s their nature. But suddenly this heron claimed he wanted to help fish instead of eating them. That should have made us suspicious right away!”
“You’re right!” said the fish. “We were so scared and so grateful for his help that we didn’t think carefully about whether his story made sense.”
“From now on,” declared Karka, “we must use our minds as well as our hearts. It’s good to trust others, but we must be careful and wise about who we trust.”
“Thank you for teaching us this important lesson, Karka,” said all the fish together. “And thank you for being brave enough to save us!”
From that day forward, the fish lived peacefully in their pond, but they were much wiser about trusting strangers who offered help that seemed too good to be true.
The Important Moral
“Don’t trust someone just because they say nice things or make big promises. Watch their actions and think carefully about whether their offers make sense. True friends prove themselves through their deeds, not just their words. And when something seems too good to be true, it usually is!”
This wonderful story teaches us to be grateful for help but also to be smart and careful about who we trust. We should always use our brains along with our hearts, and never be afraid to ask questions when something doesn’t seem right.
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