Reading Notes: Raja Rasalu, Part B

Reading through Part B of Raja Rasalu's tales, the one I found most suitable to retelling was that of "The Hunter." In this story, Raja Rasalu comes across a renowned hunter who uses his lute playing to lure in animals before shooting them with his bow. The hunter asks Rasalu to be his teacher. Rasalu accepts under three conditions: that the hunter tell no one, that the hunter not hunt in the south of the forest, and that the hunter not kill a specific pair of deer that live there in the south. The hunter, of course, disobeys these conditions, ultimately resulting in his death at the hands of a viper in a very roundabout manner. 

Were I to retell this story, I think I would have the hunter realize his folly and stop himself before breaking the final condition and killing one of the deer. I mean, the buck was talking to him, how can you not realize that these are the deer you aren't supposed to kill. Maybe instead, the hunter simply abides the deers' request and continues to play for them. Perhaps, in kind, the buck stomps on the snake which killed the hunter, his abiding by Rasalu's conditions inadvertently saving him. Also, just to spice things up a little, I might make things a bit more modern and give the hunter a banjo instead of a lute, cause why not?

Bluegrass Banjo. Source: WikiMedia Commons

Story Source:

The Adventures of the Punjab Hero Raja Rasalu by Charles Swynnerton