Reading Notes: Tibetan Folktales, Part B

Reading through Part B of the Tibetan Folktales unit, the story I found most suitable for retelling was that of "How the Rabbit Killed the Lion." In this story, all the animals came everyday to kowtow before the Lion, him being king of the beasts. One day, however, the Rabbit was tired and did not want to go to the Lion, so he stayed laying in the grass instead. The Lion found him and demanded to know why he didn't show up, so the Rabbit lied and told him he was stopped at the river by a devil and ran to hide in the grass. The Rabbit then said to the Lion that the devil had told him to tell the Lion to come fight him to see who the king of the beasts really is. The Rabbit and the Lion then go to the river to fight the devil. When the Lion looks in the river, he sees his own distorted reflection and dives in to attack it, drowning himself.

I think a humorous opportunity presents itself to rewrite this story to have the devil end up being real, to the surprise of both the Lion and the Rabbit. Maybe the devil slays the Lion and the Rabbit, punishing him for his lies. Or maybe the Lion defeats the devil and rewards the Rabbit for telling him about it.

Story Source: Tibetan Folktales by A. L. Shelton

Study of a Lion's Head by Rosa Bonheur. Source: The Clark Art Institute