The Tiger, the Brahmin and the Jackal is a popular Indian

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, ranging ...

with a long history and many variants. The earliest record of the folklore was included in the Panchatantra, which dates the story between 200 BCE and 300 CE.

Mary Frere Mary Eliza Isabella Frere (1845–1911) (nickname ''May'') was an English author of works regarding India. In 1868 Frere published the first English-language field-collected book of Indian storytales, ''Old Deccan Days''. Early life Frere was bo ...

included a version in her 1868 collection of Indian folktales, ''Old Deccan Days'', the first collection of Indian folktales in English. A version was also included in

Joseph Jacobs Joseph Jacobs (29 August 1854 – 30 January 1916) was an Australian folklorist, translator, literary critic, social scientist, historian and writer of English literature who became a notable collector and publisher of English folklore. Jacobs ...

' collection ''Indian Fairy Tales.''

Plot

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passes a

tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on ...

in a trap. The tiger pleads for his release, promising not to eat the Brahmin. The Brahmin sets him free but no sooner is the tiger out of the cage then he says he is going to eat the Brahmin, going back on his promise. The Brahmin is horrified and tells the tiger how unjust he is. They agree to ask the first three things they encounter to judge between them. The first thing they encounter is a

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

, who, having suffered at the hands of humans, answers that the tiger should eat the Brahmin. Next a buffalo, exploited and mistreated by humans, agrees it is only just that the Brahmin should be eaten. Finally they meet a

jackal Jackals are medium-sized canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word "jackal" has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-backed ...

who, sympathetic to the Brahmin's plight, at first feigns incomprehension of what has happened and asks to see the trap. Once there he claims he still doesn't understand. The tiger gets back in the trap to demonstrate and the jackal quickly shuts him in, suggesting to the Brahmin that they leave matters thus.

Variants

Illustration inset at page 66 of Indian Fairy Tales (1892)

There are more than a hundred versions of this tale spread across the world. In some the released animal is a crocodile, in some a snake, a tiger and in others a

wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly un ...

. Folklorist

stated that the tale can be found in early Indian sources. Some variants are very old, going back at least to the '' Panchatantra'' or ''

Fables of Bidpai The ''Panchatantra'' (IAST: Pañcatantra, ISO 15919, ISO: Pañcatantra, sa, पञ्चतन्त्र, "Five Treatises") is an ancient Indian subcontinent, Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in Sanskrit verse and prose, ...

'' and the

Jataka tales The Jātakas (meaning "Birth Story", "related to a birth") are a voluminous body of literature native to India which mainly concern the previous births of Gautama Buddha in both human and animal form. According to Peter Skilling, this genre is ...

. In Europe, it appeared some 900 years ago in the ''Disciplina Clericalis'' of

Petrus Alphonsi Petrus Alphonsi (died after 1116) was a Jewish Spanish physician, writer, astronomer and polemicist who converted to Christianity in 1106. He is also known just as Alphonsi, and as Peter Alfonsi or Peter Alphonso, and was born Moses Sephardi. ...

, and later in the ''

Gesta Romanorum ''Gesta Romanorum'', meaning ''Deeds of the Romans'' (a very misleading title), is a Latin collection of anecdotes and tales that was probably compiled about the end of the 13th century or the beginning of the 14th. It still possesses a two-fold l ...

'' and in the ''Directorium Vitae Humanae'' of John of Capua. There are also modern illustrated versions of the tale, such as ''The Tiger, the Brahmin & the Jackal'' illustrated by David Kennett and ''The Tiger and the Brahmin'' illustrated by Kurt Vargo.

Rabbit Ears Productions Rabbit Ears Productions is a production company best known for producing three television series that feature individual episodes adapting popular pieces of children's literature. Rabbit Ears episodes have been released on home video, broadcast o ...

produced a video version of the last book, narrated by

Ben Kingsley Sir Ben Kingsley (born Krishna Pandit Bhanji; 31 December 1943) is an English actor. He has received various accolades throughout his career spanning five decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Grammy Award, and tw ...

, with music by

Ravi Shankar Ravi Shankar (; born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury, sometimes spelled as Rabindra Shankar Chowdhury; 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012) was an Indian sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known export of North In ...

.See Rabbit Ears Productions media and release information. The variant by Rabbit Ears Productions alters certain bits of the story, where the Brahmin travels alone to gain the opinion of others. An elephant is included as first of the three things (the latter two being the tree and water buffalo) that the Brahmin encounters.

Notes

External links

Sound recording of the tale
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tiger, the Brahmin and the Jackal, The Indian folklore Indian fairy tales Indian legends Indian literature Sanskrit literature Fables Jataka tales Oral tradition Animals in Buddhism Tigers in literature Brahmins Fictional jackals ATU 150-199

Plot

Variants

See also

Notes

External links