Essay: Bidpai

In the stories I read this week there are many tricksters and fools. In one story The Camel Driver and theAdder, the camel driver helps the Adder get out of a ring of fire. The only reason he agrees to help the Adder is because he promised not to sting him once he got out. But, once the Adder got out of the fire with the Camel Drivers help. The Adder asked who he should sting first the Camel Driver or his camel. The Adder was the trickster and the Camel Driver was the fool.

The story of The Crane and the Crab also has themes of trickster and fool. The Crane is too old to fish for herself and the fish learn those fishermen are coming soon to eat the fish. So, the fish create a plan with the Crane to be transported to a near by pool. But, when the Crane takes them in her beak she eats them instead. Then when its time to take the Crab to the pool, he sees all the fish bones and knows what the Crane has done and breaks her neck and she falls to her death. The Crane was the trickster and also the fool. She tricked the fish into thinking she was taking them to a save spot. She also was a fool to think the Crab wouldn’t notice and punish her.

Another story unit with a trickster and a fool is The Hare, The Fox, and The Wolf. In this story the wolf comes across the hare and decides he wants to eat her. The Hare afraid for her life tells the Wolf that there is a fat fox near by that will be a much better meal. The wolf likes this and they plan to trick the fox into thinking he is meeting someone special but they are really going to eat him. The fox chances on and says he wants to get his home ready for the special guest but really he covers a hole by his front door then invited them in and they fall in the hole and he escapes.

The Wolf and The Hare. This photo
was taken from the Untextbook. 

Here's the link to the original stories.