Foolish Crane And The Mongoose: High up in the branches of a massive tree lived a family of cranes. However, their home was anything but safe. At the very foot of the tree, inside a dark hollow, lived a deadly black snake. Every time the mother crane hatched a new nest of eggs, the wicked snake would quietly slither up the trunk and devour her precious newborns. The crows were completely helpless against him.
Foolish Crane And The Mongoose
One afternoon, the mother crane felt entirely heartbroken. She had lost yet another brood to the snake. She stood by the edge of a nearby lake and wept uncontrollably.
A crab, who was scuttling along the shoreline, paused when he heard her sobbing. “Why are you crying, aunty?” he asked, feigning concern.
“I am the most unlucky mother in the world,” the crane sobbed, wiping her eyes. “That wicked black snake in the hollow of my tree keeps eating my children. What else can I do but cry? If I were strong enough, I would have killed him myself!”
The crab listened thoughtfully. Now, crabs and cranes were natural enemies, as cranes frequently hunted crabs for food. Seeing a brilliant opportunity, the crab hatched a dark scheme in his mind. “I can use this to my absolute advantage,” he thought. “I will give her a half-truth. I can devise a plan that gets rid of the snake, but also destroys the cranes at the same time.”
Putting on his most helpful face, the crab turned back to the grieving bird. “Aunty, do not despair. I have a foolproof plan to get rid of your snake problem. All you need to do is find a nearby mongoose burrow. Catch some fish, and scatter a tasty trail of flesh all the way from the mongoose’s front door straight to the snake’s hollow. The mongoose will follow the free meal, discover the snake, and naturally kill it for you!”
Desperate and blinded by her grief, the foolish crane acted impulsively. She didn’t stop to think about the long-term consequences of inviting a mongoose to her home. She eagerly agreed and set up the trail of fish exactly as the crab had suggested.
Just as anticipated, a hungry mongoose emerged from his burrow, found the fish, and happily followed the trail right to the base of the tree. There, he came face-to-face with the black snake. A fierce, hissing battle broke out, and the agile mongoose quickly killed the serpent.
The crane was overjoyed that her enemy was finally dead. But her relief was terribly short-lived.
Once the mongoose finished with the snake, he looked up. To his delight, he realized the branches above were absolutely full of plump, delicious cranes. Over the coming weeks, the mongoose simply climbed the tree. He hunted the birds one by one. Eventually, the entire family of cranes was entirely wiped out.
The Moral: Look before you leap, and never blindly trust the advice of an enemy. A short-sighted solution to one problem can easily invite an even greater disaster.
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