One day, a boy stepped on a serpent’s tail. The angry serpent bit him on his toe. The poor boy died there and then. The boy’s father came in time to see the serpent. He brought an axe and cut the serpent’s tail. The serpent took revenge by biting the man’s cows and sheep. All the cows and the sheep died. The man was much grieved by what he saw. He thought, ‘This has to be stopped. I will make amends by befriending the serpent.’ So, the man took some honey and food for the serpent. He said to the serpent, “Friend, let go off your grievances. I have lost my son and animals and you have lost your tail. Let us be friends now.” The serpent replied, “No! You can never forget your son and I can never forget my tail.”
The Man and the Serpent’s Tail
