There lived a serpent-charmer in a town with his wife, mother and his children. He had three serpents with him which he had kept in a pannier in his house. He did not tell anyone in the house including his wife that he had three serpents in the pannier. He took the snakes daily, showed tricks in public. Out of the money he earned from people who liked his tricks, he managed to feed his family. After a few days, the wife got furious about the contents on the pannier and asked him about it. He advised her that the Allah provided all they wanted and that she should not discuss about the pannier. Though she kept quiet initially yet she grew more and more curious about it, so were the children. When the children started asking him about the pannier, he admonished them not to ask about it and threatened to punish them if they did. One fine morning, the curiosity of the wife got the better of her, and she opened the pannier. The deadly snakes came out one by one and after killing the wife, killed everyone in the house except the serpent-charmer.
The Serpent-charmer and his Wife
