The legends of the Panjâb

—
——
—
EAJA EASALt. 15
but it happened that the knife went into the belly of a serpent
that chanced to be underneath it, and at that moment the
hunter was looking towards the buck.
As soon as the serpent
felt the pain of the knife it bit the hunter, and so it happened
that all three began rolling on the ground : the deer from
his wounds, the hunter from the bite of the serpent, and the
serpent from the knife-wound. On seeing this the Eaja said
to the parrot
" I think we had better go on."
But the parrot said, " Protector of the world, wait on and
you will see another sight. You saw how faithful the doe was
to her husband in his life, you will now see how faithful she
will be in death."
While he was speaking the doe ran up, and rushing on to
the horns of her husband died at once.
Then said the E&ja, " Let us go on now."
" Not so, my great master," said the parrot, " lOok at those
jackals."
A male and female jackal had come up to the dead bodies
and began talking as to the best way of eating them, when the
male said to his wife
" Perhaps they are not dead bodies but goatherds sleeping,
and perhaps one of us will be hurt by them. I may escape,
but you may be caught."
At last he gave in to his wife and came up to the hunter,
and as he did so the wind moved the chachra leaves with which
the hunter had covered himself.
his wife called out
This frightened the jackal, but
" coward ! what are you running away for "
So the jackal said he would try again and went close up
to the hunter. He spied the bow, and saying to himself
that crooked things are the root of all evil, he determined first
to remove it out of the way. With this very proper idea he
took it up by the string and took it to his wife and said
" You eat off the leather from the bow and then I will go
back."