Once upon a time, there was a stork called Jimula who lived near a pond. There were numerous water animals like fishes, crabs, and frogs, who also lived in that pond. Jimula never had any problem in feeding himself For years, he caught some water animal every day for his meal.

Now, after many years, Jimula had grown very old and weak. He had poor eyesight and had no stamina to catch fish for his food. Hence, at times, he had to starve. Survival was becoming extremely difficult for him. One day, he thought to himself, “If this situation continues, I may soon die of hunger. I must soon find some solution.”

Jimula was very cunning by nature. One day, he got a very clever idea to dupe the animals who lived in the pond and eat them one by one. He sat near the pond and started to weep continuously. He pretended as if he was very depressed. He did not catch any fish whoever went past him. He kept crying and thought, “My tears will surely catch the attention of all these fishes. I think I will be able to fool them easily now and they all will obey me.”

Seeing the stork crying, all the fishes in the pond got astonished and worried. They discussed with one another and said, “None of us can understand the reason behind Jimula’s mood. Oh crab, why don’t you go and directly ask the stork what makes him cry?”

Finally, the crab decided to represent all the water animals and went ahead to ask Jimula. The stork cunningly replied, “Oh crab, what to tell you dearly! Yesterday I heard two people sitting and talking under the tree. They said that a demon is coming to this pond very soon. If he arrives, he will surely hunt all of us. I just cannot imagine seeing you all die. And this is the reason that makes me so sad.”

The wise crab asked again, “Sir Jimula, why don’t you live near some other river, lake, or pond then? You can easily fly and escape to another town and pond?” The clever Jimula replied, “For years, I have lived with you all. My heart is very fond of you all. Hearing the stork, the crab got fooled. He believed the clever Jimula and his fake tears and words. The crab asked, “So my brother Jimula, is there no way out that we all can save our lives and live together happily? Please tell me if you have any idea?”

Jimula replied cleverly, “I think there can be only one way out. If all the animals of this pond agree to go with me to the lake in another city, then we all can safely live together once again. I will have to carry each one of you in my beak. So, please talk to all to your friends and tell me what you decide. I will wait for you The crab went back into the water to discuss the problem and its solution as told by Jimula.

All wanted to live safe and long, so they agreed to fly with another lake. Cunning Jimula felt very excited.

He happily caught and carried one fish in his beak each he flew. While flying every day, Jimula crossed the forest and sat on a rock. There, he quickly crushed the fish that he was “carrying in his mouth and ate it.

Soon he had finished eating nearly half the fish and animals in the pond. One day, the crab decided to go and meet his friends in the other lake. He told Jimula to take At him there. Jimula asked the crab to clutch his neck with d, his claws while he flew. Just when they crossed the forest,

the crab asked Jimula about the location of the other town and lake. Jimula giggled cunningly and said, “What lake? Which town do you mean, crab? Look down. Do you see that rock? There, you will meet your death. Hahaha!” Saying this, Jimula slowed his speed to get down on the rock. The crab could see the bones and skeletons of all his friends Dying on that rock. He first got scared, but then he thought, “I must do something quickly to escape, else this Jimula will soon kill and eat me too!” The quickly thought of some idea to save his life. He suddenly gripped Jimula’s neck very tightly with his claws and dug them deep into his throat. Jimula cried in pain and died soon.

The crab soon found a way to reach back to his home pond. He told the whole story to all his friends. They all felt sad about the death of their friends. But still, everyone felt relaxed that the cunning Jimula got his punishment and there was no fear left anymore. They felt proud of the crab’s wisdom and thanked him for saving everyone’s life.

Moral: Never trust anyone blindly without knowing their true intention.