The Vain Elephant

Down in South India, there’s a forest called Thekkady. The animals in this forest lived in peace, there was plenty of food to eat and the animals were all content. They called it God’s own country and considered themselves especially blessed.
Things couldn’t be better except for Aana, the elephant. Aana was a large elephant who thought he was God’s gift to the forest. He was extremely vain about his looks and was forever trumpeting his own praise. The other animals tried their best to ignore him, but it was difficult not to get irritated. It would have been good if he left the other animals alone, but he insisted on showing them his ‘good’ looks and ‘amazing’ abilities. Everyday morning he would catch hold of a few animals and force them to sit around him while he flexed his muscles and generally showed off. The poor animals had no choice but to watch because Aana was too big for them to resist and any protest would invite his wrath! His most prized possession was a large mirror in an ornate frame which had fallen off a caravan as it passed through the forest a long time ago. It had survived unbroken and Aana spent hours in front of it admiring and grooming himself.
One day, Meeka the frog and his friend Jabber, the monkey were walking through the forest. They were looking for a few particular leaves and roots because Jabber’s younger brother was sick and needed medicine. Meeka knew about roots and leaves which had healing powers. They had got almost everything they needed when Aana came across them.
“Aaah, just the animals I wanted to see..! Did you know that my neck muscles are bigger than a tree trunk? And..”
“Later, Aana”, Meeka pleaded. “We are in a hurry now. Jabber’s brother is not well and we have to make medicine for him”
“This won’t take long and you will be glad that I showed it to you. See… when I flex my neck muscles, they form such perfect columns…”. Aana had already started off on his monologue.
Jabber groaned and tried once again, “We’ll give these medicines to my brother and come back and listen to you, Aana, please let us go now.”
But Aana would have none of it. He glared at them both and said, “You will sit there and listen to me NOW! Otherwise, I will grab you both with my splendid trunk and hurl you far away”.
Poor Jabber! He was torn with anxiety about his brother but had no choice but to sit there. Meeka and Jabber sat on a tree trunk, gritting their teeth, angry as hell but powerless to do anything. Aana, that day was in his full form and waxed eloquent about his muscles and his skin and his trunk and…..
Finally at the end of three long hours, Aana got tired of his monologue and said, “I know you will be disappointed, but its time for my mud bath now. I have to stop enthralling you and leave now. Don’t worry; we will continue the next time we meet”.
Jabber and Meeka, glared at Aana and muttered under their breaths, “Big doddering muscle brain! If only we could teach him a lesson !”
They quickly gathered all the medicinal leaves and roots they had collected and ran to where Jabber’s brother lay. They were just in time! Jabber’s brother looked very weak and tired. Meeka quickly made the medicine and gave it to the little monkey. He drank it up gratefully and fell asleep in a while, feeling much better.
“Don’t worry about your brother. He will be alright now, we came in the nick of time”, Meeka reassured Jabber.
“I am so grateful to you Meeka for saving my brother. But I am so angry at that Aana. I really want to teach him a lesson!” Jabber said. “He thinks too much of himself!”
“But we are so small and Aana is so strong. He could crush us both without even realizing it!” Meeka shrugged helplessly.
Jabber looked thoughtful and said, “What you said is true, but we are cleverer than that muscle brain. I am sure we can teach him a lesson”
“Let me think a while”
Jabber sat thinking while Meeka watched over his brother. After sometime, he jumped up and said, “I know what to do! I have the perfect idea! But I need your help Meeka.”
“You can count on me” Meeka replied. “Just tell me what to do”.
Jabber quickly explained his idea to Meeka. Meeka was overjoyed to hear it. “That should work!” he said. “Aana will not know what hit him”.
The next day, early in the morning, Jabber and Meeka, stealthily went to where Aana lived in the jungle. Dawn was just breaking and Aana was fast asleep. Aana’s prized possession, his mirror, rested against a broad tree near him. Jabber and Meeka crept silently to the mirror and without making any sound carefully lifted it. They carried it a little away and carefully removed the mirror from the frame. They then hid the mirror and returned the frame to where it was before. Aana was still asleep blissfully unaware of what had happened.
Meeka quickly put on an orange robe and a crown of woven palm leaves. Jabber took up his position behind the frame of the mirror. Meeka hopped onto a low branch of a tree near Aana and shouted in the deepest voice he could manage. “AANA, wake up !! WAKE UP YOU WORM !!”
Aana opened his eyes sleepily, in an instant all his sleep had gone. In the dim light of dawn stood before him a strange creature. And it was shouting at him!
“I am the Spirit of the Forest! You have displeased me very much!”
Aana, for all his size and muscle was a coward at heart and started quaking. “But what did I do? I have never seen you before!”
“You have hurt my faithful subjects and they have complained to me. You are too vain for your own good and I am going to curse you.” Meeka glared at Aana. Though he was tiny, he really did look a scary sight!
“Henceforth you will look like a small, ugly monkey. I curse you! GADZOOKUM, BIDIKUM, GUMBLAM”
Aana’s knees were knocking with fear now. “Please don’t…. please”
“Too late!” Meeka said, “You’ve become a monkey now, look in your mirror and see for yourself”
Aana moved over to his mirror in dread and looked. There looking back at him was a monkey!!! A small ugly monkey!! It was Jabber, of course, but the stupid elephant thought he had indeed become a monkey. Jabber quickly mimicked Aana’s moves. It was true! He had been cursed and had turned into a monkey. Aana moved his head from side to side and Jabber also did the same. Aana was convinced now, he had indeed turned into a monkey!
Aana started wailing in anguish! “Oh my handsome looks! I have become an ugly monkey now! Who will look at me now? What will I do?”
“Oh Powerful Spirit of the forest, please forgive me! I will do anything you say, make me an elephant again! Please, I beg you!”
Aana was so desperate, he got on to his knees and begged!
Meeka declared in his most commanding tone, “Do you promise to be good from now on? Do you promise never to trouble the other animals in the forest? Do you promise to help others?”
“Yes, yes, yes, I will do everything you say!” Aana replied. “Just turn me back into an elephant! I will never be mean again or ever trouble anybody.”
“Very well, then I will forgive you” Meeka told Aana. “For the curse to be reversed, you have to apologise to every animal in the forest and beg their forgiveness.. After that you have to go to the river and dip yourself twice in the water. Then you will become an elephant again.”
“Thank you Oh spirit! Thank you! I will apologise to all the animals right away”, Aana gratefully said.
But Meeka said, “Mind you! The instant that you break your promise you will turn into an ugly monkey again”
Aana fairly quaked! “No! I will never break my promise. I will be a good elephant from today”
“Go now and beg forgiveness!” commanded Meeka.
Aana ran to apologise to all the animals.
Meeka and Jabber quickly put back the mirror in the frame laughing with glee. They had done it! Using their brains, they had taught Aana a lesson he would never forget!
Aana was true to his word and became a very good elephant. All the animals came to like him a lot and he made a lot of friends! Meeka and Jabber but never told him the secret of the forest spirit.. just in case!