The Famous and Inspiring Story of the Rabbit on the Moon
Long ago, in a forest beside the Ganges, lived four friends: a rabbit, a jackal, a monkey, and a weasel. All four desired to be the greatest philanthropists. One day, they decided together to find something to donate. To achieve supreme generosity, the four friends set out from their homes. The weasel brought seven red fish from the Ganges bank. The jackal carried a pot of yogurt and a piece of meat. The monkey, leaping and playing, brought bunches of mangoes from the orchard. As the day drew to a close, the rabbit had found nothing. He thought, "If I donate grass, there will be no benefit to my act of giving." So, the rabbit returned empty-handed.
Seeing the rabbit return empty-handed, the three friends asked, "Why! What will you donate? Knowing that donating today will bring great benefits, isn't it?" The rabbit replied, "Yes, I know. Therefore, today, I have decided to donate myself." Hearing this, the rabbit's friends were astonished. As soon as the news reached the heavens, Indra, the king of the gods, descended to earth. Disguised as a saint, Indra approached the four friends. First, the jackal, the monkey, and the weasel offered their donations. Then, Indra approached the rabbit and asked, "What will you donate?" The rabbit stated that he was donating himself. Upon hearing this, Indra ignited a fire with his divine power and told the rabbit to enter it.
The rabbit bravely stepped into the fire. Indra was amazed. He felt that the rabbit was indeed a great philanthropist. Indra rejoiced greatly. Meanwhile, the rabbit stood unharmed in the fire. Then, Indra said, "I was testing you. This fire is illusionary; therefore, no harm will come to you." After saying this, Indra blessed the rabbit, saying, "The whole world will always remember your act of giving. I will imprint your form on the moon." Immediately, Indra crushed a mountain on the moon and created the rabbit's imprint. Since then, it has been believed that there are marks of a rabbit on the moon, and thus, without reaching the moon, the rabbit's impression reached the moon.
The lesson from this story is - Firm resolve is essential for any undertaking.
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