Hunter Madan
Madan was a hunter. He often roamed the jungle with his gun. Sometimes he hunted animals and birds to get meat for food, and other times he sold them in the market to earn good money. His entire life revolved around the jungle and hunting.
One day, while wandering in the jungle in search of prey, he saw an old man. The old man was walking with a shiny axe that looked as bright as gold and very expensive.
Madan stopped him and started a conversation. The old man introduced himself as Rahul. He said he lived near the mountains and came to the jungle daily to collect dry wood, which he sold to earn a living. But today, he was feeling unwell, so he was returning without collecting any wood.
Madan’s eyes kept going to the shiny axe. He thought that if he could get the axe, he could sell it and make a lot of money. He also felt that the old man might not know the real value of the axe. So, he pretended to be friendly with him.
While talking, both of them reached Rahul’s hut. Rahul was a kind man. He invited Madan to sit inside and have some tea. Madan felt happy because this gave him a chance to steal the axe.
When they reached the hut, Rahul asked Madan to sit on a bench while he went outside to fetch water. This was the moment Madan was waiting for. Quickly, he picked up the axe and hid it in his bag.
As soon as he did this, the entire hut turned into a glowing orb of light. Madan’s eyes were blinded by the brightness. When the light disappeared, he found himself trapped inside a strong cage. There was no hut around him anymore. Scared, he started shouting.
Suddenly, the old man appeared, but he was no longer an ordinary old man. He now looked like a terrifying ghost with fiery eyes filled with anger.
Shaking with fear, Madan asked, “Who are you? What do you want from me?”
The old man shouted angrily, “I want to kill you and eat your flesh!”
Madan began trembling and cried, “Why do you want to do this? What have I done to you?”
The old man roared, “You are greedy! Every day, you kill the innocent animals and birds of my jungle. You even trapped my beloved daughter, the golden bird, in a cage. Now, you will know how hard it is to live in a cage!”
Saying this, the old man disappeared. Madan sat in the cage and cried, but there was no one to listen to him.
The next day, the old man appeared again. He threw a few pieces of bread and a pot of water into the cage and said angrily, “You must be hungry, right?”
Madan looked at the bread with tears in his eyes and begged, “Please let me go. I promise I’ll never do this again.”
The old man replied furiously, “When the golden bird begged you for freedom, did you listen to her? Now you understand how it feels to live in a cage.”
Madan began to realize how wrong his actions were. He promised, “I will release all the birds and never trap any bird in a cage again.”
The old man’s voice became serious. “And what about the animals? You kill innocent animals every day. What about them?”
Madan lowered his head in shame and said, “I promise I will stop hunting. I will never harm any animal or bird again.”
The old man stood silent for a while and then said, “Alright. I will set you free. But remember, if you break your promise, I will come back and punish you.”
With these words, the cage turned back into the hut. Madan took a deep breath of relief. He left the hut and immediately returned the shiny axe. Then he went home and set all the birds in his cages free. He felt very light and happy as he watched the birds fly away, joyful in their freedom.
From that day on, Madan gave up hunting completely. He only went to the jungle to enjoy its beauty and respected the freedom of animals and birds. Sometimes, he even gave them food and water and prayed for forgiveness.
The old man’s lesson became the biggest lesson of Madan’s life. He realized that the freedom of every living being is important, whether it’s a human or an animal.