The jackal's punishment

A tiger came to learn that a jackal had stolen some food that was kept by the tiger near his cave. The tiger knew that the jackal was a rogue, but it was difficult to find the jackal. The tiger went to the lion king and said, "He has stolen my food."

The lion king's punishment was, "He should be put to death."

The jackal was summoned. He was trembling in all his limbs. The lion king said, "You have to die. We shall kill you. But before we kill you, do you have any choice about which way you want to be killed? You will be killed, but you have to choose the method. I will give you the option."

The jackal said, "Yes, I want to die fighting with a lion."

All the lions started laughing. They would fight this silly jackal? The lion king saw that this jackal was such a rogue. He wanted to show the world that he put up a brave fight with a lion and died in the attempt. To fight with a lion was a most glorious way to die. Naturally the lion would kill him, but he would be known far and wide for putting up a very, very brave fight against the lion.

The lion king said, "I have never seen such a rogue! You will have a natural death." Then the lion king asked the tiger whose food was stolen to kill the jackal. As soon as the tiger received the lion king's command, it pounced on the jackal and killed it.

From:Sri Chinmoy,The jackal’s punishment, Agni Press, 2002
Sourced from https://srichinmoylibrary.com/jp