The story of how the tiger got its stripes is a classic Chinese tale that celebrates the year of the tiger. This story begins long ago when animals had the power to talk. Then a stripeless white tiger saw a farmer resting under a tree.
The farmer had been working all morning and decided to take a break by resting under a banana tree. He was having his lunch when the tiger saw this, and he slowly crept to the edge. At a short distance, there was also a buffalo resting after working on their fields.
While the buffalo was resting, it used its tail to send flies away. The tiger saw this sight and he slowly crept toward the buffalo. With its powerful hands, the tiger was able to drag itself through the grass and he slowly crept to the buffalo.
As he approached the buffalo, the tiger whispered to him that he shouldn’t be afraid and that he only came to him for advice. The tiger explained to him that he was curious about something. He then went on to ask that he had been observing the little man who sat under the tree.
The tiger went on to explain to the buffalo that the little man was weak and had no sense of smell. The man was frail, but he was still in charge of the buffalo. While the buffalo had strength beyond measure and was ten times the size of the man.
The tiger told the buffalo that he could win against any animal in the jungle in a fair fight. The tiger, intrigued, questioned the buffalo if he had heard that man’s power comes from wisdom. Then he questioned the buffalo about wisdom and how humans acquired it.
Before responding to the tiger, the buffalo kept eating the grass. He told the tiger that he had no idea and that the tiger should ask the man. The tiger wasn’t satisfied with the answer that the buffalo gave and so he went over to the farmer to ask him.
He told the farmer not to be scared because all he came for was the quest for wisdom. He explained how curious he was and he wanted to know how man got wisdom. The tiger wanted to know what wisdom looked like and where it came from.
The man was relieved and he calmly answered that wisdom is quite precious and is it important for the tiger to have some of it. The tiger told the man that he had the choice to determine if he would give him wisdom or not.
He then explained to the man that he hadn’t eaten for days and his stomach was starting to rumble. He couldn’t eat because he was searching for answers for days. However, he feels that he might have a bite soon. He said all this while looking at the man.
Fearing for his life, the man could see that the tiger hadn’t eaten for days. The man told the tiger that he would be more than happy to share his wisdom with the tiger. However, he left the wisdom at home. He told the tiger to remain still while he went to fetch the wisdom.
The tiger threatens the man that he better go and bring the wisdom or he will come to meet him in his field and this time he might be hungrier than he ever was. The tiger said all this while looking menacingly at the man.
The man hastily walked out of the field; however, he turned back. To calm his worried animal, the man tied the tiger to a tree. Then the man managed to tie the tiger to a tree while he went and brought the wisdom.
The tiger agreed to this because he feared that the farmer wouldn’t want to share his wisdom with him again. The tiger thought about how much power he would have with just a little wisdom and how he would be able to rule over all the animals.
After a while the man came back, but this time he came with his sons. Each of his sons had dry straws in their hands. The farmer and his sons put the straw under the tiger and then set it ablaze.
The tiger cried in pain and the fire was able to burn the ropes and he was set free. The tiger ran for his life and went to the river to cool off the burnt furs. The tiger’s wound healed after a while, but his body now bears orange stripes.
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