The Mongoose

Grandpa Kartik was a giver. No one ever saw him with materialistic items. He only had what he needed and gave the rest away. In a journal entry I read while going through his things to donate, he wrote:

"April 24th, 1902: My whole life I was told that I need to give more than I have. That I should not have excess. Even if people have not applied the same principle to me, I have made sure that I am not living with more than I need or more than I can consume. There have been times I have been run dry, unfortunately. Gone to the point of starvation to help another in need, because I know that karma will take care of me in the long run. I give the rest of what I hav-"

And then it ends. There are no more journal entries after this, and the remainder of this one is smudged in what looks like coffee, or maybe tea. Either way, the ink has washed away the last thing that my grandfather wrote. It feels so easy for something too simple to wash away an entire memory.

This sentiment is all that I have to live with as I never really knew my grandfather. He had passed away long before I was born, so all I have are journal entries and old photographs. That is, until I met Pabu. Something deep within me knows that Pabu has to be an incarnation of my grandfather. I do not know how, but I have spent long hours meditating on it. I feel so interconnected to him, and although this silly mongoose cannot speak for himself, we have a strong bond like no human and critter should reasonably have. Pabu came to me as a baby, and I imagined he was abandoned by his mother, so I nursed him to health when I did not even have the food to feed myself. I was living on the streets of some rural village that I wandered to a while back when he crawled up next to me in the alley. I figured he was seeking some food, maybe warmth. These critters usually are aggressive and have no need to bother humans. But Pabu just wanted company. I scooped up his frail long body and just took him wherever I went. Ironically, I began to get more handouts when I had him with me. People were more inclined to throw me a coin or a stale piece of bread when I had him. Of course, I was responsible for this little guy now. There were times where I wasn't sure if he would make it or not without some food, when I knew I was strong enough to survive. I was willing to give Pabu my rations when I truly needed it. Of course, there is no way I could admit that I was giving my food to a silly mongoose while I was starving. People would never let me hear the end of it. But I had to do whatever I possibly could to keep my grandfather alive. I knew I had to.

Author's Note:

I was inspired to write this story after listening to Yudhishthira and the Mongoose being narrated by Laura. I have been searching for more depictions of animals to be used in my storybook and I really feel like this is the perfect one to incorporate. I sat at work during a slow point just wondering what to write about, and I wanted to write a tale of generosity. One of my regulars at the coffee shop I work at does not have a job and takes seasonal jobs as he finds them, but always makes sure to leave a tip. I know that he does not have much to give, but he always leaves what he can, and leaves with a big smile.

Because the mongoose is something so uncommon in our culture, I want to make sure everyone is aware of the source story, as compared to my retelling. The original story features a golden mongoose who represents sacrifice and generosity. He tells the story of a brahmin who, despite having a family of "living skeletons" was generous enough to feed a stranger their rations of grains. After the final family member gave the stranger her rations it was revealed that the guest had been the Dharma all along.

I also wanted to incorporate the idea of reincarnation into my story. I have been really into watching Avatar: The Last Air Bender, which if you do not know, features reincarnation as a big part of the show. I really liked the idea of incorporating a guardian animal as well. The idea of being selfless to animals is a big theme in Indian mythology. Treating animals with kindness is a major theme that I wanted to feature, as it is something that we often overlook in our "western" culture. I hope you enjoyed this story and I hope it inspires you to give a little more this week, and to make sure everyone (including yourself) is taken care of!

Image information: The Smithsonian: Mongoose image by Shannon Benson

Story Source: Yudhishthira and the Mongoose