The Boasting Turtle

I happened to look over the Ganges, a sacred Indian river, one morning and saw a turtle sitting on the riverbank enjoying the warm sun. The turtle has always wondered about the sun and how to become closer to it; I have seen this same turtle many times before. His demeanor was bright and happy, but he loved to show off in front of all the other animals. Because he was young and chipper, he was also full of pride. The sun was bright and warm, and it made the turtle happy, for he was a good and righteous being in my eyes (even though he was a little boastful at times).

One day, a bird came down to the riverbank for a drink. The turtle saw the bird flying closer to the sun and wondered what it would be like to fly.

“What does the sun look like up close?” the turtle asked the bird.

“I feel so warm and bright when I fly. I love the sun! You should fly up there with me tomorrow,” replied the bird.

The turtle was engulfed with excitement about flying, but suddenly realized that he had no way of going with the bird. Little did he know, this bird was sent by me to test his Dharma and his intentions of righteous living.

“Don’t worry, friend. I will take you on a flight; you don’t need wings. Just find a rope to hold onto while I fly, but don’t speak of this to others until after you return to the ground,” said the bird with a stern voice.

I sent this bird in order to teach the turtle, and all the other animals on the Ganges, about the ways of Dharma. This test showed how well the small turtle could follow instructions from others who are more experienced.

Other animals at the river noticed the commotion between the bird and the turtle, and they overheard him boasting about flying. Although boasting is not in accordance with Dharma, I would not condemn the turtle for this action. Later in my story, I will show how the boasting contributed to an unfortunate outcome. The animals did not like the bragging words of the turtle, so they ignored him. Then, the turtle began searching for a rope to cling onto, and brought the strongest one he could find back to the bird. The bird reminded the turtle that he could not speak during the journey, but the turtle was not listening—he was only staring up towards the light in the sky.

The bird took flight, carrying the little turtle that was clinging onto the rope by his mouth. The turtle was so excited and wanted to boast to the other animals that he looked downward to the riverbank. He slowly lowered his eyes to see the Ganges below him; the river looked thin and tiny compared to its usual size. He also saw the other animals watching him from below; the little turtle thought they looked as small as ants.

“Look how high I am! I am above every animal in the river, and I am certain that everyone is jealous!” boasted the turtle.

Forgetting the bird’s words about speaking during the flight, he spoke and let go of the rope in his mouth. The turtle crashed to the ground and was killed because he opened his mouth to brag despite the warnings of the bird. Opening his mouth when he was advised to keep it closed led the turtle to a premature death.

After his time of death, I spoke with the spirit of the turtle and reminded him of his Dharma: he would not follow instructions from one of my messengers because he wanted to boast, and this caused his life to end abruptly. From then on, the other animals that watched the turtle fall learned from his mistake: the deer did not boast about their ability to jump, and the squirrels did not speak of their climbing. All the animals respected each other’s own abilities and did not look down upon others.

Now, for your own life, remember the turtle and his open mouth. Instead of listening to the bird, which was wiser about flying, the turtle thought of himself only. Because of his choice to boast of his opportunities, he was taken away from the earth at a very young age. While I did not punish the turtle for his arrogance directly, Dharma provided an unfortunate outcome.

Author’s Note:

According to the original Jataka, the Boasting Turtle, the Turtle lived in a pond and two wild Geese talked to him while looking for food. They wanted the Turtle to go with them back to their beautiful home, but he stated that he had no wings. The Geese offered to take the Turtle as long as he didn't tell anyone, so he went. The next day, the Geese brought a stick to hold on to and took off with the Turtle. Village children saw the three animals in the air, and the Turtle spoke a snarky reply to the children and let go of the stick; he lost his life because he did not keep his mouth shut like the Geese said. I made a few changes in order to make the narration sound like it came from Yama. He was overlooking the Turtle as the events unfolded, so I added in extra dialogue and pointed how how Dharma fit into the story. Yama was testing the Turtle, and his failure to hold his tongue (quite literally) led to the worst consequence-- death. Because Yama knew how this test was going to play out, I could use his perspective as a tool to make themes of Dharma stand out. Also, I set the story on the bank of the Ganges, which is a very important location in the Hindu religion. I also wanted to include a message to the readers from Yama explaining why he tells this story and how they can apply it to their own life.

Bibliography:

“The Turtle and the Geese” Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt, Sacred Texts