The Lion Order

One afternoon, in the middle of the jungle, a group of warriors prepared for their yearly sacrifice. The sacrifice was a crucial part of their culture. The sacrifice was used to show the dominance of the warriors over the land. The sacrifice was a sign to the gods that the warriors respected what had been given to them and would continue to be stewards of the land. The sacrifice was more than just a way for the warriors to show their devotion, but a way for the village to show their devotion as well.

Just like every year, the young men of the tribe went out and captured a horse. The horse had to be one that was strong and powerful. Not one that was an easy target. The young men were required to work for their sacrifice to show even more devotion and determination to the gods. They then led it back to the center of the village and strapped him down. The town then proceeded to cheer and chant and perform their sacrificial dances. Then the elders got into position. They grabbed their spears and torches to prepare the sacrifice. Then, there was a sudden roar from the edge of the village. Everyone turned in awe of what it could be. From the shadows emerged a lion. A brave, courageous, and powerful lion. He had scars on his face and looked the part of a wise leader. He walked up to the villagers and over towards the horse. He ripped the ropes from the horse and the horse galloped away. The lion jumped onto the altar and peered at the villagers.

The lion said, "Why do you sacrifice an animal to the gods if you want to please them? What is this actually showing you can do?"

One of the elders replied, "Because that is what we have always done. We have sacrificed a horse for as long as I can remember. We have been taught that killing an animal for the gods is what truly shows devotion and allegiance. It simply shows that we care enough to do something to please our gods. "

The lion stood up and said, "Sacrifice is more than just death. Sacrifice is what you do in order to please someone or to keep them happy. Sacrifice is done for someone you love. Sacrificing an animal will not show this to your gods. Sacrificing your time and effort to do the things your gods want you to do will show your love for them. Simply taking the life of an innocent animal is a fallacy in your thoughts."

After saying this the lion jumped down and walked back into the forest and let out a boisterous roar. The villagers were in awe of what he had said. All of the villagers were filled with remorse and began to weep and pray to their gods for forgiveness. The village never again performed a sacrifice and they became more prosperous the longer they went without having any kind of sacrifice.

Author's Note: This story is actually modeled after the Golden Mongoose story. In this story, the mongoose comes to a royal sacrifice of Yudhishthira's and goes on to explain what real sacrifice is. The mongoose became " golden" because of that particular example of sacrifice. I thought it was interesting how the mongoose was able to draw the attention of the people within the story. With that, I chose to re-write it but with a lion and a jungle village. At first, I had planned to bring more detail to the villagers but as I wrote I kept the focus on the lion. I think lions are powerful animals and I think it was a perfect character choice for my story. I felt that it was important to show how the villagers felt remorse for what they had done in the past. I think that has something to say how people can be pushed to do certain things because they don't know any better.

I also used a horse sacrifice in my story because that is actually a kind of sacrifice that Indian Kings used to do. It is called Ashvamedha. I think that adds a little Indian epics flair to the story and makes it more relatable to the class and my project. I pushed to make this story contain life lessons that could be relatable to everyday life. I hope you liked it!!

The Golden Mongoose: Tales of Duty from the Mahabharata By Amar Chitra Katha