Reading Notes: The Old Lion and a Cat

Late at night, Khojisteh asked the parrot, "why are you reflecting?" The parrot then responded, "you are making me sad even though I'm not receiving any care of my own. You listen to my stories all the time and one day, you husband will show up and you will not go with him and end up regretting it." Khojisteh then responded, "why was the cat full of regret after killing the mice when he is the one that should be eating them?" The parrot responded by telling him a story about a lion in the desert who was routinely disturbed by the mice who picked out the meat in between his teeth at night. He looked for a way to keep the mice from bothering him and a fox suggested that a cat could come and protect the lion while he sleeps. The cat that watched over the lion never killed any mice but only scared them away. One day, the cat wanted to have the day to do business and left her kitten to protect the lion from the mice. The kitten killed every mouse she saw and then they were all destroyed. The kitten was unaware that she wasn't suppose to kill the mice, only scare them away. The lion had no job left for the cat to do and ended up dismissing her. The parrot's story was to warn Khojisteh that she may regret the day her husband comes.

The Old Lion and the Cat by Ziya'al-Din Nakhshabi

Sleeping Lion. Source: Wikimedia Commons