THE MASTER KEY - Chapter 4

The Faithful Mongoose

Once there lived a man called Brahmin who lived in a small village. He had a wife and a little child. He lived happily with his family in the village.

One day, as Brahmin was returning from a nearby village, he came across a baby mongoose crying next to its mother’s dead body. “ oh poor creature, thought Brahmin, If I leave it down it will surely die”. He picked it up and took it to his house. Peace, I found this little creature on my way back home. I want us to raise it along with our son. Peace agreed and they raised both the little boy and mongoose.

The mongoose grew up with a lot of love and care in Brahmin’s house. He slept next to Brahmin’s son, drank milk and played with the boy everyday.

The mongoose lived every day happily in Brahmin’s house.

As both the boy and the mongoose grew up, their friendship changed to a brotherly love. The mongoose grew up fast and Peace started to have doubts about the mongoose because she knew it was a wild animal and it will show its true colours sooner or later.

Peace separated her child’s sleeping place away from the mongoose’s own. She watched the mongoose carefully when it was playing with the boy.

One day, Brahmin was out and Peace decided to fetch water. She saw that both his son and the mongoose were asleep. The mongoose slept next to the child’s cradle. Peace finally made her decision and she left to fetch the water.

Just few moments after she left, the mongoose woke up suddenly as if it was struck by lightening. The mongoose heard a noise in the room. It lifted its head and it saw a big black snake coming towards the cradle. ‘I will have to protect my little brother’ thought the mongoose.

The brave little mongoose pounced on the huge black snake. After a long ferocious fight, the little mongoose finally managed to kill the snake. The little mongoose joyfully ran towards Peace when it heard her footsteps. Peace saw blood on the mongoose’s mouth. This wretched animal has killed my son, she thought. Peace angrily dropped the pot of water on the mongoose and it died instantly.

Entering the house with a heavy heart, she was surprised to see her little son lying in the cradle still deep asleep and on the floor she saw a huge black snake which had its head off. “Oh what have I done” cried Brahmin’s wife. ‘I killed that faithful mongoose that saved the life of my little son.