Once there was a famous thief. While walking alone in the wilderness, he asked a group of caravan traders for a horse to ride. The traders replied that they had no spare horses. The thief said:
— Well, if you won't give it to me, I'll take it from you on the road,– and he followed the traders. As evening fell and darkness enveloped the night, the traders stopped at the edge of a grove. In that grove, there was a predatory tiger that robbed the traders. While the traders were lighting a fire and tying up their carts, the tiger approached, watching for the fire to go out. At that moment, the thief also came from behind the tiger, waiting for the traders to fall asleep. When the traders seemed to have fallen asleep, the thief crept up and jumped onto the nearest dappled horse. The dappled horse, startled, bolted away. Then the thief sang: I’ll tell you, as I say... my dappled one. Such a horse was my heart's desire. Tonight, as I roam, fortune has smiled upon me, My destiny has brought me, help me, oh creature of the night,– and he began to kick. Then the tiger said:
Oh God, my dear, you have brought us together, You have bound me so I cannot escape. Is this how my fate has come to be, Have you bound me tight from both sides, – and it began to flee. When dawn broke and the sun rose, the thief realized that the horse he was riding was not a horse, but a tiger:
— No wonder it doesn’t get tired, its gait is different from a horse, I should start to escape quickly. As the fleeing tiger passed between two trees, the thief grabbed a branch and was left behind in the tree. The thoroughly exhausted tiger, unable to lift its head, came to the base of a reed and was approached by a monkey:
— Why are you lying here, brave one, not moving at all, what’s wrong with you? – the monkey asked. The tiger replied: You would see me running, my monkey, If I had the strength to run. I was waiting to rob a traveler, But I found myself caught by the thief's grip, – when the monkey said: Even if it’s hard for you, it’s easy for me, I have seen many thieves at my age. Let’s not let this grove be our resting place, I’ll kill the thief as soon as I get there,– and it rushed forward. The tiger said: I say a death tied to the head won’t go, If it clings to your back, it won’t let go. A human’s cunning is more, their tricks are many, If they ride for one night, they won’t tire, I say,– the tiger said. Then, not listening to the tiger’s words, the monkey went to the thief and climbed up to the top of the tree. The thief was also looking for a trick. He took off his shirt and made a snare, then caught the monkey by its waist and began to pull. When the monkey cried out, the tiger came and said: My monkey, didn’t I tell you not to go, Have you ever seen anything harder than this? Why can’t you endure, why are you screaming, Have you ever obeyed when there are many tricks? – and it fled further. The traders traveled all day and came to rest beside the thief. The thief told the traders about what he had seen the previous night. The traders said:
— Oh my, this young man is clever, His tricks are different from anyone else’s. The tiger was the enemy of the traveler, This young man was supposed to be given a horse,– and they brought a horse out from among them for the young man to ride.