Once upon a time, in a faraway town, lived a Brahmin who was a sneaky thief. People said he was a thief because of bad things he did in his past life.

One day, four other Brahmins came to town to sell their special things. They were very good at selling and made lots of money!

The thief saw all their money and wanted it! He pretended to be their friend, talking about holy books to trick them. He asked to help them, and they said yes.

The four Brahmins sold everything. They didn’t want to carry all that money, so they bought pretty jewels. Then, they hid the jewels inside their legs! They used special medicine to heal the cuts.

The thief saw them do this! He thought, “I’ll wait until they go home, then I’ll steal the jewels! Maybe I’ll even give them poison!”

When the Brahmins were ready to leave, the thief pretended to be sad. He cried, “Don’t leave me! Please take me with you!” The Brahmins felt sorry for him and took him along.

On their trip, they went through a scary jungle. There was a tribe there, and their leader had a special crow. This crow could see the future!

As they got close, the crow squawked, “Treasure! Kill them and take their treasure!” The tribe caught the five Brahmins. They searched everywhere, but found nothing!

The tribe leader said, “The crow is never wrong! You must have hidden the treasure. Tell us, or we’ll cut you open!”

The thief thought, “If they cut open one Brahmin and find the jewels, they’ll kill us all!” He bravely said, “Kill me! Cut me open! I have nothing!”

The tribe leader agreed. They cut the thief open, but found nothing! The crow was wrong! The leader was sorry. He let the other four Brahmins go.

The four Brahmins were safe, and so were their jewels! They continued their journey.

The story reminds us: It’s better to have a smart enemy than a silly friend!