The Magic Goat Kid

Ratan lived in a jungle. His house was a shack and he had no work to do. He wandered aimlessly, picking fruit and eating what he picked. From time to time he would steal clothes from the near by village.

He heard of the Prince of the kingdom from some of the lads in the village. They spoke of the Prince as a person unlike any other king or prince. He would not distribute alms or coins when he came out on his all-so-famous golden colored horse. He was against begging and was tough on those who did. Some considered him good and some thought he was heartless.

One day Ratan was resting under one of his favorite banyan trees in the jungle. He heard sounds of the hoofs of a horse. He wondered who it was. The sound grew louder as it came nearer and nearer. Then he saw the great, majestic golden horse and on its luxurious saddle was a very handsome and charismatic man with shining blue eyes.

The horseman stopped near him and asked, “Who are you? What are you doing here?” Ratan made no reply.

The man continued, “There is a village called Kapram. Could you show me the way?“

Ratan said,” What will you give me if I do so?”

“Whatever you want,” said the horseman, smiling mischievously.

“Well,” said Ratan thoughtfully. “You look rich. Give me 10 coins, all in gold.“

“What would you do with them?” the horseman wanted to know.

“I will buy food, good clothes and also a good hook”.

“What would you do with the hook?”

“I would use it to pluck fruits from the trees.“ Answered Ratan with a glint in his eye.

Now they were walking in the jungle towards the village.

The horseman continued to question Ratan. ”What will you do when all the coins are spent?”

Ratan shot back quickly.“ Ok! Give me 20 then. “

At this the man laughed aloud. Ratan felt annoyed. “Who are you?” he asked, with a frown on his face.

“I am Karthik, the Prince of the kingdom. Have you heard of me?”

“Oh, its you!! Yes, I have heard of you. You are the one who does not give alms to the needy and do not like people who beg.”

“ Yes,” said the Prince. ”But I give a very special gift to some whom I specially select.”

”What is it?” asked Ratan innocently.

“Do you want it?” the Prince looked into Ratan’s eyes.

”Am I special and selected to receive the gift?” asked Ratan.

“You could be. But there are some important rules that you need to follow in order to get the right results.”

“How will it help me?” Ratan was curious.

“It may help you to become a rich and happy person” said the Prince.

“Can I visit the local theatre? I always wanted to.” Ratan went on and on listing all that he ever wanted to do.

With a smile the Prince said,” Be near the same tree, tomorrow, early in the morning. I will bring you the gift and instruct you about the rules. But you have to be clean and fresh.”
“Oh yes!” said Ratan, all excited. “What would it be? A pot full of gold? Or a bag of well stitched clothes?” With these thoughts Ratan slept in his little shack at the edge of the jungle.

The next day Ratan got up earlier than the sun, took a dip in the cold waters of the river and dressed as best as he could. He went and stood near the tree and waited. He was so excited and curious that he could not sit.

Soon he heard the sound of hoofs and a smile came up on his face. He saw the Prince trotting up towards the tree, looking as majestic as he saw him yesterday. He noticed that the Prince was carrying a little goat kid in his hands. As the Prince got down from the horse, Ratan saw that the goat kid was very cute. Its hair shone, as the first rays of the Sun fell on its back, in vibrant color of gold.

“This is the magic goat kid,” the Prince told Ratan, pointing to the lovely little animal in his hands. “Are you ready to receive it and know the rules?”

Ratan nodded his head excitedly. Placing the goat kid in Ratan’s hands, the Prince continued.
“This kid has magical powers. It will give you all that you have ever wanted. The kid will show you what it wants whenever it feels hungry. You shall not steal, but buy it from the village, with the money you will earn. Every day you have to put away the same amount of money that you spend on the goat. And every day it has to be fed more than the previous day. Which means you will work harder every day. These are the rules and you shall follow them without fail.
I will meet you here again after a few days.“
The Prince trotted off to his palace.

Ratan was full of thoughts as he walked back towards the village, the magic goat kid in his hands. On his way he picked up a bundle of dry sticks. He tore the soft bark of a small tree and made a rope out of it. He made a leash with the rope and tied it around the goat kid’s neck. Now the kid walked beside Ratan.

He sold the dry sticks in the village and got four copper coins in return. Soon the goat kid saw a bundle of fresh grass and started bleating. “Oh!” thought Ratan, remembering what the Prince had said. The goat was feeling hungry and wants to eat that grass. He spent one coin to buy a bundle of grass for the kid.

He remembered that he had to put away as much money as he spent on the kid. So he took one coin and put it away in another pocket. Now he was left with two coins. He bought bread for himself, for he was too tired to go back to the jungle to look for food.

He slept that night thinking of how he will earn more money tomorrow than today, and planned it all out. Early he got up, washed and took the dip in the river. Then he went around the jungle collecting dry sticks and some flowers, wild and colorful. Today’s bundle of sticks was double in size than yesterday’s. He went to the village and sold them all. This way he earned a little more than yesterday. He fed the goat kid and saved what he had to. He was left with more money and ate better food than yesterday.
Every night before going off to sleep Ratan planned his work for the next day. He worked harder and thought up new things to sell each day. Soon he had saved a lot of money. The magic goat grew plump, as Ratan fed and cared for him well.

Within a year Ratan’s life changed. The magic goat had a partner goat. And soon they had kid goats. He now sold goat milk, leaves from the deep jungle for making ”thalies” (large plates) and dry sticks. His shack went down and in its place stood a small wooden house. He wore better clothes and ate better food.

Every day he visited the tree where he had met the Prince. But the Prince would not come.

About five years later, as he was resting in his favorite haunt below the big banyan tree, he heard the familiar hoof-beat. He got up hurriedly and saw the horse and the Prince sitting majestically on it. The Prince looked as charismatic as ever, his shining blue eyes sparkling.

The Prince nodded at Ratan and asked him, “How is your life?”

Ratan saluted to the Prince and said, ”Sir, I now have a herd of goats and am the supplier of goat milk to the great palace. I have twenty people working with me for collecting dried sticks in the jungle. I supply garlands to all florists. And also I go to the theatre every week.“

“Mmmmm” said the Prince, sounding pleased.

”But, Sir! “ said Ratan. “I don’t want to stop here. Bless me and help me understand why you don’t give away alms for free and why you hate people who beg. Enlighten me, Sir.”

The Prince looked into Ratan’s eyes and remained silent for a while. Ratan was all ears. Then the Prince counseled. ”Take a golden colored kid from your herd and give it to another wanderer. Tell him about the rules.” As he uttered these words, the Prince turned his horse and galloped away.