There lived a fisherman on the banks of River Saryu. Every morning, he would take his boat to the river and return with plenty of fish trapped in his net in the evening. Breakfast, lunch or dinner—he ate fish for all his meals.

The only skills he had were rowing and fishing. His world was confined to his boat, river, net and fish. He would stay engrossed in untangling his net even when he was at home, away from the river and his boat. When he slept, he would dream of fish and the river. As soon as he got up, he would go to his boat, anchored on the riverbank.

In between his routine centred on the river and the boat, he would briefly talk to his wife and children. He was a content man. He would bring home enough fish for the entire family and he would also sell them for adequate money to meet their daily needs. His wife didn’t expect much from her husband.

When he grew old, he died in peace.

He was born as an elephant in a deep forest in his next life. His size grew enormous and he became robust, feasting on the rich fodder in the woods. He moved in herds with other elephants in search of food and water.

Once, the forest was struck by a long spell of drought. The sun was harsh and powerful. Most of the streams dried up in the face of the blazing sun. The animals in the forest wandered here and there in search of water. The elephant, too, was roaming around with his herd when he spotted a stream in between rocks.

The elephant who had been a fisherman in his previous life drove his trunk through the zigzagged rocks and sucked on the water in the crevices to quench his thirst. But he was unable to pull his trunk out after he was done drinking. His trunk was trapped in the rocks. He didn’t know how to take it out and rejoin his herd.

The members of his herd tried to rescue him. They camped there for a couple of days in the hope that their peer would free himself and they would move on together. But eventually, they gave up and moved on, leaving him alone.

Struggling to get his trunk out, the elephant rubbed his neck on the rocks. His neck got wounded and started bleeding. Soon, several worms attached themselves to the wound which began festering. His pain grew as the worms ate into him. Unable to bear the excruciating pain, he let out a trumpet that cut through the air.

Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati were passing by the spot where the elephant was howling in pain. The Goddess’s eyes fell on the animal in distress and she asked Shiva to rescue him.

Shiva said, ‘It is a mortal world. Any creature that is born is destined to die. And every creature gets the fruit of his karma. The elephant is suffering on account of what he did in his previous life.’

‘But what could an elephant have done to suffer such pain? He lives on leaves and water. He is born into a breed that is not carnivorous. I am sure he never perpetrated violence on other animals, like tigers and lions do. Countless worms are feasting on him, aggravating his pain. How has the elephant harmed the worms?’ Parvati argued, goading Shiva to help the animal.

Shiva said, ‘The elephant was a fisherman in his previous birth. He feasted on countless fish. Those fish have been born as worms in this birth. Now, the fish are doing to him what he did to them. We are not supposed to interfere with the order of nature. Forget about the elephant and move on.’

But overwhelmed by pity, Parvati entreated to Shiva, ‘My Lord! It is hard for me to move on, leaving the animal in distress. I won’t move unless you help the elephant.’ Parvati was rigid about her demand.

Shiva then went to the elephant and ‘blessed’ him to die immediately. The elephant died. Shiva told Parvati, ‘I have done the best that I could for the elephant. His liberation lay in his death. Now that he is dead, his pain has vanished. Now, he will be born as another creature and will lead his life’s journey according to the karma he has performed in his life as an elephant,’ Shiva said.

Goddess Parvati was satisfied and moved on with Shiva thereafter.

You always have to pay for what you have done in your previous life; the cycle of life and rebirth continues.

A folk story from Bihar, sourced from ‘Greatest Folk Tales of Bihar‘ by Nalin Verma.

Click here to submit your Folklore.