The Three Fishes

Once on a time when Brahmadatta was reigning in
Benares, there lived in the river of Benares three fishes,
named Very- thoughtful, Thoughtless, and Duly-thoughtful.
And they came down stream from the wild country to
where men dwelt. Hereupon Duly-thoughtful said to the
other two, " This is a dangerous and perilous neighbour-
hood, where fishermen catch fish with nets, basket-traps,
and such like tackle. Let us be off to the wild country
again." But so lazy were the other two fishes, and so
greedy, that they kept putting off their going from day
to day, until they had let three months slip by. Now
fishermen cast their nets into the river; and Very-
thoughtful and Thoughtless were swimming on ahead in
quest of food when in their folly they blindly rushed into
the net. Duly-thoughtful, who was behind, observed the
net, and saw the fate of the other two.

" I must save these lazy fools from death," thought he.
So first he dodged round the net, and splashed in the
water in front of it like a fish that has broken through
and gone up stream ; and then doubling back, he splashed
about behind it, like a fish that has broken through and
gone down stream. Seeing this, the fishermen thought
the fish had broken the net and all got away ; so they
pulled it in by one corner and the two fishes escaped
from the net into the open water again. In this way
they owed their lives to Duly-thoughtful.