English Original
Once there lived a kind Brahmin in a small village with his wife. They had a little son. One day, as he was returning home, he came across a baby mongoose crying next to its mother’s dead body.
“Oh! Poor creature," thought the Brahmin. “If I leave it here it will surely die." He picked it up and took it home.
“Gowri, I found this little creature on my way home. Let us take care of him," he said to his wife. “Very well. Along with our son, I will take care of the mongoose also," replied his wife.
The mongoose grew up with love and care. He slept next to the Brahmin’s son in the cradle, drank milk, and played with the boy every day. As both grew, their friendship became like that of two brothers.
As days went by, the Brahmin’s wife began to have doubts. “After all, this is a wild animal. Sooner or later it will show its true colours," she thought. She put the mongoose’s bed separately and watched him carefully whenever he played with her son.
One day, when the Brahmin was away, Gowri decided to fetch water from the river. She saw her son sound asleep in his cradle, with the mongoose asleep at the foot of it. “This should only take a moment. I hope I can trust that mongoose," she said to herself before hurrying off.
Suddenly, the mongoose woke up, hearing a faint noise. He saw a large black snake crawling through a hole in the wall.
“The snake will harm my brother. Mother and father are away. I must protect him," thought the mongoose as the snake slithered towards the cradle.
The brave little mongoose pounced on the huge black snake. After a long, ferocious fight, he finally managed to kill it.
Just then, he heard the Brahmin’s wife returning. Joyfully, he ran out to meet her, trying to show through his animal signs that he had protected his little brother from a dreadful snake.
But as soon as Gowri saw blood on the mongoose’s mouth and paws, she thought, “This wretched animal has killed my little son!" In a fit of anger, she threw the heavy water pot at the mongoose, killing him instantly.
Entering the house with a heavy heart, she was amazed to see her little son still deep in sleep. On the floor lay a huge black snake with its head bitten off.
“Oh, what have I done!" cried the Brahmin’s wife. “I killed that faithful little mongoose who saved the life of my precious son!"
中文翻译
从前，一位善良的婆罗门和他的妻子住在一个小村庄里，他们有一个小儿子。一天，婆罗门在回家路上，发现一只小猫鼬在它死去的母亲身旁哭泣。
“哦！可怜的小家伙，”婆罗门想，“如果我把它留在这里，它肯定会死。”他把它捡起来带回了家。
“高丽，我在回家路上发现了这个小家伙。我们照顾它吧，”他对妻子说。“好的。除了我们的儿子，我也会照顾这只猫鼬，”妻子回答道。
猫鼬在关爱中长大。它睡在婆罗门儿子旁边的摇篮里，每天喝牛奶，和男孩玩耍。随着他们长大，他们的友谊变得亲如兄弟。
日子一天天过去，婆罗门的妻子开始心生疑虑。“毕竟，这是一只野生动物。迟早会露出本性，”她想。她把猫鼬的床铺分开，每当它和她儿子玩耍时都仔细盯着。
一天，婆罗门外出时，高丽决定去河边打水。她看到儿子在摇篮里熟睡，猫鼬在摇篮脚边也睡着了。“这只需要一会儿。希望我能信任那只猫鼬，”她自言自语后便匆匆离开了。
突然，猫鼬被一阵微弱的声音惊醒。它看到一条大黑蛇正从墙上的一个洞里爬进来。
“蛇会伤害我的兄弟。爸爸妈妈都不在。我必须保护他，”猫鼬想着，此时蛇正朝摇篮滑去。
勇敢的小猫鼬扑向了那条大黑蛇。经过一场漫长而激烈的战斗，它终于杀死了蛇。
就在这时，它听到婆罗门的妻子回来了。它欢快地跑出去迎接她，试图用它的动物方式告诉她，它从一条可怕的蛇口中保护了小弟弟。
但高丽一看到猫鼬嘴和爪子上的血，就想：“这可恶的畜生杀了我的小儿子！”盛怒之下，她把装满水的罐子砸向猫鼬，当场杀死了它。
她心情沉重地走进屋子，却惊讶地发现她的小儿子仍在熟睡。地板上躺着一条大黑蛇，丑陋的脑袋已被咬掉。
“哦，我做了什么！”婆罗门的妻子哭喊道。“我杀死了那只救了我宝贝儿子性命的忠诚小猫鼬！”