The lucky son

Once upon a time there lived a mother and her son. The mother was growing old and her son in his teens was utterly a useless boy, an absolute burden to his aging mother. He simply ate like a giant and slept like a pig. The mother was very worried to see her son, who was least bothered.

One day the lazy son wanted to go on a business trip. The mother was thrilled about her son’s idea.


While he was passing through a nearby woods he saw a fat porcupine run into a hole. He removed his ‘gho’ and closed one end of the hole. From the other end he made a smoggy fire and even poked with a long pointed pole. Unable to bear the heat and the smoke, the porcupine forced his way out of the easier end. In the bargain, the thorny little creature shoved his head through the sleeves and ran away carrying with it his gho. Now, the would-be-businessman was naked with no chance to continue his trip. Fortunately, he found a stack of oak leaves, dry and warm. He rolled into it in shame with utter helplessness. Just then a long train of people happened to pass by and he silently watched them.

It was the royal entourage with the queen on her way to the river bank for a royal bath. He was enchanted by the beauty of the queen and could not keep his eyes off her. While doing so, he saw a beautiful necklace fall off her neck. He could not alert them as he was not in a state to do so. After they left, he saw a huge ox walking on the same route. The ox dropped a large lump of fresh dung on the necklace. He was wondering what would happen to the necklace.

A few hours later a man came along the track. He cursed the indecent ox and threw the fresh lump on the wall of the house just below the path. He could see the necklace still with the dung stuck on the wall. Towards the evening, the entourage returned. He saw the crowd a bit upset and the queen was being carried sick on the stretcher. He did not know the reason.

Next day a boy happened to pass by with his herd of cows. Out of curiosity he asked the boy about the condition of the queen.

‘She is seriously ill. Until she finds her necklace, no one knows what would happen to her’ said the boy.

‘Well, will they mind if I try to find the necklace?’ asked the lazy boy, still naked. The cowherd ran to the palace to inform. As he did not have the clothes, the servant brought him the clothes and he was accompanied to the palace.

At the palace seeing the queen, he assured that he would trace back the necklace after few days of quiet meditation. He was given an isolated house where he could meditate undisturbed and he was also given an attendant. He spent three days sleeping in the room and feasting on the food served to him at certain interval by the attendant.

On the final day, he set off carrying a bow and arrow for hunting down the necklace. Reaching near the house where he last saw the necklace on the wall, he shot an arrow with confidence at the dried lump of cow dung. The crowd was amazed at his divine power. The necklace was found and handed over to the queen, who immediately recovered from her illness.

As a reward he was given enough gold to last a lifetime. The old mother did not mind her sleeping lazily the whole day. The mother and her son lived happily ever after.