The Hare and the Lion's Disease

A Lion, the king of the animals, fell terribly ill. He called all the animals together and said, "The diviner has told me that to be cured, I must bathe in the fat of a cunning animal." All the animals looked nervously at Sungura the Hare. The Lion ordered the Hare to be captured. As the other animals were dragging him to the Lion's den, the Hare shouted, "You are fools! Don't you know that fat must be rendered in a pot over a fire to have any medicinal power?" The animals, believing him, agreed. The Hare then said, "And for the magic to work, the fat must be stirred by the patient himself." They brought a large pot, filled it with oil, and placed it over a roaring fire. The Hare instructed the sick Lion to stir the boiling oil. "You must stir it with your own paw for the magic to work," he insisted. The foolish Lion, desperate for a cure, plunged his paw into the boiling oil. He roared in agony and died. Sungura the Hare had used the Lion's own desperation and the other animals' gullibility to save his own life and free them from the tyrant.