THE TIGER KING

I have come forward to tell you why he came to be known as Tiger King. I
have no intention of pretending to advance only to end in a strategic
withdrawal. Even the threat of a Stuka bomber will not throw me off track. The
Stuka, if it likes, can beat a hasty retreat from my story.
 
Pretending: behaving so as to make it appear that something is the case when
in fact it is not
Strategic: calculated
Stuka bomber: a German bomber aircraft that was used in the Second World
War
 
The writer tells us that he would let us know why the king was called ‘The
Tiger King’.  He further promises the reader that he will not go back on his
promise even if he is under the threat of an attack by a Stuka Bomber aircraft.
Instead, he says that the Stuka bomber aircraft can go back because he is not
scared of it and he will tell the reader why the king was called the tiger king.
 
Right at the start, it is imperative to disclose a matter of vital importance about
the Tiger King. Everyone who reads of him will experience the natural desire
to meet a man of his indomitable courage face-to-face. But there is no chance
of its fulfilment. As Bharata said to Rama about Dasaratha, the Tiger King has
reached that final abode of all living creatures. In other words, the Tiger King
is dead.
 
Indomitable: undefeatable
Final abode: refers to the final residence of the soul – the heaven.
 
The writer says that before elaborating about the tiger king one important
thing about him was that any person who read about the tiger king would be
very excited to meet a man of such undefeatable courage. But he says that
there is no chance of meeting the tiger king as the tiger king is already dead
and he has reached heaven.
 
The manner of his death is a matter of extraordinary interest. It can be
revealed only at the end of the tale. The most fantastic aspect of his demise
was that as soon as he was born, astrologers had foretold that one day the
Tiger King would actually have to die.
 
Demise: death
Foretold: predicted
 
The manner in which the tiger king died was very interesting. The writer could
tell us about it only at the end of the story but he adds that a very interesting
fact about the tiger king’s death was that when the tiger king was born,
astrologers had predicted at that time that one day the tiger king would die.
This prediction is meaningless because as a matter of fact everyone has to
die one day.
 
“The child will grow up to become the warrior of warriors, hero of heroes,
champion of champions. But...” they bit their lips and swallowed hard. When
compelled to continue, the astrologers came out with it. “This is a secret which
should not be revealed at all. And yet we are forced to speak out. The child
born under this star will one day have to meet its death.”
 
Compelled: forced
 
The writer gives an elaborate description of what the astrologers predicted at
the time of the birth of the tiger king. They said that the child would grow up to
become a brave warrior, a hero and a champion but after that they stopped
and bit their lips in order to show their reluctance to speak. When the
astrologers were forced to continue, they said that what they would reveal just
now was a secret. They said that the child that is the tiger king was born
under such a star (that means when he was born the star which was up there
in the sky was such) that any person who was born at that time had to meet
his death one day. Again, this prediction is meaningless because as a fact
everyone has to meet his death one day.
 
At that very moment a great miracle took place. An astonishing phrase
emerged from the lips of the ten-day old Jilani Jung Jung Bahadur, “O wise
prophets!’’
 
Everyone stood transfixed in stupefaction. They looked wildly at each other
and blinked.
‘‘O wise prophets! It was I who spoke.’’
 
This time there were no grounds for doubt. It was the infant born just ten days
ago who had enunciated the words so clearly.
 
The chief astrologer took off his spectacles and gazed intently at the baby.
 
‘‘All those who are born will one day have to die. We don’t need your
predictions to know that. There would be some sense in it if you could tell us
the manner of that death,’’ the royal infant uttered these words in his little
squeaky voice.
 
Transfixed: cause (someone) to become motionless with horror, wonder, or
astonishment.
Stupefaction: shock
Enunciated: say or pronounce clearly.
 
As the astrologers reveal their secret prediction, a miracle took place. The 10-
day old tiger king whose name was Jilani Jung Jang Bahadur spoke up. All
the listeners were surprised to see a 10- day old baby speak. The tiger king
called out to the wise astrologers and the main astrologer removed his
spectacles and looked intently at the little baby. The tiger king said in its
squeaky voice that all those who are born have to die one day and he did not
need their predictions to know this fact. He added that if they told him the
manner of his death, that would make some sense to him.
 
The chief astrologer placed his finger on his nose in wonder. A baby barely
ten days old opens its lips in speech! Not only that, it also raises intelligent
questions! Incredible! Rather like the bulletins issued by the war office, than
facts.
 
The chief astrologer took his finger off his nose and fixed his eyes upon the
little prince.
 
‘‘The prince was born in the hour of the Bull. The Bull and the Tiger are
enemies, therefore, death comes from the Tiger,’’ he explained.
 
Incredible: unbelievable
 
The chief astrologer was amazed to see a 10- day old baby speak and ask
intelligent questions. It was unbelievable for him just like the news which
came from the wars. He took off his finger from his nose and looked carefully
at the little prince. Then he added that as the tiger king was born in the hour of
the bull which was an enemy of the tiger, hence, the tiger king would die due
to a tiger.
 
You may think that crown prince Jung Jung Bahadur was thrown into a quake
when he heard the word ‘Tiger’. That was exactly what did not happen. As
soon as he heard it pronounced, the crown prince gave a deep growl.
Terrifying words emerged from his lips.
 
‘‘Let tigers beware!’’
 
The writer says that the reader may feel that the tiger king trembled upon
hearing the name of a tiger but actually that did not happen. On the other
hand, as soon as the Crown Prince Jung Jang Bahadur heard the name of a
tiger he made a deep growing sound and spoke terrifying words. He said that
all the tigers should beware.
 
This account is only a rumour rife in Pratibandapuram. But with hindsight we
may conclude it was based on some truth.
 
Rumour: a currently circulating story or report of uncertain or doubtful truth.
Rife: widespread, prevalent
Hindsight:  to understand an event or situation only after it has happened
 
Further the writer says that this story is a rumour that was heard by him in
Pratibandapuram but if we look at the happenings of the past we could
conclude that these rumours were based on true happenings.
 
II
 
Crown prince Jung Jung Bahadur grew taller and stronger day by day. No
other miracle marked his childhood days apart from the event already
described.
 
The Crown Prince Jung Jung Bahadur grew taller and stronger as the days
passed by there were no other miracles in his childhood.
 
The boy drank the milk of an English cow, was brought up by an English
nanny, tutored in English by an
Englishman, saw nothing but English films — exactly as the crown prince’s of
all the other Indian states did. When he came of age at twenty, the State,
which had been with the Court of Wards until then, came into his hands.
 
Court of wards: The Court of Wards was a legal body created by the East
India Company. Its purpose was to protect heirs and their estates when the
heir was deemed to be a minor and therefore incapable of acting
independently.
 
As a boy, he drank the milk of an English cow, was brought up by an English
governess, got lessons in English by an Englishman and watched English
films just like the Crown prince’s of other Indian states did. When the Crown
Prince Jung Jung Bahadur turned twenty years of age, the royal state which
had been in the custody of the court of wards was given to him.
 
But everyone in the kingdom remembered the astrologer’s prediction. Many
continued to discuss the matter. Slowly it came to the Maharaja’s ears.
 
All the people who lived in the kingdom were aware of the astrologer’s
prediction. Many of the people discussed these predictions and one day, King
Jung Jung Bahadur came to know of it.
 
There were innumerable forests in the Pratibandapuram State. They had
tigers in them. The Maharaja knew the old saying, ‘You may kill even a cow in
self-defence’. There could certainly be no objection to killing tigers in self-
defence. The Maharaja started out on a tiger hunt.
 
The Pratibandapuram state had many forests which had a number of tigers in
them. The Maharaja was aware of an old saying that you could kill even a cow
in order to protect yourself. So, he felt that the cow which was considered to
be a holy animal could also be killed by a Hindu in order to save himself, then
no one would object if he killed a tiger in order to protect himself. So,
Maharaja Jung Jung Bahadur started out on a tiger hunting expedition.
 
The Maharaja was thrilled beyond measure when he killed his first tiger. He
sent for the State astrologer and showed him the dead beast.
 
He was very excited when he killed the first tiger. He called for the state
astrologer and showed him the dead tiger.
 
‘‘What do you say now?’’ he demanded.
 
‘‘Your majesty may kill ninety-nine tigers in exactly the same manner. But...’’
the astrologer drawled.
 
‘‘But what? Speak without fear.’’
 
“But you must be very careful with the hundredth tiger.’’
 
‘‘What if the hundredth tiger were also killed?’’
 
The king asked the astrologer for his comments and The Astrologer replied
that the king could kill ninety nine tigers in exactly the same way as he had
killed the first one and he stopped speaking. The king encouraged the
astrologer to continue without fear. So, the astrologer said that the king had to
be very careful with the hundredth Tiger that he hunted. The king asked him
that what would happen if he killed the hundredth tiger also.
 
‘‘Then I will tear up all my books on astrology, set fire to them, and…’’
‘‘And…’’
 
‘‘I shall cut off my tuft, crop my hair short and become an insurance agent,’’
the astrologer finished on an incoherent note.
 
Tuft: a bunch or collection of threads, grass, hair, etc., held or growing
together at the base.
Incoherent: unclear, confused
 
The Astrologer replied that he would tear all his books of astrology and set
them on fire. He continued that he shall cut off his hair and would change his
profession from an astrologer to an insurance agent as he would not remain a
good astrologer any longer.
 

III
 
From that day onwards it was celebration time for all the tigers inhabiting
Pratibandapuram.
 
The State banned tiger hunting by anyone except the Maharaja. A
proclamation was issued to the effect that if anyone dared to fling so much as
a stone at a tiger, all his wealth and property would be confiscated.
 
Proclamation: a public or official announcement 
Fling: throw
Confiscated: taken with authority
 
From that day the tigers in Pratibandapuram had a nice time as the kingdom
banned tiger hunting by anyone except the Maharaja. No one was allowed to
kill a tiger other than the Maharaja himself. The law was so strict that an
official announcement was made that if anyone was caught killing a tiger or
even throwing a stone at a tiger, his wealth and property would be taken away
by the kingdom of Pratibandapuram.
 
The Maharaja vowed he would attend to all other matters only after killing the
hundred tigers. Initially the king seemed well set to realise his ambition.
 
Ambition: a strong desire to do or achieve something.
 
The king of Pratibandapuram took an oath that he would attend to all other
matters of the kingdom only after he had killed 100 tigers. In the beginning it
seems that he would achieve his target very fast.
 
Not that he faced no dangers. There were times when the bullet missed its
mark, the tiger leapt upon him and he fought the beast with his bare hands.
Each time it was the Maharaja who won.
 
Bare: here, unarmed
 
It was not that he feared the tiger. When the king went on his hunting
expeditions, he faced danger many times. At times, his Bullet missed its target
and the tiger jumped upon him. The king would fight with the tigers
barehanded but each time he won and killed the tiger.
 
At another time he was in danger of losing his throne. A high-ranking British
officer visited Pratibandapuram. He was very fond of hunting tigers. And
fonder of being photographed with the tigers he had shot. As usual, he wished
to hunt tigers in Pratibandapuram. But the Maharaja was firm in his resolve.
He refused permission. ‘‘I can organise any other hunt. You may go on a boar
hunt. You may conduct a mouse hunt. We are ready for a mosquito hunt. But
tiger hunt! That’s impossible!’’
 
Firm: determined
Resolve: decision
Boar: pig
 
The writer tells us another instance when King Jung Jung Bahadur was about
to lose his throne. A high ranking British officer visited Pratibandapuram. He
was fond of hunting tigers and he wanted to get himself photographed with
the dead tigers. He wanted to hunt tigers in Pratibandapuram also but as the
Maharaja had banned killing tigers by any other person; he did not give
permission to this British official also. He offered him to go on any other
hunting like mouse or even a mosquito hunt but he refused to arrange a tiger
hunting for this British officer.
 
The British officer’s secretary sent word to the Maharaja through the dewan
that the durai himself did not have to kill the tiger. The Maharaja could do the
actual killing. What was important to the durai was a photograph of himself
holding the gun and standing over the tiger’s carcass. But the Maharaja would
not agree even to this proposal. If he relented now, what would he do if other
British officers turned up for tiger hunts?
 
Durai: Tamil word meaning chief or leader
Carcass: the dead body of an animal.
Relented: relaxed his decision
 
The British official’s secretary send a message to the Maharaja that the Durai
that is the official himself did not want to kill the tiger. The king could kill the
tiger, he only wanted to get himself photographed with the dead body of a
tiger. But the king did not agree to this proposal also. He said that if he
relaxed his decision and allowed the official to get himself photographed with
the dead tiger, and then other British officers would also come to
Pratibandapuram in order to fulfil their wish of hunting a tiger.
 
Because he prevented a British officer from fulfilling his desire, the Maharaja
stood in danger of losing his kingdom itself.
 
The Maharaja and the dewan held deliberations over this issue. As a result, a
telegram was despatched forthwith to a famous British company of jewellers in
Calcutta. ‘Send samples of expensive diamond rings of different designs.’
 
Deliberations: discussions
Dispatched: sent
 
As the king had refused a British officer from fulfilling his wish, he was in
danger of losing his kingdom. The king had discussions with his Minister over
this issue. The king sent a telegram to a famous British company of Jewellers
based in Calcutta. He asked them to send samples of expensive diamond
rings of different designs.
 
Some fifty rings arrived. The Maharaja sent the whole lot to the British officer’s
good lady. The king and the minister expected the duraisani to choose one or
two rings and send the rest back. Within no time at all the duraisani sent her
reply: ‘Thank you very much for your gifts.’
Duraisani: Tamil word for wife of the chief.
 
In two days a bill for three lakh of rupees came from the British jewellers. The
Maharaja was happy that though he had lost three lakh of rupees, he had
managed to retain his kingdom.
 
The Jeweller sent fifty rings and the Maharaja sent all of them to the British
officer’s wife. He wanted to please her in order to make good the damage that
he had done by refusing the official from going on a tiger hunt in his kingdom.
The king had expected that the British officer’s wife would choose one or two
rings and return the others but she just sent a reply saying thanks for the gifts
and she kept all the rings. After two days the British jewellers sent a bill of
three lakh rupees for the fifty diamond rings they had sent. The Maharaja was
happy that he had saved his kingdom for a sum of three lakh rupees.
 
IV
 

The Maharaja’s tiger hunts continued to be highly successful. Within ten years
he was able to kill seventy tigers. And then, an unforeseen hurdle brought his
mission to a standstill. The tiger population became extinct in the forests of
Pratibandapuram. Who knows whether the tigers practised birth control or
committed harakiri? Or simply ran away from the State because they desired
to be shot by British hands alone?
 
Unforeseen: unplanned, accidental
Hurdle: problem
Standstill: stop
Extinct: having no living members.
Hara-kiri: a ritual of suicide practiced in Japan.
 
The king was very successful in his tiger hunting missions. In a span of ten
years he had killed seventy tigers. An unplanned problem stopped his
mission. The problem was that there were no more tigers in Pratibandapuram.
The writer creates humour when he says that maybe the tigers practiced birth
control activities and did not produce off springs or maybe they committed
suicide. He also adds that it could be that they ran away from
Pratibandapuram because they did not want to be killed by an Indian and on
the other hand they want it to be killed by a Britisher.

One day the Maharaja sent for the dewan. ‘‘Dewan saheb, aren’t you aware of
the fact that thirty tigers still remain to be shot down by this gun of mine?’’ he
asked brandishing his gun.
 
Brandishing: waving as a threat or in anger or excitement
 
Shuddering at the sight of the gun, the dewan cried out, ‘‘Your Majesty! I am
not a tiger!’’
 
Shuddering: tremble with fear
 
‘‘Which idiot would call you a tiger?’’
 
“No, and I’m not a gun!’’
 
“You are neither tiger nor gun. Dewan saheb, I summoned you here for a
different purpose. I have decided to get married.’’
 
Summoned: called
 
One day the king called his minister and waved his gun towards him. He said
that he was yet to kill thirty more tigers. The Minister was scared when he saw
the gun and he cried to the king that he was not a tiger as he feared that the
king might aim his gun at him. The king said that he was not foolish that he
would mistake the minister for a tiger. The Minister was so scared that he
added that he was neither a gun. The king said to him that he knew that he
was neither a tiger not a gun but on the other hand, the king had called his
minister for another work - the king wanted to get married.
 
The dewan began to babble even more. ‘‘Your Majesty, I have two wives
already. If I marry you ...’’
 
Babble:  to talk or say something in a quick, confused, excited, or silly way
 
‘‘Don’t talk nonsense! Why should I marry you? What I want is a tiger...’’
 
‘‘Your Majesty! Please think it over. Your ancestors were married to the sword.
If you like, marry the gun. A Tiger King is more than enough for this state. It
doesn’t need a Tiger Queen as well!’’
 
The Minister was so confused that he started speaking something in a silly
way. He said that the king already had two wives and if the Minister married
the king…. the king interrupted the Minister and scolded him for speaking
nonsense. He said that he had no reason to marry the Minister and he did not
want to marry the Minister. He said that he wanted a tiger so the writer again
creates humour when he says that the Minister told the king that he should
think over his decision. The minister adds that the king’s ancestors were
married to the sword and so, if he wanted he could marry the gun. But
marrying a tiger and getting a ‘Tiger Queen’ for the kingdom of
Pratibandapuram was not a good thought. He added that a Tiger King was
enough for the state and they did not need a Tiger Queen.
 
The Maharaja gave a loud crack of laughter. ‘‘I’m not thinking of marrying
either a tiger or a gun, but a girl from the ranks of human beings. First you
may draw up statistics of tiger populations in the different native states. Next
you may investigate if there is a girl I can marry in the royal family of a state
with a large tiger population.’’
 
Investigate: find out
 
This was very hilarious and the Maharaja started laughing. He said that he did
not want to marry either a tiger or a gun but he wanted to marry a girl from
another Kingdom. He asked his minister to make a list of all the kingdoms and
the number of tigers they had. Next, the Minister was supposed to find out if
there was a girl worth marrying in the royal family of a state which had a large
number of tigers.
 
The dewan followed his orders. He found the right girl from a state which
possessed a large number of tigers.
 
Maharaja Jung Jung Bahadur killed five or six tigers each time he visited his
father-in-law. In this manner, ninety-nine tiger skins adorned the walls of the
reception hall in the Pratibandapuram palace.
 
Adorned: decorated
 
The Minister followed the orders and he found the right girl from a state which
had a large number of tigers. So every time king Jung Jung Bahadur visited
his father-in-law, he would kill five or six tigers in the kingdom. In this manner,
the king killed ninety-nine tigers and the skins of the tigers decorated the walls
of the lobby hall of the Pratibandapuram palace.
 
V
 
The Maharaja’s anxiety reached a fever pitch when there remained just one
tiger to achieve his tally of a hundred.
 
Fever pitch: extreme
Anxiety: curiosity
Tally: count, total
 
As the Maharaja has killed ninety-nine tigers, he was to kill just one more to
complete his total of hundred tigers. He became very anxious and curious to
kill the hundredth tiger.
 
He had this one thought during the day and the same dream at night. By this
time the tiger farms had run dry even in his father-in-Iaw’s kingdom. It became
impossible to locate tigers anywhere. Yet only one more was needed. If he
could kill just that one single beast, the Maharaja would have no fears left. He
could give up tiger hunting altogether.
 
All through the day and night he kept on dreaming of killing the hundredth
tiger. The tiger population in the king’s father-in-law’s kingdom had also
finished. He could not find a single tiger anywhere. The king was very
desperate for one single tiger that he could hunt after which he would give up
hunting as he would not fear tigers any longer.
 
But he had to be extremely careful with that last tiger. What had the late chief
astrologer said? “Even after killing ninety-nine tigers the Maharaja should
beware of the hundredth...’’ True enough. The tiger was a savage beast after
all. One had to be wary of it. But where was that hundredth tiger to be found?
It seemed easier to find tiger’s milk than a live tiger
.
Savage: uncontrolled
Wary: be cautious
 
He was reminded of the late astrologer’s words that he was supposed to be
very careful with the hundredth tiger that he hunted and the king agreed that
tigers were uncontrolled animals and so he had to be cautious of it. But he
was not able to find the hundredth tiger that he could kill. The writer again
creates humour by saying that it was easier to find tiger’s milk in the kingdom
rather than an alive tiger.
 
Thus the Maharaja was sunk in gloom. But soon came the happy news which
dispelled that gloom. In his own state sheep began to disappear frequently
from a hillside village.
 
Gloom: sadness
Dispelled: removed
 
It was first ascertained that this was not the work of Khader Mian Saheb or
Virasami Naicker, both famed for their ability to swallow sheep whole. Surely,
a tiger was at work. The villagers ran to inform the Maharaja. The Maharaja
announced a three-year exemption from all taxes for that village and set out
on the hunt at once.
 
Exemption: freedom
 
This made the king very sad. He sadness came to an end when he got the
news that in a hillside village, sheep was disappearing very fast. There were
two people in the kingdom- Khader Mian Sahib and Virasami Naicker who
could swallow whole sheep. As this was not their job, so it was calculated that
there was a tiger at work. The villagers were very excited and they informed
the king about it. The Maharaja was so happy that he exempted the villages
from all taxes for three years and set out to hunt this tiger.
 
The tiger was not easily found. It seemed as if it had wantonly hid itself in
order to flout the Maharaja’s will.
 
Wantonly: carelessly
Flout: to go against something or someone
 
The Maharaja was equally determined. He refused to leave the forest until the
tiger was found. As the days passed, the Maharaja’s fury and obstinacy
mounted alarmingly. Many officers lost their jobs.
 
Fury: anger
Obstinacy: firmness
Mounted: increased
 
The king could not locate the tiger easily and it seemed as if the tiger was
hidden in order to go against the king’s desire of killing the tiger. But the king
was very determined he did not leave the forest until he would find the tiger.
With the passing days he became very angry and was firm to kill the tiger. In
his anger he removed many officers from his Kingdom.
 
One day when his rage was at its height, the Maharaja called the dewan and
ordered him to double the land tax forthwith.
 
Rage: anger
 
‘‘The people will become discontented. Then our state too will fall a prey to the
Indian National Congress.’’
 
Discontented: unhappy
 
One day, in his fury he called the Minister and ordered him to increase the
land tax to double. He felt that by doing this, the people would become
unhappy and his kingdom would become a part of the Indian National
Congress.
 
‘‘In that case you may resign from your post,’’ said the king.
 
The dewan went home convinced that if the Maharaja did not find the tiger
soon, the results could be catastrophic. He felt life returning to him only when
he saw the tiger which had been brought from the People’s Park in Madras
and kept hidden in his house.
 
Catastrophic: causing sudden great damage or suffering
 
By doing so the Minister would also resign from his post. This was the king’s
way of threatening the Minister. The Minister realized that the king was very
angry and he thought that if the tiger was not found soon, it could lead to
destruction. The Minister found that the tiger that had been brought from the
People's Park in Madras was hidden in his house, he felt relieved.
 
At midnight when the town slept in peace, the dewan and his aged wife
dragged the tiger to the car and shoved it into the seat. The dewan himself
drove the car straight to the forest where the Maharaja was hunting. When
they reached the forest the tiger launched its satyagraha and refused to get
out of the car.
The dewan was thoroughly exhausted in his efforts to haul the beast out of the
car and push it down to the ground.
 
Haul: pull or drag with effort or force
 
The Minister along with his wife pulled the tiger into his car and drove the car
to the forests where the Maharaja was hunting. The tiger did not come out of
the car and the Minister had a tough time pushing the tiger out of the car into
the forest.
 
On the following day, the same old tiger wandered into the Maharaja’s
presence and stood as if in humble supplication, “Master, what do you
command of me?’’ It was with boundless joy that the Maharaja took careful
aim at the beast. The tiger fell in a crumpled heap.
 
Supplication: pray
 
The next day the same tiger was spotted by the Maharaja. He was very happy
to see the hundredth tiger and he aimed at the tiger. The tiger fell down as if it
had been shot dead by the king. He was overjoyed to have killed the
hundredth tiger and had fulfilled his wow.
 
‘‘I have killed the hundredth tiger. My vow has been fulfilled,’’ the Maharaja
was overcome with elation.
 
 Ordering the tiger to be brought to the capital in grand procession, the
Maharaja hastened away in his car.
 
Elation: joy
 
Procession: parade
 
The king was happy to have killed the hundredth tiger. He ordered that the
tiger should be brought to the capital in a grand procession and went away in
his car.
 
After the Maharaja left, the hunters went to take a closer look at the tiger. The
tiger looked back at them rolling its eyes in bafflement. The men realised that
the tiger was not dead; the bullet had missed it. It had fainted from the shock
of the bullet whizzing past. The hunters wondered what they should do. They
decided that the Maharaja must not come to know that he had missed his
target. If he did, they could lose their jobs. One of the hunters took aim from a
distance of one foot and shot the tiger. This time he killed it without missing
his mark.
 
Bafflement: confusion
 
After the king had left the hunters took a closer look at the tiger and saw that it
was alive. They realized that the king’s bullet had missed the tiger. The tiger
had nearly fainted due to the shock as the bullet had passed close to it. The
hunters were confused what to do and so, one of them aimed at the tiger and
shot it dead.
 
Then, as commanded by the king, the dead tiger was taken in procession
through the town and buried. A tomb was erected over it.
 
Then the hunters followed the king’s orders and took the dead tiger to the
town in a procession. It was buried and a beautiful tomb was erected on the
tiger’s grave.
 
A few days later the Maharaja’s son’s third birthday was celebrated. Until then
the Maharaja had given his entire mind over to tiger hunting. He had had no
time to spare for the crown prince. But now the king turned his attention to the
child. He wished to give him some special gift on his birthday. He went to the
shopping centre in Pratibandapuram and searched every shop, but couldn’t
find anything suitable. Finally he spotted a wooden tiger in a toyshop and
decided it was the perfect gift.
 
After a few days, the maharaja’s son’s third birthday was celebrated. Till that
time the king had been so engrossed in tiger hunting that he had never spent
any time with his family. Now, as he had fulfilled his wow of killing hundred
tigers, he gave his attention to his child. King Jung Jung Bahadur wanted to
give a special gift to his son on his birthday and so he went to the shopping
centre in Pratibandapuram. He searched every shop but could not find any
suitable gift for his son. Finally, he saw a wooden tiger in a toy shop and
considered it to be the perfect gift.
 
 
The wooden tiger cost only two annas and a quarter. But the shopkeeper
knew that if he quoted such a low price to the Maharaja, he would be
punished under the rules of the Emergency. So, he said, ‘‘Your Majesty, this is
an extremely rare example of craftsmanship. A bargain at three hundred
rupees!’’
 
Annas: currency used in the olden times. 1 anna = 1/16 rupee.
 
The wooden tiger cost only two and a quarter annas but the shopkeeper knew
that if he quoted such a low price to the king, he would punish him. So, the
shop owner told the king that the wooden tiger was a perfect example of
craftsmanship and that it cost a mere three hundred rupees.
 
‘‘Very good. Let this be your offering to the crown prince on his birthday,’’ said
the king and took it away with him. On that day father and son played with that
tiny little wooden tiger. It had been carved by an unskilled carpenter. Its
surface was rough; tiny slivers of wood stood up like quills all over it. One of
those slivers pierced the Maharaja’s right hand. He pulled it out with his left
hand and continued to play with the prince.
 
Slivers: shavings
 
The king was very happy and he said that this was the shop owner’s gift to the
Crown Prince. He took the tiger with him. The king and his son played with the
wooden tiger. The tiger had been made by an unskilled carpenter and it had
tiny shavings of wood pricking out of it. One of the shavings pierced the
maharaja’s right hand. The Maharaja pulled it out and continued to play with
the prince.
 
The next day, infection flared in the Maharaja’s right hand. In four days, it
developed into a suppurating sore which spread all over the arm.
 
 
Suppurating: a wound full of pus
Sore: painful inflammation
 
 
The next day, there was a lot of infection in the maharaja’s right hand due to
that shaving of wood that had pricked his hand. In a period of four days, the
infection turned into a wound full of pus and spread all over the king’s right
arm.
 
Three famous surgeons were brought in from Madras. After holding a
consultation they decided to operate. The operation took place.
 
The three surgeons who performed it came out of the theatre and announced,
“The operation was successful. The Maharaja is dead.”
 
In this manner the hundredth tiger took its final revenge upon the Tiger King.
 

Three famous surgeons were called from Madras and they decided to operate
upon the king. After the operation the surgeons came out of the theater and
said that the operation was successful and the Maharaja was dead.
 
Here the surgeons’ words are contradictory because if the king died, it meant
that the operation was unsuccessful whereas they said that it was successful.
Actually, they were supporting the words of the astrologer. The wooden tiger
was the hundredth tiger that had killed the king Jung Jung Bahadur and thus,
made the astrologer’s prediction true. So, in this manner the hundredth tiger
took revenge upon the tiger king and killed him.
 
 
Summary –
 
The tiger King is the story of king Jung Jung Bahadur of Pratibandapuram, a
brave warrior whose death had been predicted when he was born. The chief
astrologer had predicted as the royal child was born in the hour of the bull, the
tiger being its enemy, death would come to the child by a tiger. The brave
prince asked all tigers to beware of him. He came to be known as ‘tiger king’.
 
The prince became king at the age of twenty and considering killing a cow in
self defense to be lawful, went on a tiger killing spree. He was warned of
danger from the hundredth tiger that he encountered. As all the tigers in his
kingdom had been killed by him but still he had to kill more, he married into a
state having a high population of tigers.
 
When his killings reached ninety nine, he desperately sought the next hunt.
Fearing the king’s harshness, the minister planted an old tiger in the forest for
him to kill. The king fired at it but the tiger escaped the bullet miraculously.
The royal hunters feared the king and so did not inform him; rather they killed
the beast themselves.
 
The king was satisfied that he had evaded death and now celebrated his son’s
third birthday. He got a wooden toy tiger as a gift for the prince. Although it
was poorly done, the shopkeeper, fearing punishment under the rules of
emergency charged a high price. As both the king and his son were playing
with the tiger, one of the thin pieces of wood that were erupting out of the
wooden tiger like feathers pierced the king’s right hand.
 
The wound became infectious, spread through his arm and as he was being
operated upon, he died.
So, ironically, the hundredth tiger killed the king and eventually took its
revenge.