There lived a timid rabbit in a jungle. A slightest unusual sound or sight would drive her
panicky. She always pricked her ears up to catch a sound. She always dreamt of evil spirits and their evil deeds. So she could never sleep peacefully.
One day the rabbit was eating under a mango tree. A mango fell on the ground near her. At once she woke up and jumped up on her legs. Then she began to run, shouting, “Run away ! Run away! The sky is falling down!”.
A deer met the rabbit on the way. He asked her, “What is the matter?” She said, “Run away! The sky is falling down!” So the deer also began to run by her side. Both of them ran and shouted together, “Run away! The sky is falling down!”
As the two ran ahead, they were joined by a giraffe, a zebra, a jackal, a wolf and a host of other animals. All of them ran and shouted together, “Run away! The sky is falling down!”
A lion heard the noise and came out of his den. He roared, “Stop there. What’s wrong?”
“The sky is falling down,” they said in a chorus.
On hearing this, the lion laughed till tears came to his eyes. With great difficulty he controlled his laughter and said, “Who has seen the sky falling down?”
All of them looked at one another inquiringly and at last all the eyes were fixed on the rabbit. The rabbit faltered, “A portion of the sky is lying there under the mango tree.”
Come on, let’s go there and find out the truth,” said the lion.
So all of them went to the mango tree. They searched and found only a mango lying on the ground.
The lion pointed to the mango and asked the rabbit, “Is this the portion of the sky over which you raised such a hue and cry?”
The rabbit stood hanging her head in shame, her entire body shivering with fear. Other animals also felt ashamed for being carried away by herd instinct.
MORAL: DON’T BE CARRIED AWAY BY HERD INSTINCT.