The Tiger and the Buffalo

They say that the tiger and the buffalo used to be great friends. They lived as neighbors and loved each other dearly. The buffalo always praised the tiger, and the tiger often invited the buffalo to go for walks and have fun together. During these walks, the tiger would always sit on the buffalo's back, and the buffalo took great pride in this.

One day, the friends went for a walk and came across a herd of cows. Seeing the buffalo and the tiger together, the cows asked:

"Why are you together?"
"We're friends!" replied the buffalo.
"You don't seem like a good match!" said the cows.

But the tiger and the buffalo didn't hear them, as they had already rushed ahead. Soon, they encountered a herd of horses.

"Why are you walking together?" the horses asked when they saw them.
"We're friends!" the buffalo answered again.
"What a strange friendship! We don't like it!" the horses shouted, but the tiger and the buffalo, ignoring them, ran even faster.

Later, they came across a flock of sheep. Looking at them, the sheep asked:

"What are you two doing together?"

The buffalo already knew they would say something like, "You're not suited for each other!" or "We don't like this friendship!" So he immediately shouted:

"We're friends, and it's none of your business!"

And without waiting for a reply, he rushed past. Soon after, the tiger and the buffalo moved to different places: the tiger went to the mountains, and the buffalo settled by the river. They stopped seeing each other.

But one day, the buffalo wanted to visit the tiger, and at the same time, the tiger decided to visit the buffalo. Without consulting each other, both set off on their journeys.

Each of them traveled for seven days and seven nights without rest. On the eighth morning, they met and were both very surprised. The old friends started talking.

"Brother, where are you going?" asked the tiger.
"I'm coming to see you, brother!" replied the buffalo. "And where are you headed?"
"I'm coming to visit you!" said the tiger. They chose a spot by the road, sat down to rest, and chatted about this and that. Suddenly, the tiger said:

"Brother, I've been walking for seven days and seven nights, and I haven't eaten anything. My stomach is empty. Let me eat you!"

The buffalo replied:

"Dear brother, I've also been on the road for seven days and seven nights, and I'm terribly hungry. But what can we do? Let's just go home, and each of us can find something to eat."

But the tiger kept insisting:

"Let me eat you, brother!"
"We're friends!" the buffalo exclaimed in surprise. "How can you eat me?!"

The tiger, drooling from hunger, said:

"Brother, please, I'm asking you for the third time! You're my elder brother, so you should feed me! If you allow it, I'll eat you; if you don't, I'll eat you anyway!"
"Well, if you're so hungry, I agree," the buffalo calmly replied. "But first, you must fight me! If you win, you can eat me; if you lose, you'll have to stay hungry. Do you agree?"

Hearing this, the tiger was delighted. He considered himself the king of beasts, and who could possibly defeat the king?!

Both began preparing for the fight. They prepared for seven days. The tiger went to the mountains, gathered many vines, and wrapped them around his body. The buffalo went to a field and rolled in a pit of liquid clay. He lay there, rolled around, then came out and basked in the sun. When the clay dried, he went back into the pit. He repeated this until his body was covered in several layers of clay.

On the eighth day, the tiger and the buffalo met at the agreed-upon spot.

"Well, brother, who will attack first—you or me?" asked the buffalo.
"Of course, me!" replied the tiger.
"Alright! You bite me three times first, and then I'll gore you three times!"

The tiger prepared himself, opened his mouth, and bit the buffalo with all his strength. But the buffalo didn't feel a thing—the tiger had only bitten off a chunk of clay. The tiger bit the buffalo a second time, and again, only a piece of dry clay fell off. The third time, the tiger lunged at the buffalo, and for the third time, clay crumbled from the buffalo's side, but he remained unharmed.

Now it was the buffalo's turn. He struck the tiger with his long horn—the vines on the tiger's body snapped. He struck a second time—all the vines fell to the ground. He struck a third time—and the tiger's guts spilled out. The tiger died.

The buffalo looked at him and said, "Now I understand that friends must be chosen carefully! From now on, I'll forbid my children and grandchildren from befriending tigers!"

Since then, the buffalo and the tiger have been enemies. If a buffalo sees a tiger, it gores it with its horns, and if a tiger notices a buffalo, it avoids it, afraid to bite!

↑ To the top

The Tiger and the Buffalo

More fairy tales