A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
Overview
Gangazara rescues this tiger from a ruined well after hearing its promise of gratitude. The tiger explains that it fell in while chasing a goldsmith and warns its rescuer not to trust the man. Ten years later, when Gangazara remembers him, the tiger arrives with a jewelled crown. The narrator subsequently explains that it took the crown after killing the king of Ujjaini; the goldsmith uses it to accuse Gangazara falsely of that killing.
The tiger joins the serpent and rat rulers in helping the imprisoned man. Its body is too large for the tunnel into his cell, so the serpent conveys its sympathy. Tiger and serpent armies attack people and cattle until Gangazara’s release. At the final assembly the tiger admits killing the former king and calls itself a messenger of death, while condemning his successor’s failure to investigate the accusation. It promises peace on condition of just government. Gratitude towards its rescuer therefore coexists with lethal violence towards others; it is not merely a tame pet or an innocent supplier of treasure.
Origins & earliest records
South Indian tale attributed through Kingscote and Natesa Sastri
Records & interpretation
Complete English narrative and source notes, including final seashore death and divine restoration, read.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Indian Fairy Tales
X, “The Soothsayer’s Son,” pp. 70–84; notes pp. 243–244. London: David Nutt. Jacobs credits Tales of the Sun, p. 11 onward, through Folk-Lore of Southern India, part II, originally Indian Antiquary; he expressly says he condensed and modified the English.
Family & connections
A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.
Primary records and illustrations
Indian Fairy Tales
Joseph Jacobs, London: David Nutt, 1892. X, pp. 70–84; notes pp. 243–244
Caches jacobs-10.txt and jacobs-notes-10.txt, master jacobs-indian.html. Full ten-year imprisonment, mass-revival/truce and separate seashore death/Ganesa ending read. Jacobs explicitly condensed/modified credited Kingscote/Natesa Sastri source; no direct original-language or original scan collation. Historical anti-goldsmith generalisations excluded as factual claims.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Historical English adaptation of an attributed South Indian taleJacobs 1892, The Soothsayer’s Son and source notesResearch access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.