How the Tiger got its Stripes

Believe it or not, once upon a time, all animals could speak our language. So they had no problem understanding people. And of course, they could also talk to each other.

One day, when farmer Hung was resting in the shade of a banana tree after a full day of toiling in the fields, he didn’t notice a tiger dashing between the trees. Even though a tiger should have been easily recognisable because, at that time, tigers didn’t have stripes to camouflage themselves.

Not far from the farmer stood his stout buffalo, who was resting after a hard day of ploughing. He was busy chomping on the grass and chasing away the annoying flies with his tail.

The tiger came up to the buffalo and whispered: “Don’t be afraid, I didn’t come here to eat you. But something is bothering me. Can I ask you about it?”

The buffalo was taken aback, but when he saw that the tiger really didn't want to attack him, he calmed down. He was curious about what it was that could be bothering the tiger so much.

“I always watch that person you call ‘master’. He has very little strength and hardly any sharp teeth, nor does he seem to have keen eyesight or a good sense of smell. And yet you obey him and do what he says. You — such a big and mighty animal. I spoke with the other forest animals about it and they mentioned that he possesses some kind of wisdom. However, no one could tell me what that wisdom actually was. So, dear buffalo, where can I obtain that wisdom?”

The buffalo continued to mindlessly chew the grass. Only after a long while did he raise his head, look at the tiger, and…