Double Headed Man
In days gone by, in a certain village lived a weaver named Mantharaka. One day his old loom got broken. He decided to make a new loom and spent many hours in the forest looking for a tree that would yield him good wood. At last he chose an old tree that looked excellent and raised his axe to begin cutting it. There was a flash of light. A luminous face popped out of the tree trunk. "I am the goddess of this forest. This tree is my dwelling. Spare this and choose another," said the figure. "It is hard to find another tree of this quality!" murmured Mantharaka. "Why don't you do something wiser? It seems you toil hard to make two ends meet. Why don't you ask me for a boon that would make your life easy?" asked the goddess. Mantharaka was delighted. "I shall meet you again soon," he said and he returned to his village. He meant to consult others as he knew that he was rather dull in mind. Before reaching his home he met his neighbor, a friend as well as a clever man. "You look so thoughtful!" observed the good-hearted neighbor. He knew that Mantharaka was never known for his capacity to think. Mantharaka told the neighbor all about the goddess's offer to grant him a boon. The neighbor was excited. "My friend, this is a golden opportunity. Ask the goddess to give you a kingdom. You will be the king and enjoy all the best things of life. As your minister I shall manage the kingdom," proposed the neighbor.
"That is a good idea. I'm sure my wife will endorse it," said Mantharaka. "Don't say you are going to consult your wife!" shrieked out the neighbor. "You know how much she hates me. And, frankly, while you do not think at all, she always thinks in a crooked way." Nevertheless, Mantharaka told about the goddess's offer and the neighbor's suggestion to his wife. The wife who was overjoyed with the goddess's offer, turned red with wrath at the neighbor's suggestion."His suggestion, whatever that be, would bring you ruin. He wants you to become a king so that he can become your minister," she shouted. "For what boon should I go then?" asked Mantharaka. "You work with one head and two hands. If you get another head and a pair of extra hands, you can produce twice. Our income will be doubled. This should do for the moment. Now that you have traced the goddess, you can always scare her by raising your axe to fell the tree. She will grant you more boons," said the wife.
"How clever of you!" Mantharaka complimented his wife. Straight the went to the forest and asked the goddess for the boon of an extra head and an extra pair of hands. The prayer was instantly granted. Mantharaka at first felt rather awkward. But soon he felt quite proud at his queer achievement. "The villagers will be awe-struck and impressed with my form!" he told himself. It was evening when he was back in his village. The first to see him was a woman who gave out a shriek and fainted right away. The next to see him was a man who cried, "A ghoul, a demon in our village! Hey ho!" A hundred people came rushing into the street. They began beating Mantharaka with so many sticks that he could not ward them off even with his four hands. He died soon. Not listening to a good friend's advise and greediness took his life.
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