The Tiger's Roar

The Tiger's Roar by Pak Chi-wön (From Yi Min-su, Yonam Sonjip) (An 18th Century Satire translated by David P. Mesler) It was getting on towards a dismal twilight in the dense forest deep in a mountain valley. King Tiger sat with his subjects gathered around him and discussion of what they would have for supper was in full swing. "Ho, my good fellows, the sun is slowly setting. Have you no suggestions where to seek some tasty morsel?" Though one may have tried to put off in a word this forbidding, manly voice, it was certain that the King of the Mountains did not mean to eat just any old thing that came along. For a moment each of his subjects appeared to be thinking. "Yes—when you come down into this valley, there is a village stretching to the east." "So?" "There is a certain doctor fellow living there and they say in order to preserve himself he eats everything from roots of spirit trees to fragrant grasses. So he emits a bewitching air." "Yes, I know the one—but his bilious disposition is offensive. Is there nothing else?" "Yes, my King. There is one village across that mountain you see over there." "That is so." "There is a certain girl who practices witchery in that village." "Ah, indeed I, too, have heard of her. Say on." "They say that the girl without fail bathes once a day and even goes so far as to wash her hair before offering her prayers. Should she not be quite clean then?" Hearing this suggestion, the King of the Mountains, as if to say the girl was not suitable, came within his bristly whiskers' distance from 74\Mesler is subjects and advised them in no uncertain terms. "Nay, all this is useless talk. The rascal you call a doctor knows othing, yet prescribes cures. He feeds on money. After trying this mediine and that medicine, he finally kills his patient. The ones you call witchs are disgusting too. They say a man has some devil or some ghost nd after duping him, shamelessly take his money. In the end they only estroy human life which they have mistreated without cause. What resentient must people harbor against them therefore! Perhaps people's hatred îeps into their bodies driving deadly poison into them. How could I eat iem in good taste?" Just then an old tiger hoary with age stood up in the back where he had ;en crouching. "I have a good idea." "Yes? What is it?" Even the King appeared not a little curious thinking he may have dis-»vered some marvelous foodstuff. "If you follow along this valley to the north, there is a refined village¡ither large nor small nestled there." "Yes, please tell us." "In a thatched roof house, prim as a pavilion, which can be seen to e west of the village, there lives a scholar. Since this scholar sits all 3 life doing nothing but read, there is no book he has not learned by art, and what is more they say he's omniscient, there is nothing he esn't know. They say his belly is full of right principles like humanity, stice, loyalty and filial piety which people write about and the five praces of the cosmic dual forces. If this is true, surely his stomach must be uck full of many kinds of tastes. 1 think there may be nothing to surss him." ? spite of this proposal of a fully self-confident, mature subject, there s no smile of satisfaction to be found on the King's face. Slowly and culatingly opening his eyes he spoke. 'Yes, if all of those have gone to his stomach as you say, what a iglomeration of tastes there must be." Tiger's Roar/175 King Tiger spit these words out as if hating to hear more. "Roahhrr-----" he said, and displaying once again his unique stateliness with a voice that resounded until the mountains echoed back, he moved down the valley with long strides as if going somewhere. Dusk gradually enveloped the mountain and only nameless wild birds twittering without number sought their...