It is told that in ancient times, a crow lived in its nest. The days passed by the crow in calm and tranquility, enjoying what was around it. Then one day, he saw a hunter. He said: My God, who brought this hunter here? I who thought I was safe, but wait, it seems this hunter is on a mission. The hunter was setting his net on the ground and scattering grain on it, then the hunter hid behind one of the trees. The crow said: What a treacherous one.
Meanwhile, by coincidence, a dove passed by, known as the ringed dove because it had a mark like a collar on its neck. It had many doves with it, taking them on a journey in search of provision, finding grain on the ground without effort. The dove rejoiced and descended to pick it up, but suddenly the net closed on it and on the doves with it. The hunter rejoiced at that, and the crow closed his eyes at the horror of what he saw. But when he opened them, he saw a wondrous sight.
The dove asked the flock to move together as one and rise with the net. The net rose and lifted up. The hunter saw running, hoping to catch something in the net. The crow said: Poor hunter, your joy didn’t last. The crow got excited to know what would happen to the doves: Would they descend before the hunter knew he was successful in pursuing them? The crow watched from afar in silence. As for inside the net, the ringed dove was asking her sisters to descend toward an area where houses were abundant, hoping to distance herself from the hunter’s eyes.
Indeed, she determined her direction and directed it more toward the burrow of one of the monitor lizards, an old friend of hers when she lived on one of the rooftops. Thus, the dove flock distanced itself. The hunter was saddened and began lamenting his fate. As for the crow, he was watching an exciting film and didn’t want to miss the opportunity to watch its ending. On one of the rooftops, the following conversation was taking place: What happened, O wise ringed dove? said the monitor lizard as he gnawed the knot around her.
The dove said: Please, save the rest of the doves before me. He said to her: But you’re my friend, and it’s my duty to save you first. She said: Please, I’m afraid that if you save me, you’ll become lazy and weaken and not save the rest of the doves. But if you start with them, your loyalty will certainly be a motive for you to continue the work with perfection. The monitor lizard wasn’t surprised by what he heard from the ringed dove, for he knows her completely. As for the crow, he was in extreme amazement and admiration at everything he saw and heard of the monitor lizard’s loyalty and the dove’s wisdom.
From the stories of Kalila and Dimna