An Indonesian folktale of the trickster, Kancil the mouse deer. In this story he tricks Harimau the tiger three times by pretending to guard the Royal Pudding (a muddy pond), the King's Drum (a wasps' nest), and the King's Belt (a python).

1. Kancilthe Mouse Deerand Harimauthe
Tiger
As retold by Jusby the Clown

2. Kancil (“kanchil”)the mischievous
Mouse Deer

3. The Royal Pudding

4. One day, the mischievous little
Kancil the Mouse Deer was
walking, walking, walking through
the forest. He came upon a large
muddy pond and thought “It
seems a shame to waste a
valuable natural resource such as
this!” So he sat and waited until
Harimau the Tiger came slinking-
slinking up, hungry as always.

5. Harimau said, “Kancil! Now I shall have second breakfast!”
“Halt!” Kancil shouted, “I have been appointed guardian of the royal
pudding! You may not have any unless the king himself commands it!”
“I was not planning to have pudding,” Harimau said, “I was planning to
eat YOU! But now that you mention it, pudding sounds like a splendid
treat for dessert!”
Kancil said, “This delicious pudding is too rich for any but the noblest of
men or beasts. This fine mocha chocolatte pudding is said to be so
creamy delicious that it will quench the most insatiable hunger for days.”
“Ooohh…” purred Harimau, “I shall definitely enjoy this rich pudding
after I eat you! How can I have any pudding if I don’t eat my meat?!”
“Alas, life is so short! I see that now as I am about to die!” cried Kancil, “I
suggest you eat your dessert first. After all, you can never know when
your time will come.”

6. “If you are indeed still hungry after the delicious royal pudding you can
eat me, but you will have to guard the pudding for the king.”
“HA!” laughed Harimau, “Watch me!” As he started to reach into the
muddy pond Kancil yelled, “Hurry, fill your mouth with as much
pudding as it will hold! The King’s soldiers are coming!”
Harimau scooped with both paws and filled his mouth with mud-mud-
mud as fast as he could until… PBBBT!!! Spit-spit-spit!
He realized he had been tricked and was not able to eat anything for
quite a while.
Kancil galloped away laughing, “Make sure no one else eats the king’s
pudding!”

7. The King’s Magic Drum

8. In time, Harimau came upon Kancil again. Kancil was hiding in the hole
of a tree.
“Come on out, Little Mousey, so I can eat you!” growled Harimau.
“I can’t right now. I’m guarding the king’s magic drum,” said Kancil.
“Oh, yeah?” asked Harimau, “What’s so magic about it?”
“It is said,” whispered Kancil, “That whoever beats-beats-beats on this
drum will make a sound the whole forest will hear. It will be a peak
experience they will never forget if they live a thousand years!”
“Let me beat the drum,” said Harimau.
“I couldn’t,” replied Kancil, “The king would have me killed!”
“If you don’t I will kill you! I only want to beat-beat on it for a little
while; the king doesn’t have to know.”

9. “I’ll tell you what. Let me go hide where the king can’t see me and
when I give the word you can beat-beat-beat the drum all you want.
It’s hanging right here,” said Kancil as he galloped away.
“Okay, you can beat-beat-beat the drum now,” he yelled from behind
a large tree.
Harimau took the drum down and began beat-beat-beating it, but it
wasn’t really a drum. It was a nest of giant venomous M. Garuda
wasps who grow to 2 inches long and have pinchers longer than their
legs!
Pinch-pinch-pinch.
Harimau began making a sound the whole forest could hear as he
screamed and ran. Kancil just laughed, “Are you having a peak
experience?”

10. The King’s Magic Belt
Time passed, months or years, we cannot be sure,
but it was evening time when Kancil came across a
coiled up Ular the Snake. Very cautiously, he sat
and waited, waited, waited for Harimau the Tiger.

11. As Harimau approached, Kancil said, “I see you there, Harimau! You
are not that sneaky.”
“Yes, well, I am fast, and I am strong, and I am hungry, and I am still
angry with you, so I think you will be my dinner!”
“I can’t be your dinner. I’m guarding the king’s magic belt,” said Kancil
pointing at Ular.
“Oh yeah?” What’s so magic about this belt?” asked Harimau.
“It is said,” whispered Kancil, “that whoever sleeps with this belt on
will become invisible and will travel peaceful through the jungle
forever, eating whatever they want without a hassle.”
“I’d like to try that belt on,” said Harimau.
“I couldn’t let you,” Kancil said, “The King would have me killed!”

12. “If you don’t I will kill you,” Harimau threatened, thinking of all the
hassles he would avoid if he could just get that belt on and become
invisible. He was planning on eating Kancil as soon as the magic
worked.
“I’ll tell you what. I’ll put it on to show you how it works,” and he
picked up the tail of Ular and started wrapping it around himself.
“No! No!” shouted Harimau for he realized that Kancil would soon
become invisible and escape. He grabbed the tail and began wrapping
it around himself.

13. However, this was no ordinary Ular. This was the Asian Reticulated
Python who grows to 32 feet long. Soon, he was wrapped from his feet
to his stomach and he was getting tired. “Help me, Kancil. I can’t wrap
the rest of myself. This belt is so long!”
Kancil said, “That’s what makes it so magic.”
When Harimau was wrapped up to his neck Kancil said, “Sweet
dreams. You will soon be invisible. I have to go hide from the king
now. Please spare me. I’m going to be in enough trouble without an
angry invisible tiger chasing me.”
“Ha!” said Harimau, closing his eyes. That was the last either one saw
of each other.