Amusing Tales of Hanuman

“Lanka Burns in Ayodhya.” One day, Hanuman is strolling through the bazaar of Ayodhya when a foolish cloth merchant calls out to him, “Hey, Son of the Wind! How did it look when you burned Lanka?” Hanuman replies that he cannot describe it, he can only show it. He has the merchant wrap some cloth around his tail, pour oil on it, then light it. Hanuman then sets fire to the merchant’s shop. When the merchant becomes upset, Hanuman notes that this is just how the demons of Lanka reacted. The shop burns to the ground and Hanuman repairs to a nearby pond to extinguish his tail. The next day the merchant appears in court and complains to Rama: “Your monkey destroyed my business!” Rama asks Hanuman for an explanation, and Hanuman forth-rightly tells the story. When Rama asks the merchant whether it is correct, he replies, “Yes, but I never expected him to burn my shop!” Rama then asks, “Oh, did you want to see someone else’s place burn?” and the merchant hangs his head in shame. Rama instructs him to avoid selfishness and idle curiosity in future, then orders full recompense for his loss from the royal treasury. Hanuman and the merchant both bow at Rama’s feet.P. 160 from Hanuman's Tale The Messages of a Divine Monkey- Philip Lutgendorf