The Dragon and the Monk

Once upon a time a dragon lived in a big hill behind a waterfall in the forest. This dragon had big brown eyes, sharp teeth and a long tail. The dragon hid behind the water fall all the time. When he was hungry, he would creep out of the water and hunt the animals in the forest.

One day a monk was walking along and he saw the waterfall. He wanted to take a rest at the waterfall under a big tree. The monk wasn't afraid of anything.

Behind the waterfall the dragon smelled the human for the first time. He became curious. Right away he crept out of the water.

The dragon checked the land around the waterfall. He saw something bright and colorful under the tree. He watched the man and he thought, When he wakes up, I am going to ask, "What kind of person are you?" Then the dragon went back to the waterfall.

The next morning the dragon over slept. When he woke up he went to find the creature, who slept under the tree. He looked for him but the monk was not there. The dragon got angry. He felt like he could destroy everything

The dragon went to the village. He wanted to find the person who wore the colors that he had seen in the forest. When he arrived at the village, everybody was scared of him. The people ran away from him. The dragon thought, "I will return when these people are asleep at night." He went back to the forest. When the dark came, he crawled out of the water. He went to the village and he looked in each house. He couldn't find the monk. Finally the dragon gave up and returned to the forest near the village.

Early the next morning, at six o'clock, the monks began collecting the food from the people. The dragon awoke and saw many monks dressed in many colors. Again he became angry, he went closer and he blew fire from his mouth.

When the god Buddha saw what was happening, he came to protect the monks with his power. The god prayed for the dragon and asked him, "Why do you want to hurt the monks? They're doing the right thing. You're a monster not gentle like a human. Would you like to be gentle like a human?" The god told the dragon, "If you want to be a human you have to do the right thing and forget about your past. I will make you be human for your next life."

At that the dragon didn't want to go back to his forest. He decided to stay at the temple. He began to do good things and he protected the monks.