The kingdom of Pratapgarh was once ruled by Mahendra Pratap. He was a wise king and was popular with his subjects. He had a son named Pratapvarma. Even as a young prince, he endeared himself to the people because he was gentle and kindhearted. He loved animals. Though a good archer, he never went on hunting expeditions.
One day, three strangers came to the court. They claimed to have some unique powers, and Pratapvarma got fascinated while he listened to their exploits. The prince found that one of them was an expert in archery; another one could run fast, as fast as the wind,
and the third one was capable of seeing what no one else could see.
The prince spent a lot of time with the strangers and soon cherished a desire to go on a travel in their company. He sought the permission of his father, the king, who was at first reluctant as he did not want his son to go out of the kingdom. The three men assured the king that they would take care of the prince. On their assurance, Mahendra Pratap agreed to his son's wish. The next day Pratapvarma set out along with his newfound friends.
As they walked along, the prince noticed that a rat was struggling to get out of a ditch which was full of water. But every time it tried to climb along the slippery sides of the ditch, it was falling back again. The prince took pity on the rat and shot an arrow into the ditch. The rat caught hold of the arrow and soon climbed out of the ditch.
The rat looked at the gentle face of the prince and said, "O good prince! Thank you for saving my life. I'm Chuha Raja, the king of rats. From today, all rats in my kingdom will be at your service whenever a need arises; you've only to lie down on the ground and call my name, and we shall all come out of our holes."
The prince smiled at Chuha Raja and moved on. After the four friends had walked some distance, Pratapvarma noticed a line of ants moving in a line in an orderly way. Suddenly, someone from a nearby house came out and emptied a vessel of water, without seeing the ants, some of which drowned in the huge puddle, while the others desperately struggled to get out of the water.
