A jackal lives in the forest. Now one time, he goes from the forest and enters the city. And there he falls in a vat of indigo. And he thinks: “How do I escape?” But later a man sees the jackal. So he pulls the jackal from the vat and puts him on the ground. Thus the jackal escapes the vat of indigo. Later, he goes to a lake. And in the water he sees his face. And when he sees the color in his face, he is pleased. And he thinks: “I now am the king*.” Then he enters the forest. When they see the color, the jackals think: “He shows the color of a king. Surely he is the king.” So they bow and say: “King, what do you want? We listen.” And the jackal is pleased. And he says: “If you do the king’s command, then you live happily. But if because of foolishness you forget the king’s commend, then I become angry.” So they fear, and do the jackal’s command. Now, the rabbits say to the jackal: “Because we see the king’s color, we bow. Because you surely are king.” Later the deer see the jackal’s color and think: “Surely he is king, and we the king’s servants.” And the elephants do thus. And later even the lions bow and do the jackal’s command. Thus the jackal by the color’s power becomes king of the forest. But one time, the jackals of the forest howl. And when he hears the howl, the king also howls. Then the lions become angry. And they say: “Surely a king he is not. He is only a jackal. Why do we do a jackal’s orders?” So they kill the jackal.
–Adapted from Hitopadeśa, chapter 3 (Killingley: Lesson 15, page 109)
*Sanskrit has no definite article, so this and other instances can be translated as “the king” or “a king.” And the word here translated as king is mahārājaḥ (महाराजः).