King Shibi and the Pigeon

A bird landed in a king's lap and asked to be kept safe. Then a hawk arrived and said, fairly enough, that it was hungry.

The claim

Shibi, son of Ushinara, was a king with a reputation, the kind of reputation that gets tested.

A pigeon dropped into his lap, shaking, and asked for sanctuary. He gave it: you are safe here.

Then the hawk arrived, and it did not behave like a villain. It made an argument.

The hawk said the pigeon was its lawful food. Allotted to it by nature.

That it had hunted the bird fairly. That it was starving, and had a nest of young.

And that by saving one creature, the king was killing another. You are not saving a life. You are choosing which life.