Once there was a fierce battle between two kings near a forest. One won and the other lost. The armies returned to their cities. Only one army drum was left behind. By playing that drum, the bards and bards who accompanied the army used to narrate stories of bravery at night.
One day after the war there came a storm. Due to the force of the storm, the drum started rolling and rested near a dry tree. The dry branches of that tree were stuck to the drum in such a way that whenever a strong wind blows, it would hit the drum and there would be a resonating sound of Dhamdham Dhamdham.
A jackal used to roam in that area. He heard the sound of the drum. He became very scared. He had never heard any animal making such a strange sound before. He started wondering what kind of animal is this, which speaks in such a loud language 'Dhamadham'. The jackal kept secretly watching the drum to know whether this creature was going to fly or run on four legs.
One day the jackal was hiding behind a bush and keeping an eye on the drum. Just then a squirrel coming down from the tree jumped and landed on the drum. There was also a slight thudding sound. The squirrel kept munching on grains while sitting on the drum.
The jackal grumbled, "Oh! So these are not violent creatures. I too should not be afraid."
The jackal walked towards the drum with heavy footsteps. Sniffed it. He could neither see the head nor the legs of the drum. Then the twigs hit the drum due to the gust of wind. There was a thumping sound and the jackal jumped and fell backwards.
"Now I understand." While trying to fly, the jackal said, "This is the outer shell. The living beings are inside this shell. The voice is telling that whatever living being lives inside this shell, it must be fat and fresh. The body is full of fat. That is why it utters a loud call of Dhum=Dhum."
As soon as he entered his den, the jackal said, "O jackal! Get ready to eat the feast. I have found a big prey."
Siyari started asking, "Why didn't you kill him and bring him back?"
The jackal rebuked him, "Because I am not a fool like you. He is hiding inside a shell. The shell is such that it has doors of dry skin on two sides. If I tried to catch him by putting my hand from one side, would he not run away from the other door?"
When the moon rose, both of them went towards the drum. When he was getting closer, the twigs hit the drum in the wind and a 'dhum-dhum' sound came out. The jackal whispered in the jackal's ear, "Have you heard his voice? Just imagine, the one whose voice is so deep, how thick and fresh he himself must be."
Both of them straightened the drum and sat on either side of it and started tearing the edges of both the skinned parts of the drum with their teeth. As soon as the skin started to be cut, the jackal said, "Be careful. You have to catch the prey by putting your hands together." With the sound of 'Hum', both of them put their hands inside the drum and started groping inside. There was nothing inside. We held each other's hands. Both of them shouted, "Yes! There is nothing here." And they remained there beating their heads.