Once there was a vulture who lived at the top of a tree, and a cat who lived on a nearby hill. The vulture was afraid to go out to fetch food, because the cat might attack his young chicks. Likewise, the cat was afraid to go out to fetch food, for fear that the vulture would attack his young kittens. One day the vulture turned to the cat and said, “Let us live together like good neighbors, in peace. We will both swear an oath to the grandest creator Amun-Ra: if you go out to gather food, I will not attack your kittens; and if I go out to gather food, you will not attack my chicks.”

So, the vulture and the cat both swore the sacred oath to Amun-Ra, that they would behave accordingly. One day the vulture took a piece of meat from one of the cat’s kittens and gave it to his chick. The cat saw this and decided to take the meat back from the vulture chick. When the chick turned and saw the cat, the cat sank his claws into him so the chick could not escape. The vulture chick turned to the cat and said, “I swear to Amun-Ra, this is not your food! Why did you sink your claws into me?”

“Then where did you get this meat?” the cat asked.

And the vulture said to the cat, “I did not fly down to your kittens! And if you take revenge on me and my brothers, you will see the oath you took is false.”

The vulture chick tried to fly away, but fell to the ground because his wings would not carry him. As he lay on the ground, he said to the cat, “If you kill me, your son will die, as will your son’s son.”

The cat walked away, leaving the chick on the ground without touching him further.

When the vulture returned and saw his chick on the ground, he believed the cat had tried to eat his chick. So he said, “I will have revenge! I will wait until the cat goes out for food for his kittens, and his children will become food for my children!”

The vulture watched the cat’s movements, day after day, waiting for an opening to attack. After a long time, just as the vulture predicted, the cat went out to find food for his children. At that moment, the vulture swooped down and grabbed all the kittens and carried them away. When the cat returned from hunting, he did not find a single kitten in his home.

The cat turned to the sky and cried out to Amun-Ra, “O great Amun-Ra! See my grief and judge the vulture! We both made a sacred oath before you, but the vulture has broken it! He killed all my children!”

Amun-Ra heard the cat’s voice, and he sent forth a Heavenly Power to punish the vulture. The Heavenly Power sought out Retribution, who was waiting under the vulture’s tree. The Heavenly Power ordered Retribution to punish the vulture for what it had done to the cat’s children. Now it came to pass that Retribution made the vulture see a Syrian on the mountain, roasting meat on hot coals. The vulture grabbed a piece of the meat and carried it to his nest. He did not notice there were burning coals stuck to the piece of meat.

When the vulture brought the meat back to his tree, the burning coals caused the nest to burst into flames. All of his chicks were roasted and fell to the ground at the foot of the tree. The cat approached the tree, but did not touch the chicks. And the cat said to the vulture, “I swear by the name of Amun-Ra, even though you hunted my children down, and you attacked and killed them, even now, I will not touch your dead chicks.”

That day the vulture learned you do not break a sacred oath to the Neteru.