Bagheera

Origin
Originally born in captivity in the menagerie of the Rajah of Oodeypore, India, Bagheera began to pine for his freedom after his mother died. Once he was mature and strong enough, he broke the lock on his cage and escaped into the jungle, where his ferocity and cunning won him the respect of all its other inhabitants, except Shere Khan the tiger (likely out of his arrogance). Bagheera revealed all this to Mowgli later. None but Mowgli ever learned that Bagheera once wore a collar and chain, explaining the cat's special insight concerning Men.

When Father Wolf and Raksha of the Seeonee wolf pack adopted the human "cub," Mowgli and the pack demanded that the new cub should be spoken for, Bagheera bought Mowgli's life with a freshly-killed bull and helped to raise him as one of the pack. Because his life had been bought by a bull, Mowgli was forbidden to eat cattle.

Bagheera shared in many of Mowgli's adventures as he grew but, eventually the time came when the man-cub became a man and had to return to human society. Bagheera freed Mowgli of his debt to the wolf pack by killing another bull, and Mowgli returned to his adopted human mother, Messua.

Bagheera is one of Mowgli's mentors. He, Baloo and Kaa sang for Mowgli "The Outsong" of the jungle.

Public Domain Appearances

 * Mowgli's Brothers
 * Kaa's Hunting
 * Tiger! Tiger!
 * The King's Ankus
 * The Spring Running