Bagheera worried about what his child will find around the next corner, the big cat who knows he has to let go just a little but can't find it in himself to do so". Bagheera Bagheera (; "Baghīrā"/"Bagīdah") is a fictional character in Rudyard Kipling's Mowgli stories in the "Jungle Book" (coll. 1894) and the "Second Jungle Book" (coll. 1895). He is a black panther (melanistic Indian leopard) who serves as friend, protector and mentor to the "man-cub" Mowgli. The word "bagheera" is Hindi/Urdu for black panther-- although the root word bagh means tiger. Born in captivity in the menagerie of
Raksha (The Jungle Book) her name is Raksha ("protection/nurture") because of her ferocity as a fighter, and she will fight to the death for any of her cubs, natural or adopted. Raksha does not play a large role in the Mowgli stories, but occasionally offers her adopted son moral support. Raksha (The Jungle Book) Raksha ( / "Rakšā" or Mother Wolf as initially named) is a fictional character featured in Rudyard Kipling's Mowgli stories, collected in "The Jungle Book" and "The Second Jungle Book". She is a female Indian wolf, member of the Seeonee pack, who while suckling her own cubs decides also to