Cheating

Cheating
One day after school two friends Arun and Shyam were fighting among themselves. The fight became too bad. Hence their friend Raj went in between them and tries his best to stop their fighting.

Arun requests Raj not to interfere as he feels he will be blamed because of Shyam's actions.

Raj asks once again what action Shyam did. To this Arun replies that like him Shyam have also submitted answer sheet without writing anything. So Arun feels that when the examiner starts to check the answer sheet and finds that both their answer sheets to be blank, then the examiner might think that both of them cheated on the exams.

Cat and nine lives

Cat and nine lives

The store house of a merchant was full of rats. They were everywhere. One day a Brown cat entered the warehouse and felt the storehouse to be a nice place for it to stay. It decided to catch as many rats as possible and decided upon an idea.

The cat decided that it would lie down like a dead cat. Hence it laid itself for some time and ensured that the rats would believe him to be dead.

The younger rats went to their grand father mouse and requested for a permission, if they could go near the cat and play, as cat was dead.. The old mouse was not convinced and wanted to verify himself.

He went to a nearby shelf and started to tell that, the cat has nine lives and would like to check if this cat had many lives. As he was talking, he began to chew a sack which was full of flour. As soon he was able to open a little, automatically the flour began to fall on the cat that was below the shelf.

The cat did not like the onslaught and was finding it difficult to lay still. Hence he finally gave up with a loud sneeze. The cat jumped out from the flour shower and looked like a white cat. The wise mouse said; see the cat has changed into another life. It has changed its color in its next life.

All the younger rats thanked the old mouse for its intelligence and guidance. The rats were happy as their lives were saved by the old mouse.

The Dog and the Donkey

The Dog and the Donkey

Suddenly a noise was heard. the dog was awakened by the noise, but he did not bother to know and went to sleep.Where as the donkey was amazed by the attitude of the dog. He spoke to the dog and inquired why he did not bark, knowing it might be thieves. To this the dog replied, it would be wisdom that one should mind their own business.

The donkey was outraged by the actions of the dog. he began to bray as loudly as possible. With this the donkey frightened off the thieves and made the master to come running. The master was so furious at being woken and he came out and started to beat the donkey.

The experienced dog now replied that he had warned the donkey. When you know how the master would react, it is better to think of oneself, first and foremost.

The Fox and Wolf in Court

The Fox and Wolf in Court

The wolf accused the fox of having cheated him. In turn the fox accused the wolf of having robbed him. Hence they took their dispute to court and it was left for the monkey judge to settle the issue. The issue was so full of differences and nobody could make head or tail of it.The argument went on for some time.

Eventually the monkey judge lost his patience and declared his judgement. He said that the wolf was guilty because he falsely accused the fox. He also said that the fox was also guilty because every one knew that fox was known by nature to be a thief. The monkey judge said that the best place for the both liars and thiefs was prison and proclaimed that both of them be sent to prison.

The Farmer and His Sons

The Farmer and His Sons

A farmer , knew his sons were lazy.While was in his death bed, he called them and said, as he was above to leave to the heavenly abode, he murmured and said that he got something for them. He said dig up the vineyard and share everything you find there.

After their father's death, they realised that they were running out of money. They realised that their father had meant a hidden treasure was there in the field. Hence after his death, they began to hoe and dig at furious space. Unfortunately they were not able to find any treasure, as there was none. But their hard labour did not go waste. The earth they hoed and dug produced an excellant bumper grapes crop.

The Monkey and the Fishermen

The Monkey and the Fishermen
It was a usual day. A monkey sat on a tree and watched fishermen catching fishes from the river. He saw two fishermen throwing their nets into the river. This action of the fishermen kindled monkey's interest. One day as midday reached, the men left their nets on the river bank and went for lunch.

As soon the fishermen left, the monkey being inquisitive came down from the tree and picked up the net. He tried to throw the net into the river, as he had seen the fishermen doing. But alas he was not successful, because the net got tangled and he was caught in the net.

He spoke aloud and said that he has learnt lessons that it is wise not to do others work.

Source - Grandma stories

Is it Good to get early

Is it Good to get early
Mullah’s father was a good and hard working merchant. Mullah was happy to go to Madrasa; the schools were he used to go to study. He was a lazy boy and wanted to sleep for longer times. Hence for him to get up early was a difficult job. His father’s ambition was to make Mullah a learned man. He looked for opportunities to educate Mullah and started to give advice on why one should get up early.

Mullah’s father had a habit of going to early morning walks. He liked the morning scene where the birds used to sing. One day he saw a bird attack a small worm on the ground. As the grounds in the morning time are cool and moist, the bird was able to get the worm. Hence the early bird got all the worms that were visible on the ground.

Suddenly this thought touched the Mullah’s father and he thought with this he could educate his son. While he was returning to his house he found a bag lying in the middle. He picked it up and was surprised to see gold coins in the bag. Being an honest man he looked all round for the owner, as he did not see anybody in the early hour, he picked up the bag and rushed to his house. Now he had two stories to tell his son, the importance of getting up early.

When he reached home, he saw that Mullah was still sleeping. He went near to him and shook him up to tell about the incidents. But Mullah did not listen and went to sleep again. Unable to wake him up, his father poured some water over Mullah’s head and face.

Mullah immediately woke up and started to ask his father what was the urgency to wake him up. His father responded and told him that he would like to share his bounty to him. The father told his son how the birds that made cheerful noise and started to collect worms for their food. Also he told about the bag of gold coins he found in the path. The father explained since he got up early he was able to get all these things and how important it was to get up early as you might have a chance to collect worms and find a treasure.

But Mullah had a different reasons for the both the incidents. He logically told his father that when the worms got up early, he was eaten by a bird. Similarly the man who got up early lost his bag of gold coins. Poor man must be crying somewhere. Hence according to Mullah getting up will bring trouble. The father was aghast to note how his son interpreted his logic and was able to convince him, which he could not refuse.

The story tells us that what is good for others, cannot be good for us

The Story of a Tigress

The Story of a Tigress

It was not long ago that Bodhisattva was once again born as a scholar. He became an ascetic and had mastered all the scriptures. Hence he had a number of followers and Ajita was a disciple. As they were walking in the forest, Bodhisattva saw a hungry tigress. The tigress was so hungry that she was going to eat her own cubs. This act of the tigress moved Bodhisattva and he decided to offer, himself as food to the tigress. He also knew that his disciple will not allow him, hence he requested Ajita to go to their cottage and get some food. As soon Ajita left, Bodhisattva stood in front of the Tigress. The Tigress being hungry tore the Bodhisattva into pieces, and along with her cubs had a great feast. When Akita returned with food, he was shocked to see his master’s blood stained clothes lying aside, and cried his heart out. He was shocked and moved. He returned to his quarters and started to narrate how his master sacrificed his life due to compassion. From that day onwards Ajita started to live a life with full of compassion and charity.

Source: 365 Jataka Tales- Om Books International

Ninurta the rain deity

Ninurta the rain deity
He was an agricultral and rain deity. He was one of the 'young god' who was associated with wild storms and martial prowess. In the mythological text"Splendid storm king" during the begining of time people did not follow to feed themselves.It is said that Ninurta defeated a demon. He also made a giant stone dyke and diverted the flow of the river Tigris from flowing eastwards. The river flows through the remains of his slain enemy.

Legend of Little Statesmanly

Legend of Little Statesmanly

A man named Statesmanly lived in a country called Vietnam. His stature was dwarf like not more than the size of a thumb. Even though he was small, he was an intelligent man. Hence the king of the land offered him a ministerial post in his kingdom. Suddenly a dispute arose between China and Vietnam and the king did not know how to solve the matter. So he sent Statesmanly to China to settle the matter. Accordingly Statesmanly went to China, but as soon he reached China people started to make fun of his built. They started to call me as a dwarf. Statesmanly did not bother to the comments he received and went ahead to meet the Chinese Emperor. The Emperor, who was seated in a dragon throne, was surprised to see a man of this size and remarked how a tiny man would be able to solve this big problem. To this Statesmanly replied that his king would send big men to solve big problems and small persons to solve small problems. Statesmanly said, he was sent because the king felt the problem was a small matter. At once the Chinese Emperor was impressed by Statesmanly reply. in no time they both solved the problem peacefully.

Source: 365 Folk tales - Om Books International

The Superstitious Brahmin

The superstitious Brahmin

Bodhisattva now born as a Brahmin lived in the forest named Himavanta. He was invited by the king and he stayed in the royal park. In the park he saw a Brahmin who was sleeping under a tree. All of a sudden the Brahmin woke up and took of the shawl that he was wearing. He said since his shawl was gnawed by rats, it indicated bad evil omen. He decided to get rid of this shawl. He called his son and asked him to throw the shawl into the river to avoid disaster. Saying so he threw the shawl at his son, instead the shawl fell near the Bodhisattva. Bodhisattva tried to reason out with the Brahmin saying that the rats might be searching for some food and might have gnawed his shawl, and in no way did the shawl show any evil omen. Bodhisattva also went and said that wise men should not believe in these sorts of omens. But alas the Brahmin was so superstitious and would not heed to any reasoning and handed the shawl to his son and asked him to throw it into the river. The son was so obedient and he threw the shawl into the river.

Source: 365 Jataka Tales – Om Books International

The Honeybee's Sting

In Greek mythology Zeus is considered as the protector of this universe. He is also the deity of thunder and lightning.

One day, the honeybee came to Zeus and requested him to be granted a wish. Zeus agreed and asked the honeybee to tell what he wanted. To this the honeybee requested that he be given the power to inflict great pain on others. Tot his Zeus replied that this wish was a cruel one. But the honeybee was persistent and asked Zeus to fulfill his word and to grant the wish.

Zeus agreed to fulfill the honeybee’s desire but laid one condition. To this the honeybee agreed. Zeus said that before he stings a person, honeybee had to use sound judgment before he can cause any harm to others, and he can use the sting only once during his life time. It is believed even today that the honeybee stings a person only once and after which the honeybee dies.

Source: 365 Folk Tales - Om Book International

Tortoise the Birds and the Feast

Tortoise the Birds and the Feast

Not long ago the animals in a forest were pushed to hardship. Famine had set in the forest and the Tortoise was starving. All of a sudden he heard that the sky god was about to give a feast to the birds. he felt he should also attend the feast. Hence he convinced all other birds to take him with them. So the birds stuck feathers to his arms so that he could also fly. Tortoise was so happy to wear the feathers and he requested the birds to call him on his new appearance. To this the birds agreed. The sky god was to happy to receive his guests and laid a grand spread for all the birds. As soon as he saw the food, the Tortoise became greedy and immediately he told the birds that the entire food was for him and he would not allow the birds to even touch the food. The birds remained silent and watched the Tortoise eat up all the food. They felt cheated and wanted to teach the Tortoise a lesson. They went to the Tortoise and invited him for the feast that was to be held in the land. So when all of the birds and the Tortoise reached the place, the head among the birds announced that no one will eat if they had dirty claws. So the Tortoise went to a nearby pond to clean himself. After washing himself the Tortoise reached to the spot but noticed that while walking back his limbs became dirty> He tried many times but was not able to keep his limbs from becoming dirty. The birds began to mock at him and said please watch us how we eat the food. The birds started to laugh at the plight of the Tortoise.

Source: 365 Folk Tales – Om Book International.

The Last Wish

The Last Wish

This story takes us to the times of king Krishnadevaraja. During that time the Brahmins in his court were greedy. Hence to check on them the king said that his dying mother’s last wish was to eat a mango. Hence he requested the Brahmins if there was any way to get the mangoes as the mangoes were not available [off season]. He wanted them urgently so that his mother’s soul could rest in peace. One of the Brahmins said, it would be great if the king made 108 mangoes of pure gold and offer it to the Brahmins. As usual Tenalirama, the witty minister of the king decided to teach the Brahmins a lesson. During the feast held to honor the king’s mother, Tenalirama gave instructions to the servants to place red hot iron rods on to the Brahmins feet. The king was astonished and asked Tenalirama the reason behind this deed. At once Tenalirama said since the late mother was suffering from arthritis and made a request before dying, that her feet to be touched with red hot iron. Since he was not able to fulfill her last wish, he decided to this to the Brahmins so that her soul could rest in peace. His explanation was if the brahmins were given golden mangoes to keep the mother’s soul in peace, she could also get comfort when the red hot iron rods touch the Brahmins feet. To this reply the king had a hearty laugh and the heads of the brahmins bowed in shame. This shows the clever logic that Tenalirama used.

Source: Om Books International

The Legend of the Dipper

The Legend of the Dipper

Long time ago, a little girl and her mother lived in a small cottage in the woods. They were poor. Suddenly her mother fell ill. As water was not there in the house, the little girl had to go out and fetch water for her mother.

After taking the water in a dipper, she started to walk back home. While she was walking, she met a dog which was thirsty. Knowing fully well that there was not much water in the dipper, she poured some water into the mouth of the dog.

Lo! All of a sudden the wooden dipper turned into a silver dipper and water was full. As she was too tired, she did not see the change. While walking further down, the girl met a stranger who was also thirsty. She poured some water into man’s lip. This time the dipper changed to gold.

Finally the poor girl reached home and quenched her mother’s thirst. After drinking the water, her mother gained strength and she became strong. This time the dipper was filled with precious stones like diamonds and sparkling jewels.

The girl’s mother was happy, as she felt all their problems were solved and they were no longer poor.

Source: 365 Folk Tales – Om Books International

Cats and Rats

Cats and Rats

A long time ago, there lived a king who had a very faithful cat for a house keeper and a rat for a houseboy. Now the rat fell in love with one of the servant girls. But being very poor, he could not give her any presents.

He thought of an idea. Every night, he entered the king’s store through a small hole in the roof. He took corn and pears from there and gave them to his sweetheart.

At the end of the month, the cat had to give an account of the things in the store. When the king saw so much corn and pears missing, he demanded an explanation from the cat.

The cat was unable to explain. That evening her friend told her what the rat had been doing.

When the king was informed about this, he ordered for the servant girl to be put behind bars. As for the rat, he was given to the cat and you can guess what the cat did. Since then, cats and rats are enemies.

Source: 365 Folk Tales - Om Books International

The Sunflower

The Sunflower
Clytie was a beautiful sea nymph. She had gorgeous yellow curls and a fine pink complexion. All the sea animals loved Clytie for her warm and friendly. One sunny morning when Clytie woke up, she heard her friend, Serena the mermaid sing a melodious song about a golden light. “A golden light?” asked Clytie. “Yes, it’s the most radiant light and it spreads its warmth across the whole universe,” replied Serena. “I want to see the light!” said Clytie. Serena and Clytie swam to the surface. “Look, it’s here high up in the sky!” said a thrilled Serena as she pointed to the big golden sun. Clytie stood gazing at the dazzling sun and refused to go home. As days passed, her long golden tresses slowly changed to bright yellow petals and her dainty feet into nimble roots. Clytie had become a sunflower! To this day the sunflower gazes at the sun high up in the sky and receives its golden warmth.

Source: 365 Folk Tales - OmBooks International

The Golden Fish

The Golden Fish

An old fisherman and his wife lived in a small hut beside the seaside. They were very poor and hardly had enough to eat. One day the fisherman caught a little golden fish. “Spare me and I’ll do whatever you want,” said the fish in a human voice. The fisherman took pity and let it go. When he reached home empty handed, his wife was angry and shouted, “Just go and get some food and fish.” The fisherman did as he was told. The fish gave him food everyday. Soon, the fisherman became very rich. Days passed and his wife became greedier. Not satisfied with their wealth, she wanted to become a queen. The magical fish granted this wish too. But the fisherman’s wife ill-treated him. At last when she desired to become the ruler of the seas, the sea water became black and the golden fish disappeared forever and along with it the palace, the guards and all the servants vanished. Once again the old man and his wife became poor.

Source: 365 Folk tales - Om Books International

The shepherd's Mistake

The Shepherd’s Mistake
A shepherd took out his sheep to graze every morning. He would sit and watch while the sheep fed on the fresh grass. One day, while the sheep were grazing, the shepherd saw a wolf eyeing his sheep from a distance. At first, the shepherd was afraid lest the wolf would harm his flock. But the wolf did not try to attack the sheep. Instead, he quietly followed the sheep home. Gradually, the shepherd’s fear of the wolf subsided. One day, the shepherd was urgently called home. Thinking that his sheep would be safe with the wolf, he left them in the wolf’s care. But when he returned, he was dismayed to find that the wolf had eaten up most of the sheep. Sitting down with his hands on his head, the shepherd moaned, “It was my fault. I was foolish to trust a wolf to guard my sheep.”

Source: 365 Folk Tales - Om Books International

The Legend of the First Rainbow

The Legend of the First Rainbow

A farmer had a beautiful garden full of golden flowers. One day, he built a wall around his garden but when he woke up in the morning, he was puzzled to see that the wall had crumbled down. He built the wall again but alas! Next morning, the wall was in shambles again. This continued for many days. Tired of building the wall over and over again, one day, the farmer decided to stay awake and catch the culprit. That night, he saw three fairies come from heaven and knock down his wall. Two of the fairies flew away when they saw the farmer but the third couldn’t escape because the farmer hid her magic wings. After a few days, the farmer married the fairy and soon they had a son. The farmer loved the fairy and was very happy. One day, when the farmer was away, the fairy found her magic wings in a small, dark cupboard in the house. She was overjoyed. She wore them and went back to heaven with her little son. The farmer was very sad and wept for his wife and son. The gods took pity on the farmer’s condition and made a rainbow so that he could climb up the sky to meet his family whenever he wanted.


Source: 365 Folk Tales – Om Books International