Yesha Desai

One day a she-wolf had a craving to eat fresh fish-meat. The wolf did not know how to swim, but still he went down to the river, hoping to get some fish-meat for his mate.When the wolf reached the river, he saw two otters standing on the bank, also looking for fish. Soon one of the otters spotted a big fish in the water. He swiftly jumped into the river and caught the fish by its head. But the fish was very strong and was struggling continuously to get out of the otter’s hold. Fearing that he might lose the fish, he called out to his friend for help. The other otter also jumped into the river and held the fish tightly from the tail. Together, they were able to bring the fish to land.The first otter said, “This fish is good enough for both of us! Let us divide the fish into two parts.”“I want the half with the head on,” said one.“You cannot have that half. That is mine,” said the other. “You can take the tail.”The wolf heard the otters arguing over the division of fish and a brilliant idea struck him. He went up to the otters and offered his help to settle the dispute. There was no other way of ending the quarrel, so the otters also readily agreed. The wolf cut off the head and gave it to the first otter as he had caught the fish by the head. Then he severed the tail of the fish and gave it to the second otter as he had caught the fish by the tail. Both the otters were anxiously waiting to find out how the wolf would divide the rest of the fish, just then, quick as the lightning, the cunning wolf quickly ran away with the body of the fish.The otters realized that they had been fooled by the wolf. They were full of remorse and said, “If only we had not been greedy and fought with each other, we could have enjoyed a scrumptious meal.”The wolf was very pleased with himself for fooling the two otters and happily went home with the fish-meat. Moral:You must be very clever with how you deal with people so you are not fooled.

This is a classic story from Jataka tales.This is a story of wolf and otter.Morals(s) of the story: foolishness

The otters and the wolf

Ravina Sewani

King Vikram was given the duty of bringing Betal to a tantric. Betal traditionally means ‘evil spirit’. Each time Vikram tried to capture Betal, it told him a story that ended with a riddle. If Vikram could not answer the question correctly, Betal agreed to remain in captivity. But, if the king knew the answer and still kept quiet, his head would burst into a thousand pieces. And if King Vikram spoke, Betal would escape and return to his tree.The King of Adhak tried to help all his subjects to the best of his abilities. One day, an old man came to his court with his two blind sons.“O mighty King, I feel my two sons will be a great help to you in your court. Though they are blind, they are gifted with their other senses. One son is an expert judge of horses, while the other can test any kind of jewel for you.”The King was intrigued and agreed to employ the two young men in his court. A week later, a horse seller came to the court to sell to the King a horse he claimed was very well-behaved. The blind son came forward and began to smell the horse, much to the confusion of the court. When he finished, he said, “This horse will throw off any rider who is not his owner. I sense it.”When a rider from the King’s stables tried to ride the horse, it threw him off and galloped away. The horse seller left the court, feeling ashamed.A few days later, a jeweller came to the court of the King, bringing him the largest diamond the court had ever seen. The second son was called to examine the jewel and took it in his hands. Soon after he had touched it, he dissuaded the King from buying it, saying, “Your Majesty, the jewel has been inauspicious for those who have worn it previously and if you buy it, it could prove dangerous to your well-being.”And with that, the King asked the jeweler to leave his court. News arrived later that a King from the neighbouring kingdom had bought the diamond and fallen gravely ill soon after.The old man returned months later to visit his sons. While he was in court, the King asked him, “I have seen the skills of both your sons, but what is your skill?”The old man replied, “I can tell the reality of a man and yours is that you are the son of a thief.”The King was enraged that the old man had exposed his truth and he and his two sons were banished from his court.Betal then asked King Vikramaditya, “Who was to blame for the banishment of the three men?”King Vikramaditya replied, “It was the King. Though he was offended by the words of the old man, he should have remembered that it is not his roots that defined him, but who he is today.”Hearing those words, Betal flew back to his peepal tree. Moral:It is never too late to change for the good. Do not let your past define you. Develop good and just moral values to live a better life.

This is a classics story from Vikram betal.

The Unfair King

Once upon a time, two friends were walking through the forest. They knew that anything dangerous can happen to them at any time in the forest. So they promised each other that they would remain united in any case of danger.Suddenly, they saw a large bear approaching them. One of the friends at once climbed a nearby tree. But the other one did not know how to climb. So being led by his common sense, he lay down on the ground breathless, pretending to be a dead man.The bear came near the man lying on the ground. It smelt in his ears, and slowly left the place because the bears do not touch the dead creatures. Now the friend on the tree came down and asked his friend on the ground, "Friend, what did the bear tell you into your ears? "The other friend replied, "The bear advised me not to believe a false friend." Moral:A friend in need is a friend indeed. And if you commit to be with your friend, you should keep the promise.

This is a story of bear and friend.Moral(s) of the story: trust

Two Friends and the Bear

There was once a little grey planet that was very sad. The people living there hadn't looked after it, despite them having all the inventions and space ships you could ever need. They had contaminated the whole countryside so much with rubbish and pollution that there were no plants or animals left.One day, a little boy was walking on the planet, when he passed a cave and noticed a small red flower inside. The flower was very sick - almost dying - so the boy carefully dug up the flower, with roots, soil and everything. Then, he started looking for a place where he could look after it. He searched all over the planet, but everywhere was so contaminated that there was no place the flower could possibly live in. Then he looked up at the sky and noticed the moon. It seemed to the boy that maybe the plant could survive there.So the little boy put on his astronaut suit, and climbed into a space ship. He put the little red flower in the back, and off they went to the moon.Far away from all that pollution - and with the boy visiting it every day to tend it - the flower started to grow. The flower was so well cared for, that it had soon germinated, giving birth to others, and these other flowers spread onto other flowers. Before long, the whole moon was completely covered with flowers.That's why, whenever the little boy's flowers open up, for a few minutes the moon takes on a soft red sheen, like a warning light. Maybe it's telling us that if you don't look after your planet, a day will come when flowers will only be able to grow on the moon. Moral:Earth is the only planet we have. We keep earth happy, earth keeps us happy in turn. Save environment.

This is a story of Moon, planet, space ship and flower.Moral(s) of the story: carelessness

The Red Moon

Shina Utavani

There was once a tennis ball. He was very lonely as he could not find his home. The lonely ball was very sad. The ball knew there were many balls just like him so he decided to search more balls that looked like him. He thought that it would be easy for him to find his home if he met a tennis ball.At first, he went to a basketball court and there he saw a huge ball. He knew that this was not his home. The ball was very big and was brown. The ball thought to himself, “This is not my home, I should look somewhere else”. So off he went.The lonely ball went ahead to search his home. Next, he went to a baseball field. The tennis ball saw a ball lying on the field. The ball was the same size as him but was white. The tennis ball thought, “I am yellow and the ball lying on the ground is white.” He knew it was not his home. He decided to look somewhere else.The ball then went to a football field. He saw the ball and was again disappointed. “This is not my home; the ball does not look like me,” he said. He was tired. It was evening already and the sun was about to set. The lonely ball could not find his home. But he decided to again go somewhere else. He thought he would find his home one day. He said to himself, “I can do it. I have to look somewhere else.” The lonely ball did not lose hope and decided to try again.Next, he went to a badminton court. The place was very weird for him because shuttlecocks were lying in the court instead of balls. But the rackets looked familiar to him and he thought that he was closer to his home. He decided to look in different courts.He went to a court next to it and saw balls that looked just like him. He saw rackets lying on the floor. He was happy and filled with joy. He had finally found his home! The lonely tennis ball was no longer lonely. He was back home. The ball made some new friends and played with them. They called him Freddie. Freddie was very happy and satisfied. He happily played tennis with his friends. Moral:Never lose hope.

This is a story of ball, house and tennis.Moral(s) of the story: hope

A Lonely Tennis Ball

A long time ago, there was a king who reigned over a large empire. The king was very noble and kind but his son was rude, ill-mannered and bad-tempered. The king tried all kinds of ways to reform his son. The ministers, courtiers and other important and learned people of the kingdom also tried to make the prince change his ways but to no avail. They tried to make the prince realize that his bad behaviour could create a bad impression on the public, but the prince was never willing to listen to any well-meant advice. One day, while the king was taking a walk in his palace garden, he saw a sage pass by. There was a radiant glow on the sage’s face and a confidence in his gait that made the king infer that the sage must be a very learned person full of divine knowledge. The king sent a messenger to invite the sage to his palace. The sage accepted the invitation and was welcomed warmly by the king. When the king found out that the sage was looking for a place to live in, he offered to make a hermitage in the palace for the sage. The sage accepted the king’s offer and started residing in the hermitage in the palace.One day, while the king was talking to the sage, he said, “Dear Sir, it must have come to your knowledge by now that I have a son on whose account I am constantly worried. He is very ill-mannered and bad-tempered. The public of my kingdom considers him unworthy of being a prince. I’m afraid they won’t accept him as their king after me. Please help me, Sir. You are wise; you can teach my son to mend his ways.” The sage assured the king that he would do something to set things right.Next day, the sage asked the prince to come for a walk with him in the palace garden. There, he pointed towards a little plant and said, “Eat a leaf of this plant and tell me how the taste is.” The prince plucked a leaf of the plant and put it in his mouth. As soon as he tasted it, he spat it out on the ground in disgust. “It’s bitter! It must be some poisonous seedling. It could prove to be dangerous to the health of many people if it grows. So, it should not be allowed to grow into a big tree.” Saying this, the prince pulled the plant out of the ground and tore it up.The sage picked up the plant that the prince had destroyed and said, “The way that you reacted towards this plant today, one day the people of your kingdom may react towards you in the same way. They think that you are a wicked prince, so they may not allow you to become their king and may exile you. It is for your own good that you must mend your ways and try to develop a sense of sympathy, compassion and kind-heartedness towards all your fellow beings.”The prince learnt his lesson. He understood the message that the sage was trying to convey through the example of the plant. From that day forth, the prince tried to change his rude and ill-mannered behaviour and became humble and kind. The king was very pleased to see a change in his son and expressed his gratitude to the sage. Moral:All beings deserve respect, empathy, and compassion.

This is a classic story from panchtantra.This is a story of king and prince.Moral(s) of the story: compassion, empathy and respect

The prince and the seedling

Chetak was the most well groomed, obedient and good looking horse in the locality. His owner Ram Singh was extremely proud of him. He took very good care of Chetak and never missed a chance to show him off in front of his neighbours and associates. “There goes my young boy,” exclaimed Ram Singh each time he opened the gate to Chetak’s stable. Chetak would immediately come out galloping and would run around the whole ground. His sparkling eyes, light brown mane and shiny brown coat looked very attractive.Ram Singh would then ride him all around the farm. The crowd would look at them admiringly and he would feel extremely proud of Chetak. “Whenever I ride him, it’s like I am flying in the air,” said Ram Singh gladly.Chetak’s old groom had to quit for some reason, so Ram Singh hired a new groom for him. Ram Singh loved Chetak to pieces, so he hired the best groom in the town to take care of Chetak. Baloo, the new groom was very famous and supposedly all the horses groomed by him always ended up looking way better than they had ever done before. Chetak too became very handsome and even more attractive under Baloo’s grooming.Early every morning, Baloo would start with his grooming process. He would bathe Chetak carefully and comb his tails and brush his coat till it started shining. Hours passed this way and Chetak looked well groomed every day.But for some reason, Chetak was not happy. His beautiful eyes lost their sparkle and he became very inactive. Earlier, he would jump and gallop out of his stable as soon as the door was open. However, these days he almost had to be coaxed to get up and run. “What exactly is wrong with him?” thought the worried owner, and decided to find out for himself.One day, he went inside Chetak’s stable to investigate the reason behind the drastic change that had came upon his most loved companion. While walking through the stable, Ram Singh suddenly stumbled upon a stack full of oats. He was taken by surprise as those oats were meant for Chetak. Ram Singh had instructed Baloo strictly to feed them to Chetak thrice a day. Later, he found out that Baloo, instead of feeding Chetak with the oats, was actually saving them to sell them off at a lower price in the market.Ram Singh got very angry and asked Baloo, “Why did you keep the oats aside, while they are meant to be fed to Chetak?” Baloo was absolutely unrepentant and replied, “So what? He does not need to eat that much. Moreover, I do everything possible to make him look good—I rub oil on him and brush his coat to make him look this nice.”Ram Singh lost his temper. He shouted, “I appointed you to take care of him and keep him in good condition. I don’t care if you are grooming him nicely when he is starved and unhappy.” Saying this, Ram Singh dismissed Baloo immediately and started taking care of Chetak personally. Moral:All that glitters is not gold. Sometimes, what our eyes see is not the reality.

This is a classic story from panchtantra.This is a story of horse.

The groomed horse

Pallavi Hota

The Ramayan is an ancient Sanskrit epic written by the famous sage Valmiki. It describes Lord Rama's effort to rescue Sita from the demon king Ravana. It also describes the challenges faced by Lord Rama, Laxaman, and Sita when they were exiled from the kingdom for 14 years. Following is a story from ìThe Ramayanaî.Great rejoicing and festivities followed the return of Sri Rama to Ayodhya and his crowning as the King. Lord Rama distributed gifts to all the Vanaras who had served as warriors in his army.&nbsp;Sri Rama noticed his fervent devotee, Hanumanji and asked, ìOh mighty hero how am I to compensate you for all you have done for me and my family?î Many would have wanted wealth, name or fame, approbation or recognition or VIP line in return for their services. But Sri Hanuman was above all these, and said, ìI desire nothing, Prabhu.î Then, Maa Sita removed a valuable necklace of pearls from her neck and offered it to the humble Sri Hanuman.Sri Hanuman received the necklace with great respect from Maa Sita, but began to break the pearls with his teeth. Sita, and other ministers who were sitting in the council hall, were quite astonished at this queer act of Sri Hanuman. Some wondered why the noble and great warrior Sri Hanuman was behaving like this. Maa Sita asked Hanuman, ìOh mighty Hero! What are you doing?î Sri Hanuman said, ìOh venerable Mother! It is the most valuable necklace, indeed, as it has come to me through your holy hand, but I want to find out whether any of the pearls contain Lord Rama's name. I do not keep a thing devoid of him. I do not find him in any of the pearls.îAt this, one of the assembly members ironically remarked, ìYou would not wear anything that does not have the name of Rama. Well, you are wearing your body. You are carrying it about with you. Prove to us that you have the name in it.î Hanuman laughed aloud, he said, ìI shall prove, see.î Sri Hanuman then tore his chest open with his mighty hands and Lord Sri Rama and Maa Sita were seated in his heart. Lord Rama came down the throne and embraced Hanuman with his blessings.

This is a story of Hanuman, Ram and Sita.

Hanuman and the pearl necklace

Swami Vivekananda was born in a rich noble family by the name of Narendranath Dutta. Despite his parents push towards his noble and family duties, Narendranath was very much drawn towards spirituality and religion. He went away from home and was wandering around when he met Ramakrishna Paramhans who was a very well renowned saint. He listened to Ramakrishna Paramhans's ideology and was very much inspired by him. He was a very devoted disciple of the saint and learned a lot from him. He took the name of Swami Vivekanand and set off to spread the word of Ramakrishna. As he was growing old, the saint handed the responsibility of his other disciples to Swami Vivekanand. After his death, all his disciples united and founded the Ramakrishna Mission. The Ramkrishna mission's main goal is to provide help to whoever needs it.&nbsp; The mission has multiple schools of their own to provide quality education for underprivileged and medicines for the poor.

This is a story of how Ramakrishna Mission was cofounded by Swami Vivekananda. This mission provides medical and educational relief programs.

apostles stories

Stories help in improving a child's imagination. Here are a few interesting ones for you to narrate to your child.