Do you remember the stories that you read as a child? Moral stories can needn’t be serious, but they can be funny at the same time help your child learn something. We have compiled a list of 07 short moral stories that are inspirational, from India, and from around the world. <h3>1. The Boy Who Cried, Wolf</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/the_boy_who_cried%2C_wolf.webp_image_1638188646554.webp" width="359">There was a young boy whose father, a farmer, had asked him to take their herd of sheep grazing every day.One day, the boy was extremely bored as he watched over the sheep and so he cried: “Wolf! Wolf!”On hearing his cries, the villagers rushed to help him chase the wolf away and save the sheep.When they saw the grinning boy and realised he had cried wolf for his amusement, they scolded him and told him to not cry wolf!The next day, the boy cried out that the wolf was there. The villagers came, scolded him again, and left.Later that same day, a wolf came and terrorized the sheep.The boy cried, “Wolf! Wolf! Please help me.”But, the villagers assumed that he was pulling a silly prank again and did not come to his rescue. The sheep ran away and the boy cried.Moral of the story: Don’t lie or engage in foolish pranks, for no one will believe a liar even when he is telling the truth! <h3>2. The Golden Touch Of Midas</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/the_golden_touch_of_midas.jpg_image_1638188804006.jpg" width="365">A long time ago, there lived a king in Greece named Midas.He was extremely wealthy and had all the gold he could ever need. He also had a daughter whom he loved very much.One day, Midas saw a Satyr (an angel) who was stuck and was in trouble. Midas helped the Satyr and asked for his wish to be granted in return.The Satyr agreed and Midas wished for everything he touched to be turned to gold. His wish was granted.Extremely excited, Midas went home to his wife and daughter touching pebbles, rocks, and plants on the way, which turned into gold.As his daughter hugged him, she turned into a golden statue.Having learnt his lesson, Midas begged the Satyr to reverse the spell who granted that everything would go back to their original state.Moral of the story: Stay content and grateful for what you have. Greed will not get you anywhere. <h3>3. The Foolish Thief</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/the_foolish_thief.jpg_image_1638188856227.jpg" width="362">Once, a wealthy merchant came to King Akbar’s court to seek help from Birbal. He suspected that one of his servants had robbed him.On hearing this, Birbal thought of a clever plan and summoned the merchant’s servants.He gave each servant a stick of the same length. He told them that the thief’s stick would grow two inches by the next day.The next day, Birbal summoned the servants again. He noticed that a servant’s stick was two inches shorter than the others.He knew who the thief was.The foolish thief had cut the stick shorter by two inches as he thought it would grow two inches. Thus, proving his guilt.Moral of the story: Truth and justice will always prevail. <h3>4. Two Frogs With The Same Problem</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/two_frogs_with_the_same_problem.png_image_1638188962564.png" width="346">Once, a group of frogs was roaming around the forest in search of water. Suddenly, two frogs in the group accidentally fell into a deep pit.The other frogs worried about their friends in the pit.Seeing how deep the pit was, they told the two frogs that there was no way they could escape the deep pit and that there was no point in trying.They continued to constantly discourage them as the two frogs tried to jump out of the pit. But keep falling back.Soon, one of the two frogs started to believe the other frogs — that they’ll never be able to escape the pit and eventually died after giving up.The other frog keeps trying and eventually jumps so high that he escapes the pit. The other frogs were shocked at this and wondered how he did it.The difference was that the second frog was deaf and couldn’t hear the discouragement of the group. He simply thought they were cheering him on!Moral of the story: People’s opinion of you will affect you, only if you believe it to be so. It’s better to believe in yourself. <h3>5. The Milkmaid and Her Pail</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/the_milkmaid_and_her_pail.jpg_image_1638189037353.jpg" width="348">There was once a milkmaid named Patty.She milked her cow and carried the two pails of milk she fetched on a stick and set out to sell the milk at the market.As she was walking to the market, she began to daydream about what she would do with the money she fo for the milk.She thought of buying a hen and selling its eggs and she planned on becoming wealthy.She dreamt of buying a cake, a basket of strawberries, a fancy dress, and even a new house with the money she would make selling the eggs and the milk!In her excitement, she forgot about the pails she was carrying and began to skip.Suddenly, she realised that the milk was spilling down and when she checked her pails, they were empty.Moral of the story: Don’t count your chickens before they hatch! It is important to focus on the process of achieving success and not just success alone. <h3>6. The Elephant Circus</h3><img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/elepahnt_circus.jpg_image_1638189224771.jpg" width="361">Once upon a time in a circus, five elephants performed circus tricks. They were kept tied up with weak rope that they could’ve easily escaped, but did not.One day, a man visiting the circus asked the ringmaster: “Why haven’t these elephants broken the rope and run away?”The ringmaster replied: “From when they were young, the elephants were made to believe that they were not strong enough to break the ropes and escape.”It was because of this belief that they did not even try to break the ropes now.Moral of the story: Don’t give in to the limitations of society. Believe that you can achieve everything you want to!<h3> </h3>7. The Elephants And The Mice<img src="https://bee-assets-production.s3.amazonaws.com/image/1_xvfat_v8xumqnkx7-3jcka.png_image_1638189285226.png" width="350">In an earthquake-hit village abandoned by humans, a colony of mice lived. Near the village was a lake, which was used by a herd of elephants.The elephants would have to cross the village to go to the lake. Thus, one day, as they walked through, they trampled a lot of mice.The leader of the mice met with the elephants and requested them to take a different route to the lake. He promised them that their favour would be returned in the time of their need.The elephants laughed. How could such small mice help these large elephants in any way? But then, they agreed to take a different route.Not so long after, the mice heard that hunters had caught the herd of elephants and were tied in nets.Immediately, they rush to rescue the elephants. They gnawed through the nets and ropes with their sharp teeth.The leader of the elephants repeatedly thanked the mice for their help!Moral of the story: A friend in need is a friend indeed. Make sure you help your friends out whenever they need it. They should always be able to count on you. That’s all folks!We hope children like these short yet interesting stories with morals that we have read growing up!There are more and more stories with morals on <a href="https://www.beeparenting.com/s/moral-stories" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Bee Stories</a>.

Short stories with moral values will teach your children some important lessons which they will remember always.

07 Must Read Short Moral Stories For Children

Short stories with moral values will teach your children some important lessons which they will remember always.

Pallavi Hota

Mahabharata is an ancient Indian epic about the brothers, Pandavas and kauravas. It describes the battle between them in the Kurukshetra war for the throne of Hastinapura. It is an epic tale that combines war, religion, philosophy and Hindu history. Following is a story from ìThe Mahabharata.It was definite that the Mahabharata war would take place once all the peace trials failed. The kings from various lands had joined the Pandavas side or Kauravas side according to their inclination. The Pandavas went and asked the king of Udupi, which side he would join. The Udupi king said that he would not join any side, but he would undertake the job of feeding the soldiers on both sides.After the day's battle was over, the soldiers of both sides would sit together and take their food. During the meal, Sri Krishna would sit by the side of Yudhishtra Maharaj. The Udupi king would personally serve both of them. The Udupi king would prepare, just the right amount of food required by the survivors everyday. He seemed to know how many soldiers would die each day.One day, the Pandavas went into the kitchen and asked the cooks how much food was in excess or shortage. The cooks replied, Each day the Udupi King fixes the amount of food to be prepared for feeding the exact number of surviving soldiers. Our king knows how many soldiers are going to die each day. So deducting that number, he orders food to be prepared for the surviving soldiers.î So, the Pandavas went to the king of Udupi and asked him, ìHow do you know exactly how many soldiers will die each day?The Udupi king replied, ìIt is I, who serves pudding to Sri Krishna. I attentively observe how many peanuts he eats out of the pudding. From that I calculate how many soldiers are going to die the next day. Each peanut stands for so many thousand soldiers fated to die. Sri Krishna informs me by eating that many peanuts. In this way, I know how much food I must prepare, considering the number of soldiers who would die the next day.The Pandavas then went and prayed to Krishna, ìYour will decides how many are supposed to die each day in the battle. Our fighting is only a show.

Pudding and peanuts for Krishna

Shina Utavani

Mahabharata is an ancient Indian epic about the brothers, Pandavas and kauravas. It describes the battle between them in the Kurukshetra war for the throne of Hastinapura. It is an epic tale that combines war, religion, philosophy and Hindu history. Following is a story from “The Mahabharata” which describes the reason why we call Karna ‘Danveer’Karna was on his death bed amidst the battlefield and was gasping for breath in his last moments. Lord Krishna was confused about Karna’s generosity and wanted to check it. He went to Karna disguised as a beggar. Karna was on his death bed and seeing the beggar asked him what he needed. Lord Krishna as a beggar said, “Lord, I need some gold for my daughter’s marriage”. Karna showed his helplessness to the beggar and said, “I am sorry but I have nothing to give you as I am on my death bed. I feel worse that I am not able to give you anything. But you can ask gold from my wife in Angadesh.” Listening to this the beggar said, “I cannot travel so far for gold, Lord. I thought you are kind and generous and would help me.”Karna felt very bad and decided to give him the golden tooth he had. Karna took a stone and broke his golden teeth. The tooth was bleeding with blood and Karna did not want to give blood covered teeth to the beggar. He was injured badly and could not move. He took his arrow and bowed it towards the sky. The next moment rain broke out and then he gave the cleaned gold teeth to the beggar. Lord Krishna was shocked to see Karna’s sacrifice. He was proved that there was no one as generous and kind as Karna. Lord Krishna came into his real form and said, “You will live in the hearts of people. You will be remembered for your qualities Daan (Donation) and Veer (Heroic). You will be remembered as ‘Danveer.”That is how Karna got his name ‘Danveer”.

This is a story of Karan and Krishna.Moral(s) of the story: sacrifice

Karna as ‘Danveer’

Yesha Desai

One day a lion was resting outside his cave, when a wolf happened to come there. The wolf thought that it would be a nice idea to offer his services to the lion and get some food to eat in return. He approached the lion and threw himself at the lion’s feet. He begged the lion to let him be his servant and give him just a small share from his kill in return.The lion agreed and instructed the wolf, “Each day you must climb the top of the hill near my cave and as soon as you see any animal coming this side, you must say at the top of your voice, “Great lion, come forward in all thy might. Your prey is in sight!” On hearing your call, I will come and kill the animal. I will first eat it myself and then give a small portion of the meat to you as well.”From that day onwards, the wolf started looking out for possible prey for the lion while standing on the nearby hill top. Whenever the lion heard the wolf’s call, he used to go and kill the beast and then give a small share of its meat to the wolf also.Courtesy the lion, the wolf was having a good time feasting on fine meat. As days went past, the wolf grew bigger and stronger and started feeling proud of his great size and strength. He became so overconfident that he started thinking of killing an elephant on his own.So, one day the wolf went to the lion, and said, “Great lion, I think I have also become very strong and powerful being in your company. I wish to switch places with you for one day and make a kill on my own. I intend to kill an elephant, so would you please go to the top of the hill to look out for an elephant? Then when you see one coming this side, say, “Great wolf, come forward in all thy might. Your prey is in sight.”The lion was amused at the foolish wolf’s bold idea. As a good master, he tried to advise him, “O Wolf, the elephants can only be killed by lions. Your plan is very ambitious and you may get killed while trying to kill the elephant.” The lion tried his best to drill sense in the wolf but, he did not listen. Finally, the lion consented to do as the wolf said. He climbed up the hill and when he saw an elephant coming towards the den, he cried out loud, “Great wolf, come forward in all thy might. Your prey is in sight.”Out came the wolf, running as fast as he could and jumped upon the back of the elephant to dig his teeth in its neck. But, he missed his aim, and fell down at the elephant’s feet. The elephant raised his right foot and killed the wolf.Seeing all this, the lion said, “O Foolish wolf! You will no more come forth in your might. May your soul rest in peace.” Moral:There is a difference between courage and foolhardy. One must understand it.

This is a classic story from Jataka tales.This is a story of elephant, lion and wolf.Moral(s) of the story: courage and foolishness

The foolhardy wolf

There was once a boy named Peter who lived with his grandfather. He was six years old. Their house was situated near a forest. His grandfather had a cat named Ivan and a duck named Sonya. One morning, Peter went for a walk near his house. Little peter saw the forest and decided to go on a hunt in the forest.His grandfather never allowed peter to go into the forest. So, peter decided to go when his grandfather was asleep. He slipped out from his house at night. He was very happy to finally go for a hunt. Sonya and Ivan also joined him to protect him. Peter took his popgun and went for a journey to the forest. Peter heard about a wolf that lived in the forest who used to tease people. Peter decided to hunt the wolf so the people could live without fear.As soon as they reached the forest, a little bird named Sasha saw Sonya coming towards the lake. The bird asked Sonya, “Are you a bird? What kind of bird you are and can you even fly?”. Sonya became a little nervous and said, “What kind of bird you are? Can you even swim?” Listening to this Sasha replied, “Birds can never swim.” Sonya said, “Yes, they can” and she jumped into the lake to show the bird that she can swim. The little bird was amazed.Back at home, the grandfather was awake and saw that the peter’s room was empty. Ivan and Sonya were also not there at home. The grandfather knew Peter would have gone to the forest. The grandfather ran towards the forest and saw peter in the forest. The grandfather said peter to come back home with him. Peter denied. As they were arguing, suddenly they saw the wolf coming towards them. The grandfather, peter and Ivan hid behind the tree. But the duck was still in the water. Peter shouted at Sonya and asked him to hide. But the duck was very scared and jumped out of the water. The duck was out of the water but very near to the wolf. As soon as Peter saw the duck, he ran towards the wolf to catch him. Peter had a rope and he went towards the wolf with the rope in his hand. The little bird helped peter to tie the rope around the wolf’s head. They were able to catch the wolf. The duck did not know what was happening so he hid under the tree.Peter and his grandfather took the wolf towards the zoo. Little Bird and Ivan also left for the zoo with them. But Sonya was still in the forest. Peter and his grandfather were so happy that they forgot about the duck. When they were returning from the zoo, they realized that Sonya was not with them. The grandfather and peter felt very bad. They all were very sad and went back to him. As they reached home, they heard the voice, “Quack, Quack”. Peter was surprised hearing the voice and saw Sonya hiding behind the tree. They all were very happy that Sonya was alive and safe.Peter was brave and everyone considered him a hero as he saved everyone from the Wolf. They all lived happily ever after.

This is a story of cat, forest, swan and wolf.Moral(s) of the story: bravery

Peter and the wolf

Guru Gobind Ji along with being a great warrior was also a great teacher. He taught Sikhs to meditate and also taught them to train their bodies. He was an expert in shooting.One day, Aurangzeb sent an army to surround Anandpur Sahib gurudwara where Guru and his followers were living. The army set up a camp about two miles away. Anandpur was cut off from all the food and water that was coming in.One day, two generals named Zabardast Khan and Wajir Khan were playing chess in the camp. They were not aware that Guruji was watching them from distance through a telescope. Guruji shot an arrow high into the sky from the Anandpur fortress. The arrow soared through the sky and fell into the leg of the bench on which the generals were sitting. Everyone was shocked after seeing the arrow. They thought someone was attacking them.Wajir Khan took the arrow and wondered who would dare to shoot an arrow on them. A prince who lived near Anandpur said, “I know who has shot the arrow. It has a gold arrowhead so it must be of Guru Govind Singh.” The guru always put gold on his arrows so the families of the dead will be cared for. The generals were confused as they thought if he was around them, they would have seen and captured him.The other prince said, “Guru is a very brave man. I have heard many stories of his heroism. He must have shot the arrow from the top of the fortress.” After hearing this,the soldiers started laughing they thought nobody can shoot from that far.Wajir Khan ordered to resume the game. When they sat for the game, again an arrow soared through the sky. This time it hit the same spot as the last one. Everyone freaked out.This time the arrow had a letter with it. The letter read, “This is not a miracle. This skill comes from practice. I was not trying to kill anyone. The arrow was not meant to hit anyone.”The general was shocked. He could not believe how someone can shoot from that far. Guruji’s message to them was clear, the Sikhs will never give up. The Sikhs will be kind but with that will never surrender.

This is a story of arrow and guru har Gobind.

Gobindji’s Arrow

Ravina Sewani

One day, a hungry jackal was looking for food in an old battlefield. Suddenly he heard a strange noise coming from a distance. He wondered what could be the source of that frightening noise. At first he decided to run away from there and save his life. Maybe it was a monster who was making such a loud noise. The jackal started running but then he suddenly stopped. He thought that it was unwise to run away without investigating the incident. He gathered courage and slowly walked towards the sound. When he reached very close to the sound, he hid behind a rock and peeped. The jackal saw a big drum lying near a tree. Due to a strong wind, the branches of the tree were rubbing against the drum and making that noise.The jackal had a hearty laugh at himself. He was happy to solve the mystery of the noise. He tore open the drum, thinking that perhaps there was some food inside it but was extremely disappointed to find nothing. Though the jackal did not find anything to eat inside the drum, he was happy with himself for being brave and not running away like a coward. Moral:Be brave and you shall overcome all your obstacles.

This is a classic story from panchtantra.This is a story of jackal.Moral(s) of the story: bravery

The jackal and the drum

Once there lived a pig in a farm. His name was Henry. The pig was very passionate and ambitious. The biggest ambitious of the pig was to fly like a bird. He thought if birds can fly, he can fly too. He said to himself, “Birds can fly because they have wings but humans can also fly and they do not have wings. If humans can create artificial wings, I can also do it.”An idea stuck into Henry’s mind. He imagined himself flying like a bird. Henry started collecting bird’s feathers. He used to collect feathers dropped by any bird. Soon, he had enough feathers. He thought that the feathers would help him in flying in the sky like a bird. He then started preparing for the next step of his plan.One day, one of Henry’s friends Mousey saw him doing something secretly. Mousey saw henry applying glue to something. Mousey went to henry and asked him what was he up to. Henry said that he was doing a great invention and that he will fly just like a bird. The Mousey told henry that it was not possible, but henry did not listen to him and continued with his invention.Mousey told everyone about Henry’s invention and everyone gathered to see Henry flying up to the sky. Mousey shouted, “Henry, please do not do this. You will die, you fool! I will not let you do this, Henry, stop!”. Henry shouted, “Do not stop me Mousey, go away!” and pushed Mousey away. The poor Mousey fell on the ground.Henry began to fly with his feathers. He applied the utmost force to the feathers so that he can fly. But instead of going up, he was coming down. Henry was very scared. Henry now understood why Mousey was telling him not to do so. But it was late for Henry as he was already in the sky. Henry lost all his balance and fell on the ground with a bang.Henry lost his life because he fell on the ground miserably. Mousey also lost his life because Henry pushed him very hard. Both of them lost their lives. Henry lost his life because of his foolish wish and Mousey lost his life because of his foolish friend. Moral:If people don’t listen to good advice, let them find the hard way.

This is a story of pig.Moral(s) of the story: friendship and idiot

The pig has wings

One day, it was very hot and the sun was boiling in the sky. The Santa, due to heat said, “It is too hot, I am feeling very hot.” The Santa had a long fluffy beard and due to that, he was feeling very hot. Looking at Santa, the beard said, “Do not worry Santa, I will find a new face.” After saying this, the beard flew up in the air and went to find a new face. The beard went to the kitchen and said to the busy chef, “Hello, Chef. Can I be your beard?” The Chef said, “I do not think you will enjoy it. You may even get in a tangle with my food.” The beard said, “Okay, I will find someone else.”The beard went ahead to a baby that was sitting on a baby chair. The beard then asked the baby and the baby’s mum replied, “Babies do not have a beard. He is too small for having a beard.” The beard then left to ask someone else.Then the beard flew to a granny sitting in a garden. The beard asked the same question to the granny and she replied, “No, ways.” The beard then left looking for someone else. The beard went straight to a castle and said to the princess, “Hey, Princess, can I be your beard?” The princess replied, “You are a very beautiful beard but I am already beautiful so I do not need you.” The beard said, “Okay” and left the castle.The Santa’s beard then flew to a pirate and asked him. The pirate replied, “I already have one.” Santa’s beard said, “Yeah, right, Okay.” Then the beard left and went ahead. The beard went to every creature of the sea but no one needed him. The beard felt a little sea sick and was very sad.The sea turned into ice and snow started to fall after some time. Santa’s beard was angry and sad. Suddenly, a little red man came and saw a little white comfy thing. The man touched the thing and thought what that is? The beard shouted, “I am Santa’s beard. No one wants me, no one loves me. I am cold and lonely.” The red man said, “My lovely beard I am glad I found you.” The red man was Santa. Santa said, “I am freezing, Will you be my beard and save me from freezing?” the beard excitedly said, “Yes, I would love to.” Then they went to distribute gifts to everyone and made everyone’s Christmas happy.

This is a story of beard, Christmas and Santa Claus.

Santa's Beard

In a forest, there lived a bear. The bear was very greedy. He always wanted something bigger. He was never satisfied with what he had. One day, the bear was very hungry and he wanted to eat something. He decided to go out to search for food.The day was very beautiful and bright. The sun was shining and everything looked bright and pretty. The bear decided to eat fish to enjoy the bright sunny day. So, he went to a river to catch fish. The river was filled with fishes and the bear was very happy to see that. He decided to eat lots of fish.The bear prepared himself for the hunt. He looked at the fish and waited for the chance. The bear looking at the opportunity tried to catch a fish. As soon as he grabbed a fish, he was very happy. But when he saw the fish, he became sad. he said, “This fish is very small. I will wait for the bigger fish.” The bear threw the fish back in the water.He again started hunting for the fish. He waited for his chance. He swung his arm in the water and grabbed another fish. After looking at the second fish he again said, “Oh no! This is very small. I need a bigger one.” He again threw the fish back in the water.He continued doing the same again and again. Every time the fish he grabbed was too small for him and every time he would throw the fish back in the water. He wanted to eat a bigger fish. In the end, he was very tired and had nothing to eat because he had thrown every fish back in the river. Moral:Many small things make up for one big thing. Never let go of what you have in hand for what you don’t have yet.

This is a story of bear, fish and river.Moral(s) of story: greediness

cosmos stories

Kids moral stories help in improving their imagination & relate to real-world life. Here are age-specific bedtime stories for children by renowned storytellers.

Pudding and peanuts for Krishna

Karna as ‘Danveer’

The foolhardy wolf

Peter and the wolf

Gobindji’s Arrow

The jackal and the drum

The pig has wings

Santa's Beard

The Foolish Bear

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