Shina Utavani

Sudama was a brahmin man.&nbsp;He was a good friend of Lord Krishna. Sudama was very indifferent. He had no desire for material things. Once Sudama and Krishna went to a jungle. Sudama did not offer food to Krishna and lied to him saying he did not have anything to eat.&nbsp;After completing education, Lord Krishna left for Dwarka but Sudama stayed. He got married and began to pass his life with his wife and children.Sudama spent most of his life in poverty because of what he did with Krishna in the jungle. He did not have enough money to fulfil his family's needs. There were times where he had nothing to feed his children.His wife was very upset as they could not feed their children. His wife insisted him to ask for help from his friend Krishna, who was the king of Dwarka. Sudama at first did not like the idea of taking favours from anyone but seeing his kids starving he decided to ask for help from Krishna.Sudama went to Dwarka to meet Krishna. He took rice for Krishna. His dignity did not allow him to ask any favours. He left the palace without asking for any favours. He felt very bad for his kids and wife.The pure devotion of Sudama and Krishna's true friendship worked its magic. Sudama took rice for Krishna and Krishna while eating the rice blessed Sudama and his hut was converted into a beautiful palace. His dignity was rewarded. Tears rolled out from his eyes when he saw the palace. This shows the true friendship and devotion they both shared.

This is a story of Krishan and Sudama.Moral(s) of the story: devotion

Sudama

Yesha Desai

Manu came from a poor family, they had enough money to meet their needs but not enough for unnecessary expenditures. Manu’s friend, Shanu was rich enough to enjoy his life.Lord Ganesha’s festival came near and everyone brought colourful idols in their home to welcome the Lord. Shanu brought a very big idol, it was decorated with flowers and crowns.Manu was in awe of the idol Shanu had bought. He asked his parents to get the same for him but they refused. They did not have the money to do so. Manu sat quietly in a corner, thinking God would not come to him because he could not spend enough.However, with as much as he could manage, he built a small clay idol to worship. That night, in his dreams Lord Ganesha appeared and said, “ Hello, Manu.”Manu was shocked before he finally remembered his manners and bowed. Lord Ganesha explained it to him that he was visiting because Manu’s devotion was real and God resides in hearts, not in fancy idols. Moral:God resides, not in rituals and clay idols, but in our heart and our devotion.

This is a story of Ganesh and idol.Moral(s) of the story: devotion

Where is God?

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 “The Ramayana”.Vibhishana was the younger brother of Ravana, the king of Lanka. He was always surrounded by people who hated Lord Ram. Though he was born into a family of demons, he held in his heart great love and respect for Lord Ram.Vibhishana used to warn Ravana to give up his evil ways, but Ravana would never listen to him. Ravana instead used to laugh at Vibhishana for being weak and submissive. But Vibhishana was never discouraged by Ravana’s words and always followed his noble path. Vibhishana even advised Ravana to return Sita to Lord Ram but he never listened to him.Eventually, Vibhishana’s righteousness was paid off when Ram defeated Ravana and made Vibhishan the King of Lanka. Moral:No matter how many detractors you have around you, always stick to the right path.

This is a story of Ram, Ravan and veebhishana.Moral(s) of the story: devotion

Vibhishana’s devotion

Ravina Sewani

One of the many disciples of Guru Ram Dass, the fourth Sikh Guru, was Arjun Dev who was always dedicated to the duties assigned to him.His duty was scrubbing the utensils and the other disciples asked him to also serve the Guru sometimes.Arjun Dev replied, “My work is of cleaning the utensils, I do upon Guru’s orders.”The others insisted that the Guru will not be pleased simply by this and that Arjun should serve the Guru too. They went quiet when Arjun replied, “My duty is to serve and obey, not please the Guru.’Time went on and the other disciples did not advice more. Arjun continued his work and the Guru’s health declined.When Guru Ram Dass died everybody wanted to know what was written in his will. Every disciple was so sure that they will succeed the Guru and inherit his fortune.When the ‘will’ was opened, Arjun Dev had been declared the successor.Everyone, particularly those who had high hopes, was surprised and some even questioned Arjun’s qualities.The wise men said, “In the Guru’s views Arjun Dev was the only deserving successor to him.” The disciples asked, “But he never said his prayers. He never took part in the religious discourses. He was only cleaning utensils. Nothing else did he do. Then where lies the justification in making him the successor.”The reply was that the eligibility for becoming the Guru’s successor is one’s innate faith, absolute devotion and discipline, as well as his knowledge and wisdom. Moral:Pleasing others does not take you far, being disciplined and completing the work given to you with devotion brings rewards.

This is a story of Guru Ram Das.Moral(s) of the story: devotion, discipline and hard work.

The Guru’s Successor

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 “The Ramayana”.In ancient India, there lived a poor boy named Shravan. He lived with his elderly parents. His parents were very old and blind. Shravan had devoted his life to serving his blind parents. He took care of every wish of his parents. His whole life was centredon serving his parents.Once his parents expressed their desire to go on a pilgrimage but since they were blind, they could not go there alone. So, Shravan decided to take his parents to the pilgrimage. He made two large strong baskets and tied each basket on either side of a long bamboo stick. He made his parents sit on each basket and carried them on his shoulder. He then left for the pilgrimage carrying his parents on the shoulder. Shravan was so devoted to his parents that he did not feel their weight.Shravan took his parents to pilgrim places. After a few months, they reached the outskirts of Ayodhya, the holy birthplace of Shri Ramchandra Bhagwan. They were resting in a forest and his parents were thirsty. So, Shravan went in search of water for his parents. He saw the river Saryu flowing nearby. As he bent down to take water, an arrow pierced his chest. King Dashrath had hit him by accident. The king was in the forest hunting for a deer. In fading light of the dusk, he mistook Shravan for a deer because of the gurgling sound of the water. The king then realised his mistake and ran towards Shravan. Even in his last breath, Shravan asked King Dashrath (Lord Ram’s father) to satisfy the thirst of his parents and let them know about the tragedy.King Dashrath felt very bad and went to the blind couple with water. The parents were very sad to hear this and wished to be taken to Shravan. The king took them to Shravan. The old parents grieved at their son’s death. Dashrath bowed down and begged for forgiveness. Shravan’s father said, “Kind man, we do not want to curse you, as the power to curse is only in God’s hands. But we see your future. As we shall die longing for our son, you too shall die longing for your son.”Soon the old parents died longing for their dear son. The couple’s words later turned out to be true for Dashrath. He, too died, longing for his son Shri Ram. Moral:Always respect and obey your parents. Serve them with utmost devotion.

This is a story of king dasrath, parent and shravankumar.Moral(s) of the story: devotion

devotion stories

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

Sudama

Where is God?

Vibhishana’s devotion

The Guru’s Successor

Shravan Kumar’s devotion to his parents

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