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.

Shina Utavani

Dr. Bhimarao Ambedkar was born on April 14, 1891, in Mahow village of Madhya Pradesh. He is popularly referred to as Babasaheb Ambedkar. Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar’s parents were from one of the untouchables’ caste. Dr. Ambedkar was able to acquire the quality education because his grandfather and father served in the British Army otherwise it would have been denied to him by the virtue of his caste. Right from his childhood, Bhimrao Ambedkar experienced caste discrimination. One of the incidents was when Ambedkar was very thirsty and was drinking water from a public watercourse. A brahmin saw him and started beating him because according to him untouchables cannot drink water from that as they would pollute the water. Such incidents made Ambedkar worried about the people of his caste and cruelty others did to them.<h2>&nbsp;</h2>Education:In 1912, Dr. Ambedkar completed his graduation in BA from Maharaja Sayaji Rao University, Baroda. An opportunity came on his way when Maharaja of Baroda was sending some students to the USA for higher studies. Ambedkar grabbed the opportunity to study in USA. He obtained the MA degree for his thesis, “Ancient India Commerce” in 1915. In June 1916, he joined the London School of Economics and Political Science as a student. In 1923, he completed his thesis for the degree of D.sc (Economics). Dr. BR Ambedkar was also awarded the honorary degree of LL.D. and the highest degree of D.Litt. Thus, the great personality Dr. BR Ambedkar had obtained B.A., M.A., Ph.D., M.Sc., D.Sc., LL.D., D.Lit. These qualifications added to the glory of the great personality, Dr. Ambedkar.

This is a story of BR Ambedkar.Moral(s) of the story: equality

BR Ambedkar

Yesha Desai

Harry is a very sweet toddler who loves sweet foods a lot. He is often caught grabbing chocolates from the fridge, stealing candies from the jars within his reach or convincing his elder brother and grandparents to allow him one more sweet.He really does have a sweet tooth. One day he gets a massive pain in his teeth and his tummy. His mother gets him medicines for his tummy before they go to the dentist.The dentist checks his teeth and explains to Harry why he should not eat too many sweets.The dentist says, “Harry. You need to keep your teeth healthy. Here take Ms. Toothbrush with you.”“Ms. Toothbrush?” Harry asks.“Yes, Ms. Toothbrush. You have to brush your teeth with it after every meal. This will help remove germs from your teeth and keep them healthy. Ms. Toothbrush will protect your teeth.”Ms. Toothbrush was a new toothbrush with zig-zagged edges. She was blue in colour which was Harry’s favourite colour. She promised to help Harry to keep his teeth clean.From that day on, Harry brushed his teeth with Ms. Toothbrush after every meal and kept his teeth healthy.

This is a story of tooth and toothbrush.Moral(s) of the story: health and hygiene

Ms. Toothbrush

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”.In ancient India, nearly 5000 years ago, there lived a young prince of Nishada (a tribe of hunters) named Ekalavya. Even though he was a hunter by birth, he aspired to become a great archer and a brave warrior. He wanted to to learn archery from the great Guru Dronacharya. Dronacharya was the greatest teacher of the art of archery and the science of warfare in the kingdom. He was the royal teacher of the Pandavas and the Kauravas. Ekalavaya approached Dronacharya but he refused to teach him because he belonged to a lower caste.Ekalavya felt very bad but he did not give up his will to become an archer. He collected the soil on which Dronacharya walked and made an idol out of it. He believed that if he practised faithfully in front of his Guru, he would be able to master the art of archery. So, every morning he would pray in front of the idol and practise throughout the day. After years of practising, he became a skilled archer, even surpassing the best archer in the kingdom- Arjuna.One day, Dronacharya came to know about Ekalavya’s skill, he visited him to know about his Guru. Ekalavya then showed him the idol and said, “You are my Guru.” Dronacharya was worried that Ekalavya would become a better archer than Arjuna, his favourite student. Therefore, Dronacharya asked Ekalavya to pay him Guru Dakshina. Ekalavya was overjoyed with this and said, “I am blessed that you ask me for guru Dakshina. I would never refuse anything that you ask.” Dronacharya then said, “You have to give me your right thumb as Guru Dakshina.”Ekalavya looked steadily at Dronacharya. Without any further questions, he said, “I will never disobey your wish, sir.” Saying this he took out a knife and cut off his right thumb and placed it at his Guru’s feet.Later Ekalavya learned to shoot with his forefinger and middle finger and remains an example of an ideal student till today. Moral:This story teaches us to be determined and stay dedicated to our goal. It teaches us to respect our teachers.

This is a story of Dronacharya, Eklavya, educator and student.Moral(s) of the story: dedication and hard work

Ekalavya’s allegiance to his teacher

Once, somebody informed Emperor Akbar that a certain astrologer in the city was bragging about his accurate predictions everywhere. Akbar summoned the astrologer to his court and thought of testing the accuracy of his predictions. When the astrologer presented himself in the durbar, he said, “I have heard that you predict very accurately.” The astrologer was filled with great fear and awe as he was standing in front of the mightiest of the kings. Not even a single word could come out of his mouth and he kept standing with folded hands. Akbar asked, “O’ Learned astrologer, you shall be handsomely rewarded if you are able to answer just a simple question of mine. Tell me, when will you die?”The astrologer was shaking with fear and did not know what to say. He thought for a moment and then said that he will have to consult his charts to predict correctly. The Emperor gave him one hour’s time to do so. Instead of consulting his charts, the astrologer went running to Birbal for help and described the whole thing. Birbal thought of a brilliant answer and told the astrologer what to say in front of the Emperor.The astrologer returned to the court and told the king, “I will die three days before you, Jahanpanah!” Akbar could make out that the astrologer was bluffing, but did not want to take a chance. Like every other human being, he did not want to know the time of his death, so he let him go. Thus the astrologer was able to save his life with the help of clever Birbal. That day onwards, he never bragged about anything. Moral:Being talented is a boon and we must not brag about it.

This is a classic story from Akbar and Birbal.Moral(s) of the story: pride

Birbal helps an astrologer

On a fine monday morning three year old Tanya went to the market with her father.&nbsp;There she saw many different types of fruits and vegetables.Her father explained about a lot of different types of food to her.Firstly, they bought one kilogram of potatoes. Her father explained that potatoes are a part of our staple diet. They are a huge source of carbohydrates. Her father said, “ Potatoes grow underneath the soil. They are tubers. They give you a lot of energy.”They moved on to get some peas. Her father told her, “While peas are considered to be vegetables, pea pods which contain peas are actually fruits. They contain every type of vitamin that a human body needs so you should eat them without arguing with your mother.”They bought some carrots. “Carrots are root vegetables. They grow under the soil as roots.” Tanya loved carrots. They are very crunchy and tasty and according to her father, they have a lot of vitamins.They bought onions and Tanya remembered that these are the vegetables that bring tears to her mother’s eyes. Onions grow in multiple colours like red, yellow white. They have a very sharp taste and are very healthy. They are used in a lot of different dishes to spice them up.Tanya was very tired. She had a long day in the market and asked her father about how long it will be until they got to go home.Her father laughed, “We just have to buy some cucumbers now. Then we can leave.”Tanya loved cucumbers. They are crunchy and tasty. She had recently found out that like tomatoes, cucumbers are also considered to be fruits. Her father said that the cucumbers have lots of vitamins and minerals and are mostly made of water.After they purchased everything, they were ready to leave. Tanya learned a lot about the different types of vegetables. She decided to not argue so much while eating them because they are healthy for her.

This is a story of market, carrot, cucumber, onion, peas, potato and tomato.

Tanya's trip to the market

Ravina Sewani

Once, there lived a very wealthy, generous, and a kind-hearted king. The people of his kingdom praised him for his generosity but were still unhappy with him because of his laziness and the fact that he would only eat and sleep, and do nothing. He would eat so much that one day, he realized that he was not even able to move his body. People of his kingdom started calling him names like, “potato-couch”, “fatty king”, “bulky king”, lazy king”, etc.The king felt guilty and called expert doctors from all around the world and was ready to pay them any amount. But none of the doctors could help him with his condition. The king lost all hopes. Then one day, a holy man arrived in his country and found about the King’s ill health. He told the minister of the King’s palace that he can cure the King but the only condition would be that the King would have to walk to the holy man’s place if he wanted to be cured.Reluctantly, the king agreed to this. 50 men were needed to help the King move out of his bed. The King, along with the help of 50 men finally reached the holy man’s place. The holy man complimented the King’s rule and told him to come the next day as his treatment would start from the next day. He also warned the King that if he wanted to be cured, he needed to come visit the man by foot.The next day, with utmost difficulty, the King reached the holy man’s place but the man was not available. His disciple asked the King to come the next day. Every day the King would go to the holy man’s place but would not meet him. This carried on for 3 weeks. The King was now angry but noticed that because he walked so far for 3 weeks continuously, he had lost a lot of weight and felt much lighter. He started feeling active and his health improved. The king realized the reason behind the holy man asking him to come by foot every day.The people were finally happy for their King’s good health and so was the King himself. Moral:It is very important to exercise regularly. We can eat the things we like but if we do not exercise, our health will be affected and we will not be able to live happily.

This is a story of doctor and king.Moral(s) of the story: happiness

 A wealthy but unhealthy King

Easter is an important festival for Christians. The festival is celebrated after three days of crucifixion of Jesus i.e. Good Friday. Crucifixion means killing someone by nailing the person across the cross. It is celebrated on Sunday and it is often known as ‘Easter Sunday’. This festival is celebrated to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus. Resurrection is a concept of living beings coming back to life after death. Easter Sunday celebrates Jesus coming back to life after he was hanged on the cross. According to the Bible, Jesus Christ was crucified on Good Friday. He was buried in a grave. On the third day, his disciples visited his grave and found out that the grave was empty. The day stands for the victory of Christ over death. The resurrection of Jesus is what ultimately makes him the ‘Son of God’. People celebrate Easter through various events and activities. Churches are decorated with flowers, lightnings, and candles. People visit the church and offer their prayers. Children decorate Easter Eggs with colours and sparkles. Various events are organised like Egg Hunt, Egg festival, etc. People prepare a variety of cuisines and celebrate the festival with their families. The tradition of Easter Eggs represents fertility and birth. It signifies new life, fertility, and rebirth. It is believed that the hard shell of the egg symbolises the sealed ‘Tomb of Christ’ and the egg's cracking represents his resurrection from death. Painted eggs or Chocolate filled eggs are common gifts exchanged at this festival. People light candles in the churches on Easter which represents that the life of Jesus is a guiding light to the world. They are lit to spread light and give hope.

This is a story of Easter and Jesus Christ.Moral(s) of the story: sacrifice

Easter

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 “The Mahabharata.” Ganga had drowned her seven sons in the river Ganges, but took away her eighth son with her to heaven. The secret behind her drowning her seven sons was that once the saint Vashishtha got offended with eight gods known as Vasus (Deities of directions). He cursed them to be born as human beings on earth and undergo the mental torture of being a human. Hearing this, seven of the Vasus implored the saint to be excused but the eighth one, who was the most mischievous. ” Many years later, when Shantanu visited the river Ganga, Goddess Ganga emerged out of the river with a young boy. She said, "Oh King ! Here is your eighth son, Devavrata. He has mastered the art of wielding arms, and has unparalleled skills, equalling those of Sage Parshuram. Rishi Vasishtha has imparted the knowledge of the Vedas and the Vedanta, arts and sciences to him. This is your child, the finest archer and master statesman. King Shantanu was getting old and so he decided to step down from his throne. He was lonely and always missed his wife Ganga. One day while he was taking a stroll on the bank of the river Ganga, he was attracted towards a charming maiden, Satyavati. She was the daughter of the chief of the fishermen tribe. She was blessed with a son Vyas, earlier. Shantanu did not know anything about Satyavati’s past. He was charmed by her beauty. He went to her father, the fisherman chief, and asked for Satyavati's hand in marriage. The chief agreed to the proposal but laid down a condition. He told the king that the son born to Satyavati should be the successor to the King and not Devavrata. Shantanu was shocked to hear the condition and returned home disappointed and unhappy. Devavrata later discovered the cause of his father's unhappiness and went to Satyavati's father and requested him to allow his father, king Shantanu to marry Satyavati. In return he promised to give up his right to the throne for Satyavati's son.Satyavati's father thought for a while and said, "We believe in a noble prince, but what about your children? What if they covet the throne?" Hearing this, Devavrata took the grave vow that he will never marry in his life, for he would remain celibate. From then on he was known as Bhishma, the firm. Bhishma respectfully brought Satyavati to Shantanu's palace. Shantanu was elated to see Satyavati but was shocked when he heard about Bhishma's vow. He blessed Bhishma with the power to choose his time of death.

This is a story of BHishma and Shantanu

Devavrata becomes Bhishma

Akbar was born in the year 1542. Akbar was the son of Humayun. In 1555, Humayun gained power as a ruler but after a few months, he died leaving the throne to Akbar. Akbar was put to the throne when he was just 14 years old.Akbar inherited a small kingdom which was a collection of few towns and villages. Bhairam was Akbar’s caretaker who took care of him and guided him to reach a position. Akbar was a vigorous defeater. He conquered several kingdoms and expanded his empire.Akbar always rewarded talent, loyalty, and intelligence irrespective of the ethnic background. This helped him win people’s hearts. He gave freedom to people to follow their own religion. He supported every religion and even attended various religious events.He was the lover of music, art, intelligence, and architecture. This is the reason that all these sectors were thriving in his court. He even arranged some of the best talent shows of poetries, musicians, philosophers.Akbar the great was a reformist emperor. He is called “Akbar The Great” because of the religious and social reforms he introduced in the medieval period. He was the third ruler of the Mughal dynasty and was a skilled diplomat, military innovator, and an excellent administrator.

dhanteras 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.

BR Ambedkar

Ms. Toothbrush

Ekalavya’s allegiance to his teacher

Birbal helps an astrologer

Tanya's trip to the market

A wealthy but unhealthy King

Easter

Devavrata becomes Bhishma

Akbar- The Great

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