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.

Yesha Desai

Once, a rich man invited Birbal for lunch at his place. When Birbal reached the rich man’s house, he saw that the main hall was full of many other people also. When the rich man saw Birbal at his door, he welcomed him warmly and ushered him inside the house. Birbal said, “My dear man, it seems to me that you have invited almost half of the city today.” The rich man politely replied, “Sir, they are not my guests, they are my employees. There is only one other guest here, besides you. Is it possible for you to identify who that other guest is?”Birbal smiled and said, “Well, I will certainly give it a shot. Tell them a joke! I will have a glance at all of them and then give you your answer.” The rich man told a lame joke and everybody laughed hysterically. It was the worst joke that Birbal had ever heard in his life. Now,The rich man asked Birbal, “I have told the joke, now you tell me who is the other guest here?” Birbal pointed out towards a man and said, “He is that other guest!” The rich man was very surprised hearing this as the man towards whom Birbal had pointed was indeed the other guest. He said to Birbal, “Dear Sir, you are absolutely right, but how did you recognize him?”Birbal said, “It was simple! Pardon me for saying so, but only your employees could have laughed on the pathetic joke that you had cracked. This man was the only person who did not even smile at your joke, and this helped me to recognize him as the other guest.” Moral:People who are indebted to you are more likely to indulge you.

This is a classic story from Akbar Birbal.

Birbal identifies the guest

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.The Kauravas and the Pandavas were given an archery test by their Guru, Dronacharya. They were asked to aim at the eye of a toy bird on the branch of a tree. When the teacher asked them what they saw, with the exception of Arjun, all others claimed to see the sky, trees, the bird, the leaves, the branches, etc. Only Arjun said that he just saw the blackness of the bird's eye. Only he was permitted to shoot at the target, which he did successfully.

Arjun and the Bird's Eye Test

It is said that once when Akbar had lost his way, Mahesh Das, aka Birbal had helped him find his way to his capital, Agra. It was an interesting encounter in which Mahesh Das had immensely impressed the Emperor by his quick wit. The Emperor had gifted his royal ring to Mahesh Das and invited him to join his&nbsp;court.After some days, Mahesh Das decided to go to Agra to meet the Emperor.&nbsp;The sentry at the main gate&nbsp;did not allow him to enter.&nbsp;Mahesh Das then showed&nbsp;him the ring that the Emperor had gifted him. The guard&nbsp;was very greedy. He thought that if he allowed this young man to go inside, he would get more rewards and gifts from the Emperor and then he would ask the boy to share them with him. So, the sentry agreed to allow Mahesh Das to go inside&nbsp;the court&nbsp;on one condition- that he would give him half of the reward he would get from the Emperor. Mahesh Das accepted the condition.Mahesh Das went inside and presented himself in front of the Emperor. He greeted the Emperor and showed the ring to Akbar.Akbar immediately recognised the young man and said, “Oh young man! It is so good to see you. Tell me what do you want from the King of Hindustan?”“Jahanpanah! I want to be flogged! I want 50 lashes from you as a reward,” replied Mahesh Das.Everybody in the royal court was stunned. They thought that he was mad. Akbar was also greatly surprised by the young man’s strange request and asked him the reason.Mahesh Das said he would only tell him the reason after receiving his reward.&nbsp;Akbar knew that there must be something going on in the clever young man’s mind and asked his guards to flog him as per his wish.After the twenty fifth lash, Mahesh Das asked the guards to stop and requested the Emperor to call&nbsp;the sentry&nbsp;who was at the&nbsp;main gate.The sentry was summoned in the court. He was happy at the thought that he was being called for his reward. To his surprise, Mahesh Das told the Emperor,”Jahanpanah! This sentry of yours had let me in on the condition that I would share half of my reward with him. I want to keep my promise, so I request you to give the remaining twenty five lashes to him.”The Emperor and all the courtiers were amused at the young man’s wit. Akbar ordered fifty lashes of the whip for the sentry along with 5 years of imprisonment. He then rewarded Mahesh Das with a permanent place in his court and gave him a new name, ‘Birbal.’ He was so fond of Birbal’s wit and sense of humour that he bestowed him with the title of ‘Raja’ and included him in his special committee of nine advisers, who were also known as ‘Navratans.’Because of his razor sharp wit and presence of mind, Birbal soon became a close friend of the Emperor. Moral:Greediness is a bane and we must steer clear of it.

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

Birbal is born

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

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 how Dronacharya was defeated.Yudhisthir was the eldest of the Pandava brothers. He had always followed the path of dharma, his whole life. He had never uttered a lie. Due to his values, his chariot stayed 2 feet above the ground.Dronacharya, who was the Guru of Pandavas and Kauravas, had become the chief of the Kaurava army in the Kurukshetra war. He was a warrior and for the victory of Pandavas, it was necessary to defeat Dronacharya.Lord Krishna told Pandavas that it was impossible to defeat Dronacharya because he was very strong. He was the only warrior who had Brahmastra (a weapon with the power of universe) and Divyastra. Krishna told that Dronacharya can be defeated only when he is unarmed.Krishna then said that the only way to remove Dronacharya was to convince him that his son, Aswathama was dead. His son was his weakness. Krishna further said, “If Dronacharya believes that his son is dead, he will drop his weapons.” After listening to this, Arjuna was a little shocked. He disagreed to kill his own Guru.Lord Krishna headed towards Yudhisthir and said, “We have to follow our Dharma. And we have to do anything we can to stand against Adharma. You are the epitome of Dharma and Righteousness. Only you can help do the right thing.” Yudhisthir thought for few seconds and said, “If this is the only way, I will do it. I will carry the weight of this sin on my shoulder.”Lord Krishna then pointed towards an Elephant. He directed Bheem to kill the elephant. The name of the elephant was Aswathama. Bheem killed the elephant and went to the battlefield and announced, “I have killed Aswathama.”Dronacharya did not believe him and went to Yudhisthir to know the truth. Dronacharya asked, “Is it true that my son is no more?” Yudhisthir replied, “Yes Aswathama is dead. I do not know if it is a man or an elephant.”After listening to the words, Dronacharya was shocked. He was in grief and fell on the ground. He dropped all his weapons and sat down. And so Guru Dronacharya was defeated.At that moment Yudhisthir’s chariot touched the ground as he had told a lie.

This is a story of Ashwatthama, Dronacharya, Krishna and Yudhistra

Yudhisthir and Dronachrayaa

Ravina Sewani

Once, there lived a washer man in the city of Patna who had a donkey that used to carry all the clothes to the riverside and back. The washer man used to feed the donkey well. The donkey also worked very hard for his master. But as time passed, the donkey grew old and was no longer able to work as hard as before. The cruel washer man stopped feeding the donkey as he was of no use for him. The donkey felt miserable and decided to go to Calcutta to become a musician. So, one fine day, the donkey left the washer man’s house to go to Calcutta.On his way, he met an old dog that was crying uncontrollably. The donkey asked him, “What is the matter, my dear friend? Why are you crying?” The poor dog replied, “My master used to love me very much till the time I was young and alert enough to guard his house. But now age has caught up with me and I am not able to catch the thieves. So, my cruel master has thrown me out of the house.” The donkey replied, “The same thing happened to me. So I have decided to go to Calcutta to become a musician. Why don’t you join me?” The dog agreed to accompany the donkey and together they set out for Calcutta.On their way, they both met a cat who was crying horribly. The dog and the donkey asked him, “Why are you crying?” The cat replied, “My master brought me to this house when I was very young. I could catch a lot of rats every day and my master gave me lot of milk to drink. But now I have become old and cannot catch rats anymore. So my master has turned me out of the house. I am crying because of that.” The donkey and dog were very sorry to hear the cat’s story. They asked her to join them. The cat thought it was a very good idea and then the donkey, dog and the cat started walking towards Calcutta.Walking ahead, they met a rooster that was weeping bitterly. The donkey, dog and the cat asked the rooster, “Why are you crying?” The rooster replied, “My master brought me to this house when I was young. I used to wake up early morning and wake him up so that he could go to work early. He also used to give me good food. But now I have become old. I keep sleeping till late in the morning. So, I am not able to wake him up and because of this, my master has kicked me out of the house.” Then the donkey, dog and the cat told the rooster, “We are very sorry to hear your story. We also became old and our masters are not giving us food. So we decided to go to Calcutta to become musicians. Why don’t you come with us?” The rooster thought it was a very good idea and joined them.By the evening, the four friends got very tired of walking. They were feeling very hungry. Then, the rooster climbed up the tree and noticed some light coming from a distance. They thought maybe they would be able to find something to eat there. So, they followed the source of light and when they reached there, they saw that the light was coming from a big house. The rooster volunteered to fly around and find out who lived inside the house. He found out that the house belonged to three robbers and they had a lot of food stacked up in the house. The four friends were starving by now, so they spoke to each other and made a plan.The donkey stood with his legs on the window. The dog stood on him. The cat stood on the dog and the rooster flew and remained on the top. All of them started singing at the same time. The robbers who were inside mistook the four animals for a strange looking ghost and ran away.The donkey, the dog, the cat and the rooster went inside and ate to their heart’s content. Then, they decided to spend the night in the house. The cat decided to sleep on the stove in the kitchen. The dog decided to sleep near the gate. The donkey decided to sleep near the outside wall and the rooster decided to sleep on the roof.The robbers who had run away were also hungry. They were watching their house from far away. One of them came back to the house sent to see if everything was all right. That robber slowly entered the house through the back door and went into the kitchen. He wanted to see whether there was milk on the stove.When he reached near the stove, the cat jumped up and scratched his face. The robber was terrified by this sudden attack and ran outside. The dog, who was lying near the door, bit his leg. He ran near the wall. The donkey kicked him and threw him on the roof. The rooster who was there on the roof, pecked all over him with his sharp beak.The robber jumped from the roof and ran to his friends. He told them in a shaking voice, “That ghost has now entered our house. It scratched me, bit me, kicked me and pecked me. We must never go back there.” The other robbers agreed and went away. The donkey, the dog, the cat and the rooster lived happily in that house and gave up the idea of going to Calcutta. At night, all of them used to practice music. Moral:Every creature deserves love and affection. Do not be selfish and use animals or birds for as long as they prove to be helpful for you.

This is a classic story from panchtantra.This is a story of cat, dog, donkey and hen.Moral(s) of the story: selfishness

The donkey, the dog, the cat, and the rooster

Blue is one aspect of the legend of Krishna that has remained unchanged through time and geography. We look at what this blue magic is all about, and why even Krishna's sworn enemies were irresistibly drawn to it.Blue is the color of all-inclusiveness. You will see in the existence, anything that is vast and beyond your perception generally tends to be blue, whether it is the ocean or the sky. Anything which is larger than your perception tends to be blue because blue is the basis of all-inclusiveness.Krishna being blue-bodied need not necessarily mean his skin color was blue. Maybe he was dark-skinned, but people who were aware saw the blueness of his energy, so they described him as blue. There are many disputes about who Krishna is and what he is but his all-inclusiveness is one thing that no one can deny. So the theme of blue remained common, and in every corner of the country, Krishna is seen as blue.

Why Is Krishna Blue?

One day Mulla Nasiruddin was going somewhere when he met a man who was carrying a large milk can. The man wished Mulla Nasiruddin and said, “Mullaaji, I have a problem. Would you be kind enough to provide me a solution?” Mullaa Nasiruddin willingly consented to hear him out as he was eyeing his big container of milk.The man said, “Whenever I get up in the morning, I feel intoxicated. My head spins around and I feel as if I have a hangover. I don’t understand what could be the problem.”Mullaa Nasiruddin asked, “Hmm! This is a serious problem, indeed! Let me think. What do you generally eat or drink before you go to sleep?”The man said, “I drink a big glass of milk.”The Mullaa said, “Now, I have found your problem! The milk that you drink in the night causes the intoxication.”The gullible man asked, “How is that, Mullaaji?”Mullaa explained to him, “You drink milk before sleeping. In your sleep, when you toss in your bed, the milk gets churned. It turns into butter. When butter gets churned, it turns into fat. Fat gets churned, it turns into sugar. Then the sugar gets churned and turns into alcohol. So, finally you wake up with alcohol in your stomach in the morning, and that is why you feel intoxicated.”“So what do I do?” asked the man in simplicity.The clever Mullaa said, “The solution of your problem is very simple. Don’t drink milk! Here, give it to me.” Mullaa took away the milk can from the man and walked away from there.The poor man stood there bewildered. Moral:A gullible mind cannot see through the wickedness.

This is a story of Milk and Mulla Nasruddin.Moral(s) of the story: foolishness

Milk for the Mullah

Once upon a time, there was a small dog that used to sneak in the royal shed to eat some food that was kept for the royal elephant. Since the royal elephant lived alone throughout the day in the shed, he also did not mind the dog visiting him daily and gladly let him eat his leftover food. Soon, the elephant and the dog became very good friends. They ate together, slept together and played together. A time came when they were almost inseparable from each other.Then one day, a farmer who came to visit the elephant-keeper, saw the dog. He liked it very much and asked the elephant keeper to sell it to him. Although the elephant keeper did not own the dog, He took some money from the villager and gave it to him. The king’s elephant became very sad after this incident. He missed his friend a lot and stopped eating, drinking and even bathing.Three days had passed and the elephant had not moved an inch from his place. The elephant keeper had to report the matter to the king. The king asked his wisest minister to look into the matter and find out what was wrong with his elephant. The minister went to the stable and checked the elephant. He could make out that there was nothing physically wrong with the elephant. He then arrived to the conclusion that the big animal was perhaps missing something or someone. He asked the elephant keeper, “ I think that the royal elephant is grief stricken, possibly due to the loss of a dear friend. Do you know if this elephant shared a close friendship with any person or animal?”The elephant-keeper hesitantly said, “Yes, Sir! There was a dog that used to eat, sleep and play with the elephant. A stranger took him away three days ago, but I do not know where he went.” The minister went to the king and told him, “Your Majesty, the royal elephant is fine but he is lonesome without his dear friend, the dog. Some stranger has taken away the dog and nobody knows his whereabouts.”The king was concerned about the well being of his elephant. He asked the minister, “How can we bring back the dog and make my elephant happy again?” The minister suggested, “Your Majesty, make a declaration, that whoever has taken the dog that used to live at the royal elephant’s shed shall be penalised.” The king did the same and the farmer who had taken the dog, quickly let him loose.Once freed, the dog found his way to the elephant’s shed easily. The elephant was so delighted to see the dog that he picked him up with his trunk and made him sit on his head. The king was content to see his elephant happy once again and suitably rewarded the minister for his wise judgement. Moral:True happiness is based on the relations you keep.

This is a classic story from Jataka tales.This is a story of dog and elephant.Moral(s) of the story: happiness

general dyer 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.

Birbal identifies the guest

Arjun and the Bird's Eye Test

Birbal is born

A Lonely Tennis Ball

Yudhisthir and Dronachrayaa

The donkey, the dog, the cat, and the rooster

Why Is Krishna Blue?

Milk for the Mullah

The elephant and the dog

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