Nishita Sanghvi

A pack of jackals roaming around in the forest suddenly saw a big elephant. They got excited thinking how good it would be to feast on him, but for that they had to find a way to kill him. They knew that if they managed to kill him, they would not have to look for food for several days. They could feast on its meat continuously. But it was a difficult task to kill such a big animal.The old jackal made a smart plan and went on to meet the elephant. He said hello to the elephant in a very courteous way and started the conversation, “O’ Mighty elephant! O’ King of kings! May you live long!” The elephant asked, “What is the purpose of your visit, dear jackal?”To which, the jackal said, “I represent a small pack of jackals. It is becoming difficult for us to live without protection in this jungle. We need an able King like you for us. The elephant was completely flattered. The jackal requested the elephant to come along. The elephant immediately agreed as the jackal added to his story that according to his astrologers, crowning ceremony should happen that day itself.The elephant was taken near a swamp and as expected, the elephant soon started sinking in the swamp due to his heavy weight. The terrified elephant moaned and cried for help but there were only deaf ears around him. The jackal laughed at the elephant’s misery, saying that he was foolish enough to believe him.The elephant sank and died. The jackals pulled him and feasted on his meat for many days. Moral:Never trust strangers and fall for flattering words.

This is a story of hitopadesha tales, elephant, fox and forest.Moral(s) of the story: betrayal

The Shrewd Jackals and The Elephant

Yesha Desai

Once upon a time there was an old and blind vulture named Taradgava. He lived in the hollow of a tree near the bank of the river. Some other birds also used to live on that tree. They had a soft corner for Taradgava and brought food for him as well. In return for the birds’ kindness, Taradgava looked after their fledglings when they went out to gather food.One day a cat happened to pass that way. He heard the chirping of the young birds and tip toed near the tree in the hope of catching one or two. The fledglings sensed danger and started crying out loud. Taradgava, who was guarding the nests, screeched loudly and asked the cat, “Who goes there? Identify yourself! ”The cat thought that now the vulture would rip him apart but soon realized that he was blind. He immediately thought of a clever plan and said, “O wise one, I am a cat. It is indeed an honour to meet a mighty bird like you.”“A cat? You are not wanted here! Go away before I kill you,” said the vulture.“Please do not say so, dear sir! I have heard many tales about your wisdom and wit from the animals of the jungle. Hence, I have come from a long way to see you. Please accept me as your disciple and give me shelter.”Taradgava was immensely pleased on hearing the flattering comments of the cat, still he said, “O&nbsp;cat! I thank you for your generous words, but your presence spells danger for the young birds. The hunter and the hunted cannot live in one place. So, please leave!”The cat further tried to convince the vulture by saying, “O Wise One! These lovely little fledglings have nothing to fear. I am a vegetarian and have taken a vow not to touch meat.”Taradgava believed the cat and permitted him to stay in the hollow of the tree with him. For a few days the cat kept singing the praises of the old vulture and took great care of the fledglings. Soon Taradgava developed great faith in the cat. Now the cat started to show his true colours. When the birds were out hunting, the cat used to climb up the tree, eat a fledgling and hide the left over bones in Taradgava’s hollow. The poor blind vulture was clueless about the cat’s evil designs.It soon came to the notice of the birds that the number of their young ones was decreasing mysteriously. They started to investigate the matter. When the cat saw that the birds had been alarmed, he slyly left the place. The birds soon discovered a heap of bones and feathers in the hollow of the tree trunk where Taradgava lived. They jumped to the conclusion that the old vulture must have eaten their young ones. In great anger, they attacked the old bird and killed him. That was the end of gullible Taradgava. Moral:We must be careful of the people around us and the things they say. Trusting words of others can someday lead us to great troubles.

This is a classic story from Hitopadesha tales.This is a story of cat, vulture and foolishness.Moral(s) of the story: foolishness

The story of the Vulture, the Cat and the Birds

Here’s another great story from the Hitopadesha. Once upon a time, there lived a deer and a crow in a dense forest. They were very good friends and often spent time with each other. One day a jackal spotted the deer and said to himself, “Nothing tastes better than&nbsp;deer flesh! I must somehow make friends with this deer and try to get close to him.”So, he approached the deer and said, “O deer! I am an orphan jackal and do not have any friends in this forest. You appear very kind-hearted to me. Would you agree to be my friend?” The deer was very pleased with the jackal’s mannerisms and took his new friend to his home.When the crow saw the deer with the jackal, he warned him, “Dear friend, you must be careful!” But the deer did not pay heed to the crow’s warning and continued being friends with the jackal. One day, the jackal said to the deer, “I know of a big field that is full of fresh corn. Do you wish to go there with me? “The deer happily accompanied the jackal to the corn field. From that day onwards, both of them started visiting that corn field every day. The owner of the field was very annoyed and decided to catch the thief who ate corn from his field. He set a trap in the field and the next day when the unsuspecting deer came to eat the corn, he got trapped in the net.The jackal saw the deer getting caught in the net and thought, “Once the owner of the field kills the deer, I shall finally get to eat the tasty deer meat for which I have waited so long.” The deer called the jackal for help, but the cunning jackal said, “I am sorry, I cannot do anything! The net seems to be very strong.” Saying so, he walked away from there and hid himself near the field, waiting for the owner to come and kill the deer.When the crow did not see his friend deer by the evening, he started searching for him and found him lying trapped helplessly in the field. When the deer saw the crow, tears filled up in his eyes and he said, “My friend, I disregarded your advice at first and now I suffer. Tomorrow, I shall be killed by the owner of this field.” The crow felt very sorry for the deer. He thought for a while and then a bright idea struck him. He told the deer, “Listen to me, my friend! When the owner comes tomorrow morning, lie down quietly; make your legs stiff and pretend to be dead. When he takes off the net, I will start cawing. That would be a signal for you to stand up and run away quickly.”The owner of the field came the next morning and saw the deer seemingly dead. As soon as he removed the net, the crow began to caw loudly. In a moment, the deer stood up and sped away. The owner got very angry and threw a stick at the deer. The deer escaped, but the stick hit the jackal on the head and killed it. Moral:We must not trust unfamiliar people very easily and instead put our loyalty and belief in the advice of the people we know.

This is a classic story from Hitopadesha tales.This is a story of crow, deer, jackal and trust.Moral(s) of the story: trust

The Story of The Jackal, The Deer And The Crow

A long time ago, the king of the jungle who lived in a cave was frequently irritated by a mouse who would climb up on him always at the time when he was sleeping. The lion tried very hard to kill the mouse but the mouse was too quick for him to get hold of. The moment the lion would try to grab him, the mouse would slip off. The lion was fed up and realized he had to trick the mouse somehow and so he thought of something very clever.The lion went to a nearby village and convinced a cat to come with him. The mouse was obviously scared of the cat and now was very careful in coming out of its hole. The happy lion could now sleep peacefully as the cat acted like the lions guard and the mouse would not want to leave his hole with the cat being around. Every day the lion would share his meal with the cat. Both the master and the servant were thus, passing time happily with each other.One day, the mouse came out of his hole looking for something to eat. The cat pounced on it and the mouse was dead. The lion was extremely happy to know this. Now the lion completely lost interest in the cat and stopped giving him any food as the cat was of no use to him and as a result the cat died of starvation.Therefore, we realize that people usually value things that are of use to them.Moral of the story -Unfortunately people only value things that are of use to them.

This is a story from hitopadesha tales of cat, lion and mouse.Moral(s) of the story: smartness

The Cat Who Served The Lion

Here’s another great story from the Hitopadesha tales. A long time ago, there lived an old snake named Mandavisha. He had become so old that he was unable to hunt for his food. One day, he was resting on the bank of a lake. A small frog spotted him lying there. The snake did not move an inch even after seeing the frog. Out of curiosity, the frog asked the snake, “Why are you not hunting for food?”Mandavisha was a cunning snake. A diabolical plan struck him and he said, “O frog! Please leave me alone to my fate. I am reaping the fruits of my wrong doing. Few years back, I bit a pious brahmin’s son. The brahmin was full of sorrow and grief to see his dead son. He threw the blessed water on me and cursed me, “Soon the frogs will use you as a vehicle to ride on.” Thus cursed, I am waiting for the frogs to ride me.”The frog went running to his king, Jalapada and told him about the cursed snake. The king of frogs immediately left to meet the snake and made him his royal ride. Mandavisha was happy to see his plan working. He gladly allowed Jalapada to climb his back and carried him to and fro, thus pleasing him.The following day, the snake pretended that he was unable to move about. The king of the frogs asked him, “What happened to you, my royal ride? Why are you so sluggish today?”“I am feeling very weak as I had nothing to eat since morning. I won’t be able to take you for a ride today.” said the snake. The king wanted to go on a joyride with his wife, so he said, “Well! We need our royal ride to be fit and healthy. I permit you to eat one frog from my kingdom every day.”This was all that the snake wanted to hear! He started eating up the frogs one by one and in the end, he came to eat the king of frogs as well. As his end was near, the king of frogs said to himself, “What a fool I have been to get carried away by the oily talks of this treacherous snake.” Moral:We should not be influenced by pitious talks and flattery. Instead we should think clearly with our heads before making a decision.

This is a classic story from Hitopadesha tales.This is a story of foolishness, frog and snakeMoral(s) of the story: foolishness

hitopadesha tales 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.

The Shrewd Jackals and The Elephant

The story of the Vulture, the Cat and the Birds

The Story of The Jackal, The Deer And The Crow

The Cat Who Served The Lion

The Serpent And The King of Frogs

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