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

It was Krishnadeva Rai’s mother’s death anniversary and he wanted to do something special for his deceased mother on this day. He summoned the head priest to discuss the same. The head priest took this as an opportunity to earn money. He asked the king what his mother’s last wish was. The king said, “My mother used to love the mango fruit. On her last day also, she wished to eat a mango, but she breathed her last before the fruits could reach her.” On hearing this, the cunning priest said, “Your Majesty, your mother’s soul will rest in peace if you fulfill her last wish. As she is no more, you can do an alternate thing. You must give away 108 mangoes made of pure gold placed in 108 silver bowls to 108 Brahmins in alms. This will definitely make her soul happy and she will shower her choicest blessings on you.” The king agreed to the priest’s proposal and soon 108 golden mangoes were made and distributed amongst the Brahmins.When Tenaliram came to know about this, he understood that the priest had taken undue advantage of the king’s feelings towards his mother and decided to teach him a lesson.One day, Tenaliram called the head priest and said that he wanted to give alms in the memory of his expired mother. The priest was elated on getting another opportunity to fill his pockets. Tenaliram also invited Krishnadeva Rai for the ceremony.When everybody had come, Tenaliram took a red hot poker and went to the head priest. He said, “Dear sir, my mother was suffering from pain and wanted a red hot poker to be placed on her hand. But, she died before her wish was fulfilled, so I request you to let me perform the act on you, along with all the Brahmins whom you brought, so that her soul rests in peace. If you permit let us begin the ….”Even before Tenaliram could complete his sentence, the head priest including the other Brahmins vanished from the scene, giving various types of excuses to him. The king realized that he was duped by the head priest and thanked Tenaliram from the bottom of his heart for revealing the true character of the priest. Moral:Lies and a deceitful nature never prevail.

This is a classic story from Tenali Raman.Moral(s) of the story: honesty

Royal mother’s last wish

Ravina Sewani

Akbar’s court was famous for the witty question answer sessions between the Emperor himself, and his clever minister Birbal.On one such occasion – Akbar asked his courtiers whether they could tell the difference between truth and untruth within three words. All the courtiers started racking their brains to search for the three most appropriate words in which they could tell the difference between the truth and the untruth. But, enough time passed and none of them could come up with an answer.Birbal was also present in the court, but kept mum. The Emperor asked him, “What about you, Birbal? Why are you so silent?”“Your Majesty!” Birbal politely replied, “I was giving a chance to others first. In my opinion, the right answer would be: Four fingers.”The Emperor asked Birbal, “How is that, Birbal? Explain it to all!”“Yes, Your Majesty, four fingers is the difference between truth and untruth. What your eyes see is truth, and what your ears hear, may be false.”“I agree with that, but why did you say that the difference between truth and untruth is four fingers?” Akbar said.Birbal bowed and said, “Four fingers is the distance between one’s eyes and one’s ears, Your Majesty!” Akbar was very astonished to hear Birbal’s well thought reply. Moral:Never believe on what you hear from several mouths. Often times, the things we hear turn out to be mere rumours. It is better to trust our eyes than anyone else’s words.&nbsp;&nbsp;

This is story of Akbar Birbal.Moral(s) of the story: honesty and lying

Truth and Untruth

Long ago, there lived a woodcutter in a small village. He was sincere in his work and very honest. Every day, he set out into the nearby forest to cut trees. He brought the woods back into the village and sold them out to a merchant and earn his money. He earned just about enough to make a living, but he was satisfied with his simple living.One day, while cutting a tree near a river, his axe slipped out of his hand and fell into the river. The river was so deep, he could not even think to retrieve it on his own. He only had one axe which was gone into the river. He became a very worried thinking how he will be able to earn his living now! He was very sad and prayed to the God. He prayed sincerely so the God appeared in front of him and asked, “What is the problem, my son?” The woodcutter explained the problem and requested the God to get his axe back.The God put his hand deep into the river and took out a silver axe and asked, “Is this your axe?” The Woodcutter looked at the axe and said “No”.&nbsp;So the God put his hand back deep into the water again and showed a golden axe and asked, “Is this your axe?” The woodcutter looked at the axe and said “No”. The God said, “Take a look again Son, this is a very valuable golden axe, are you sure this is not yours?” The woodcutter said, “No, It’s not mine. I can’t cut the trees with a golden axe. It’s not useful for me”.The God smiled and finally put his hand into the water again and took out his iron axe and asked, “Is this your axe?” To this, the woodcutter said, “Yes! This is mine! Thank you!” The Goddess was very impressed with his honesty so she gave him his iron axe and also other two axes as a reward for his honesty. Moral:Always be honest. Honesty is always rewarded.

This is a story of gold, iron, silver and woodcutter.Moral(s) of the story: honesty

The Woodcutter and The Axe

Sam was a greedy and a selfish man. He always desired to have lots and lots of money and never hesitated to cheat others to make money. Also, he never wished to share anything with others. He paid very low wages to his servants.However, one day, he learned a lesson that changed his life forever.It so happened that one day, a small bag that belonged to Sam was missing. The bag had 50 gold coins in it. Sam searched high and low for the bag, but could not find it. Sam’s friends and neighbours also joined in the search, but all their efforts were in vain.After a couple of days, the ten year old daughter of a man working for Sam found the bag. She told her father about it. Her father identified the bag as the one that was missing, and immediately decided to take it to his master.He gave the bag back to his master Sam, and asked him to check whether the bag had 50 gold coins. Sam was exultant to get the coins back, but he decided to play a trick. He shouted at his worker, “there were 75 gold coins in this bag but you gave me only 50! Where are the other coins? You have stolen them!”The worker was shocked to hear this and pleaded his innocence. Selfish and greedy, Sam did not accept the worker’s story, and decided to take the issue to court. The judge heard both the sides. He questioned the daughter and the worker about the number of coins they had found in the bag, and they assured it was only 50. He cross-examined Sam and Sam replied, “Yes my lord, I had 75 gold coins in my bag, and they gave me only 50. Hence, it is quite obvious that they have stolen 25 coins!” The judge then asked, “Are you sure that your bag had 75 coins?”Sam nodded vigorously. The judge then made his judgment. “Since Sam lost a bag of 75 gold coins and the bag found by the girl had only 50 coins, it is obvious that the bag that was found does not belong to Sam. It was lost by someone else. If anyone finds a bag of 75 gold coins, I will declare that it belongs to Sam. As there are no complaints about the loss of 50 coins, I order the girl and his father to take those 50 coins as a token of appreciation for their honesty!” Moral:Honesty will always be rewarded and greed punished!

This is a story of coin.Moral(s) of the story: greediness, honesty and selfishness

Gold Coins and a Selfish Man

One day, a rich man wanted to get an innocent man named Hasan, punished for some grudge that he held against him. He accused him of stealing his wife’s valuable necklace, and reported this theft in the Emperor’s court.Emperor Akbar asked the man, “Why do you think that Hasan has stolen the necklace from your place?” The rich man replied, “Your Majesty, I have myself seen him stealing the necklace!” Hasan said, “No Huzoor, I am innocent! I do not know anything about the necklace.”The rich man said, “Huzoor, if he is innocent, ask him to prove his innocence by holding a hot iron rod in his bare hands. If he is able to do so, then I will believe that he has not stolen my necklace, and he is speaking the truth.”The rich man also convinced the Emperor that if Hasan was telling the truth then the holy deities above would not let any harm come to him and it was the most ideal way to test the innocence of the accused person. The Emperor ordered Hasan to appear in his court the next day and do as directed by the rich man.Poor Hasan was at his wit’s end. He went to Raja Birbal for help. Birbal could understand that the man was telling the truth and suggested a clever idea to him.When he returned the next day, he said, “I am ready for the test. But the same thing should be applied to the rich man as well. If he is speaking the truth, then the red hot iron should not burn his hands also. So, first let him hold the hot iron rod in his hands, and then I will hold that iron in my bare hands.”Now, the rich man was speechless! He requested the Emperor Akbar to let him go and look for the necklace again in his house; maybe his wife had misplaced it somewhere in the house itself.Emperor Akbar ordered the rich man to give the necklace to Hasan as a punishment and praised Raja Birbal for his clever idea. Moral:Framing someone for a crime and lying does not end well.

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

Red Hot Test

Everyone knew that Stuti was the best speller in the whole class. She could spell difficult words like "encyclopedia" and "amendment" very easily. She used to get perfect scores during each weekly spelling test.Ms. Daisy, her English teacher made a rule for the spelling tests that any child who doesn't get at least 60% correct spellings would have to copy each word fifty times for next week's spelling test. Seema, who sat next to Stuti always struggled in spellings. Last Thursday, she received 56 percent which meant copying each word fifty times.Stuti was so confident in her spelling abilities that she had felt and decided not to study for her next spelling test. The test began. Ms. Daisy pronounced each word and then repeated it. Everything was OK until she spoke "Handkerchief". Stuti scribbled h-a-n-d-k-e-r-c-h.....now what?? i??...or…e?? Her mind was blank.Ms. Daisy started to move on to the next word. It occurred to Stuti that Seema knew how to spell it!! Seema had written this word fifty times.&nbsp;There was wide open space between Stuti and Seema. Stuti's eyes rolled to the right. There it was, spelled out in Seema's handwriting. Her eyes went quickly back to her own paper and finished the word with the letters "i-e-f".Stuti remained tense and nervous as Ms. Daisy read the last spelling word. She had cheated just for the first time in her life. She thought, "Is this the way I want to keep my perfect record - by being a cheater?"Frantically, she erased what she had written earlier and replaced it with what she knew was the wrong answer. She wrote "e-i-f". As her sweaty hands released pencil and passed the test up to the front, she sighed with relief. She thought, "So, what if my perfect scores are no longer intact? At least my honesty is."Moral: Honesty is the best policy. Stuti could have cheated and scored good but that guilt would then always have stayed with her.

This is a story of girl.Moral(s) of the story: cheating and honesty

Stuti in an Exam

Once, a shepherd used to live in a village. He was the owner of a large flock of sheep. Every morning, he used to take his flock out for grazing. Once, because of some work, he had to go to the city for two to three days. So, he called his son, Ramu and told him that he would have to take care of the sheep for the two-three days that he would be away. “Take good care of the sheep, Ramu,” his father warned him. “There are many wild animals like tigers and wolves in the forest nearby who might kill our sheep. Keep them safe, son. They are your responsibility.” Ramu assured his father that he would follow his advice. The next day, Ramu took the flock of sheep to the hillside for grazing. While the sheep were grazing, Ramu started feeling bored. Being a mischievous boy, he wanted to have some fun. He thought of an idea. He stood up and started shouting, “Help! Wolf! Wolf!” Ramu’s cry for help was heard by the villagers. Carrying big sticks with them, they rushed to the spot to help the boy. But, on reaching, they found that there was no wolf. Ramu laughed and said, “There is no wolf here. It was just a joke I played on you.” The villagers went back to their homes, irritated.Next day, the same thing happened. The villagers heard Ramu crying for help and went to help him but again, they found that the boy had tricked them again. This time, the villagers were very annoyed and went back to their homes, cursing the boy.On the third day, when Ramu took his sheep for grazing, a wolf actually came there. The wolf looked so ferocious that Ramu was terrified. The wolf was advancing towards the sheep. Ramu shouted, “Help! Help! Wolf!”The villagers heard Ramu’s cry and thought that it must be the boy’s silly trick once again. No one went to help him. Ramu could not keep the wolf off the sheep all by himself. The wolf killed many of Ramu’s sheep. Ramu went back to his home weeping. Moral:If you lie all the time, no one will believe you if for once you speak the truth.

This is a classic story from panchtnatra.This is a story of sheep and wolf.Moral(s) of the story: honesty

The boy who cried wolf

Once upon a time Sammy and his sister Marie visited their grandparents at their farm. Sammy picked up a slingshot to play with out in the woods. He practiced in the woods but he could never hit the target. Getting a little discouraged, he headed back for the lunch. As he was walking back he saw Grandma’s pet duck.Just out of impulse, he let the slingshot fly which hit the duck square in the head and killed it. He was shocked and grieved. In a panic, he hid the dead duck in the pile of woods. Marie had seen it all from the window but she said nothing. After the lunch, the next day Grandma said, “Marie, let’s wash the dishes.” Marie said,“But Grandma, Sammy told me he wanted to help in the kitchen.”Then she whispered to Sammy, “Remember the duck?” Sammy got nervous knowing his sister knew about the duck and if he doesn’t obey, she may tell his grandparents about it. So without saying anything, he did the dishes.Later that day, Grandpa asked if the children wanted to go fishing but Grandma said, “I’m sorry but I need Marie to help make a supper.” Marie just smiled and said, “Well that’s all right because Sammy told me he wanted to help.”She whispered again to Sammy, “Remember the duck?” So Marie went fishing and Sammy stayed to help. After several days of Marie taking advantage of Sammy, he finally couldn’t stand it any longer. He came to Grandma and confessed that he had killed the duck.Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug and said, “Sweetheart, I know. I was standing at the window and I saw the whole thing but because I love you, I forgave you. I was just wondering how long you would let Marie take advantage of you.” Moral:Always confess of your mistakes. It will take away a load of guilt from your heart and no one will take an advantage of your secret mistakes! Accept your mistake, apologize and seek forgiveness politely.

This is a story of brother, duck, grandfather, grandmother and sister.Moral(s) of the story: confession and honesty

Little Boy with a Slingshot

Once upon a time, there lived a poor boy named Aladdin. He lived with his mother in China. One day a rich-looking man came to their house. He said to Aladdin’s mother, “I am a merchant from Arabia and I want to take your son with me. I will pay him handsomely so that you will not be poor anymore.” Aladdin’s mother instantly agreed because they needed money. However, she did not know that the man, in reality, was a magician.The next day, Aladdin packed his things and left with the merchant. After travelling for many hours, the merchant stopped. Aladdin was surprised because it was a lonely spot and there was no one anywhere. He could not see anything for miles.The merchant took out some coloured powder from his pocket and threw it on the ground. The moment he threw the powder on the ground, there was smoke all around. Aladdin did not know what was happening. When the smoke was cleared, he saw a big opening in the ground, it was a cave. The merchant asked Aladdin to go inside the cave. The merchant said, “You will see gold inside the cave. The gold will be more than you will ever see in your life. Take as much as you want. There you will also see an old lamp. Please bring that to me.” After hearing this, Aladdin became suspicious but he decided to go inside the cave.Aladdin entered the cave and just as the merchant said he saw gold, jewellery, diamonds, and other valuables. He filled his pockets with gold and stuffed them in as much as he could. Then, he looked for the lamp. He saw the lamp lying in the corner. It was old and dirty. He took the lamp and decided to go back to the cave’s opening. There, he shouted to the merchant, “I have your lamp. Can you please pull me out?” The merchant said, “Give me the lamp first.” Aladdin was afraid that if he gave the lamp, the merchant would not pull him out. So, he said, “Please pull me out first.”The merchant got angry and threw some powder at the cave. Due to which the opening of the cave was shut with a huge rock. Aladdin was scared. He wondered, “Why this lamp is so important to him?” He then took the lamp and started rubbing it. Suddenly, a strange fog filled the room and from the fog appeared a man. He said, “My master, I am the genie of the lamp. What is your wish?” Aladdin was frightened and said in a quivering voice, “Please take me to my home.”The next moment Aladdin was at his home hugging his mother. He told her everything. Aladdin called the genie and this time he was not scared. He said, “Genie, I want a palace.” At the next moment, there was a beautiful palace in front of them.As people got to know about the rich Aladdin, he became famous. He soon married the Sultan’s daughter and they were very happy. The magician got to know about Aladdin and came to Aladdin’s palace pretending to be an old man who exchanged old lamps for new ones. Aladdin’s wife was not aware of the magic lamp so, she gave it to the magician for exchange. The magician took the lamp and started rubbing it. Soon the genie appeared and the magician told, “Shift Aladdin’s palace away from here to a desert.”&nbsp;When Aladdin came home, he could not find his palace or his princess. He then thought this might be done by the evil magician. He took out the ring that the magician had given him and started rubbing it. Another genie appeared. Aladdin said, “Take me to my princess.” Soon, Aladdin was in Arabia with his princess. He saw his magic lamp lying on a table and before the magician could react, he grabbed the lamp and rubbed it. Soon, the genie appeared and Aladdin said, “I want you to send this magician to a different place so that he can never harm anyone.” The next moment the evil magician disappeared forever.The genie carried Aladdin, the princess and the palace back to China. He stayed with Aladdin for the rest of his life.

This is the story of Aladdin, Ginnie, lamp and magician.Moral(s) of the story: honesty

honesty 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.

Royal mother’s last wish

Truth and Untruth

The Woodcutter and The Axe

Gold Coins and a Selfish Man

Red Hot Test

Stuti in an Exam

The boy who cried wolf

Little Boy with a Slingshot

Aladdin And The Magic Lamp

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