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

The story of Saraswati plays an important role in Indian mythology. It is believed that life would not have been the same that it is today without her. Brahma who is the creator of the Universe, felt that something was missing and was lacking concept. So, he decided to create the embodiment of knowledge to help him with this task of bringing order to the universe. So, Saraswati-the goddess of knowledge and wisdom emerged from his mouth.Goddess Saraswati was a symbol of wisdom and knowledge. She was the goddess of learning, art, and literature. She emerged from Brahma to give him directions. She guided him on how to create order in the cosmos; and that is how moon, sun, and stars all came into being.She guided him in creating the universe we see today. It is said that later she became the bride of Brahma. Thus, Brahma became the creator of the world with Saraswati as his wisdom.

This is a story of Brahma, Saraswati and universe.Moral(s) of the story: knowledge and wisdom

The Origin of Sarawati

Ravina Sewani

This story dates back to the time when king Brahmadutta ruled the city of Banaras. He had four young princes. They young princes had grown up hearing many wonderful stories about a beautiful tree known as the Red Bud Tree. They had never seen the Red Bud tree and wished to be the first one to see it.One day, driven by his curiosity to see the tree at the earliest, the eldest prince asked the king’s charioteer to take him deep into the woods where this tree grew. It was still early spring and the tree was standing as a bare stump of wood in the forest, devoid of any leaves or buds. The prince failed to understand why it was known as the Red-Bud tree and returned back to the palace.Sometime later in spring, the next son requested the king’s charioteer to take him to the Red Bud Tree. At this time, the tree was covered with bright red buds and looked very beautiful.The third son went into the woods just after the spring time. Now tree did not have any red buds and was covered with lush green leaves. He also could see no reason for calling it a Red Bud tree.The youngest price also decided to go and have a look at the famous Red Bud tree. By this time, the tree was covered with little bean-pods. When he came back from the forest, he ran into the garden where his brothers were playing and told them with much excitement, "I saw the Red Bud tree!""So, what is special about it?" said the eldest prince. “It is nothing but a dead stump of wood,” He added."What makes you say that?" said the second son. "When I went in the woods, it was covered with hundreds of beautiful red buds. This is why it is known as the Red Bud tree."The third prince said, "I have also seen the Red Bud tree. It is neither a dead stump of wood nor covered with red buds. It looks like an ordinary tree covered with green leaves."The youngest prince said with utmost confidence, "Brothers, all of you are mistaken! I have just a seen the tree and I can say for sure that it is now covered with little bean-pods."The princes wondered that maybe the Red Bud tree was indeed some mystical tree and appeared in different forms before different people. The king was overhearing their conversation. When they stopped talking, he came out and said, "My dear sons, all four of you have seen the same tree, but each of you saw it at a different time of the year." The princes understood what the matter was and laughed at their naivete. Moral: All is not what it seems. The four princes could not agree with each other because all of them had seen different stages of the tree. Sometimes, there’s more to a situation than what meets the eye.

This is a story of brother, forest, Jataka tales, prince, red and tree.Moral(s) of the story: wisdom

The Red Bud Tree

Yesha Desai

Raja Birbal was famous for his wit and sense of humour across the seven seas. Once, a highly distinguished scholar came to Akbar’s court and challenged Birbal to answer his question. He wanted to test Birbal’s wits, and find out whether he was as clever as people said he was. Birbal accepted the challenge.Then the scholar asked Birbal, “Tell me Birbal, would you like to answer one hundred easy questions or a single difficult question?” Akbar and Birbal had a very long day; they were in a hurry to wind up the court, so Birbal said, “O learned one! Ask me one difficult question.”The scholar instantly shot his question at Birbal, “Who came first? Chicken or egg?”Birbal answered the question without giving any second thought, “The chicken!”The scholar was puzzled to hear such a swift reply. He further asked Birbal, “How do you know?”“We agreed that you would ask only one question, and you have already asked it. So, no more questions please!” Birbal retorted.Birbal’s witty reply left the scholar speechless. Moral:Even if the question is silly, you can manage the situation by thinking on your feet and giving a witty answer.

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

Just one question

It so happened that once, Emperor Akbar misplaced his ring somewhere. When Birbal arrived in the court, Akbar told him, “I have lost my ring. It was very dear to me as my father had given it to me as a gift. Please help me find it!”Birbal said, “You need not worry, Jahanpanah! I will find your ring right away.”He further added, “Your Majesty, the ring is here in this court itself. It is with one of our courtiers. The courtier who has a straw in his beard has your ring.” The courtier who had filched the Emperor’s ring was shocked and immediately moved his hand over his beard. Birbal was waiting for this reaction from one of the courtiers. He immediately pointed towards that particular courtier and ordered the royal guards to search him. The guards frisked the courtier and found the Emperor’s ring lying in the pocket of his achkan.Akbar was pleasantly surprised at another wonderful example of Birbal’s wit and asked him “Birbal, tell me how were you able to find the culprit?” Birbal then told the Emperor, “Your Majesty, I just shot an arrow in the dark. As they rightly say that a guilty person is always scared, the real culprit revealed himself by moving his hand over his beard.” Moral:A guilty mind is always scared. The courtier was so scared of getting caught that it was revealed in his actions and gave away his crime. Birbal used his presence of mind and wit and caught the guilty person at once.

This is a story of Akbar Birbal and ring.Moral(s) of the story: alertness, smartness and wisdom

Akbar’s ring

Once, a Brahmin was passing through a jungle to reach another town. A diabolical giant used to live in that forest. When he saw the Brahmin coming towards him, he sprang upon the Brahmin and sat on his shoulders, curling his legs around the Brahmin’s neck. The Brahmin was petrified to see a giant perched on his shoulders, but he could not do anything to take him off his shoulders. The giant said to the Brahmin, “O Brahmin, I am very fond of eating human flesh. But, before killing you I wish to take a joy ride on your shoulders. So, take me where I want.”The Brahmin had no choice, but to obey the giant. So he kept on walking. While walking, the Brahmin noticed that the giant’s feet were unusually tender and tiny. Out of curiosity, the Brahmin asked the giant, “O mighty giant, I want to ask you something. I see that you are so big and strong but your feet are very tiny and delicate. Why is it so?”The giant thought that there was no harm in revealing the secret of his feet to the Brahmin as he was soon going to kill him. So, he told the Brahmin, “Well, I generally do not walk much. Walking or running with wet feet hurts me a great deal.”The Brahmin kept the giant’s words firmly in his mind and kept on walking. After some time, they reached a river. When the Brahmin saw the river, a brilliant idea struck him. He said to the giant, “Dear Sir, Pardon me for saying so, but I sincerely think that you need to take a shower. You can take a bath in this river, freshen yourself up and then eat me.” The giant had not taken a bath since a very long time, so he liked the Brahmin’s idea. He asked the Brahmin to let him down from his shoulders and warned him, “Do not dare move an inch from your place or else, I will come out of the water and kill you.”The Brahmin promised the giant not to move from there. He was very happy to see the giant bathing in the river as he knew that he was bound to get his tender feet wet. As soon as the Brahmin saw that the giant was completely soaked in water, he ran away from there to save his life.The giant saw the Brahmin running away from the river bank, but he could not do anything to stop him. With his delicate wet feet, he was unable to chase the Brahmin. He repented telling his little secret to the Brahmin. Moral 1:Keep your secrets to yourself and don’t share it with everyone as people might take an advantage. Only share your secrets with the people you trust. Moral 2:Quick wit and thinking can help us escape out of difficult situations.

This is a classic story from panchtantra.Moral(s) of the story: trust and wisdom

The giant and the helpless Brahmin

King Vikram was given the duty of bringing Betal to a tantric. Betal traditionally means ‘evil spirit’. Each time Vikram tried to capture Betal, it told him a story that ended with a riddle. If Vikram could not answer the question correctly, Betal agreed to remain in captivity. But, if the king knew the answer and still kept quiet, his head would burst into a thousand pieces. And if King Vikram spoke, Betal would escape and return to his tree.As soon as king Vikram took his first step, Betaal started another one of his stories.Many years ago, King Chandradeep ruled over Kanchannagar. He had a beautiful daughter named Indumati. Being the only child, the princess was brought up like a boy, and given training in the use of weapons and warfare. The princes of many of the neighbouring kingdoms coveted to marry Indumati.When Indumati reached a marriageable age, her father started looking for a suitable bridegroom for her. Indumati put a condition before his father that she would only marry the suitor who would clear all the tests given by her. The king gladly agreed, but when he saw the list of the tests that Indumati had designed for the suitors, he was taken aback. All of the tests were extremely dangerous and hazardous. He said to the princess that no one would risk his life and appear for such difficult tests. But Indumati was adamant on having those tests for the suitors. She thought that the one who truly loved her, would certainly clear all the tests.And thus, a royal announcement about the princess wedding was made and the suitors would have to take certain tests. This announcement was made in all the neighbouring kingdoms as well.A young handicapped man named Kurupshana from Jayanagar heard it. His mother had died soon after his birth. His father had remarried and his stepmother despised him. She ill-treated him and called him good for nothing because of his handicap.Kurupshana decided to go to Kanchannagar. Many princes were gathered there to hear out the details of the tests. The king’s minister came and announced, “Dear all, as you know that you will only be eligible to win the hand of our princess if you clear all the tests that she has laid out for you.The first test is that you have to climb the twenty feet wall and jump down into the three-tiered cage of sharp knives. The important thing is, while doing so, you must not injure yourself. There should not be a single scratch on your body from the blades of the knives. Then only, you would be eligible for the next level.”When the suitors had a look at the high wall and the narrow space between the sharp knives, all of them retreated back to their seats. None of them dared even to make an attempt. It looked as though no suitor was willing to take the test. The king regretted that his daughter had not accepted his advice.Kurupshana was watching all this from his seat. He knew that everybody considered him to be a useless fellow, so even if he died while attempting the stunt, it would not be anybody’s loss. He walked up to King Chandradeep and expressed his desire to appear for the test. The king and the princess’ heart sank when they saw that an ugly and handicapped man was daring to attempt the stunt and wondered what they would do if he really managed to clear the test successfully. The king hesitantly granted permission to Kurupshana.Kurupshana went up the wall, took a good look at the tiers of knives and jumped down. He landed between the knives without getting even the slightest bruise on his body. He then walked towards the king and the princess and said “Your Majesty! Please do not worry. I may have cleared the test, but I do not wish to marry the princess. I only wanted to take the challenge and now I know that I have succeeded in doing what the others could not do. That in itself is a big reward and I can now face life.” He humbly bowed down before the king and left for home.Betaal ended his story and asked Vikramaditya “King! Don’t you think that Kurupshana behaved like a fool? If he had no intention of marrying the princess, why did he decide to undergo the test?” And after having succeeded in the test, why did he not want to marry her?Vikram replied, “Kurupshana was a handicapped young man. He was aware his handicap bothered his stepmother. He wished that she changed her opinion about him. He could now tell her that where people with no handicap had failed, he came out as a victor, despite his handicap. He did not undergo the test with the hope of marrying the princess.” King Vikram further added, “Kurupshana also knew that if he married her, he would one day have to take the reins of the kingdom. But as a ruler, he would not be able even hold a sword in his hand and protect his kingdom. So, it would not be a wise decision for him to marry her. That is why he politely declined to marry the princess. He was indeed a very wise person, not a fool.”Betaal knew that the king will definitely get the answer, so he flew back to the ancient tree carrying the corpse along with him. Vikramaditya drew his sword and went after Betaal. Moral:Be wise enough to prove your point but don’t be a fool and be overconfident.

This is a classic story from Vikram betal.Moral(s) of the story: wisdom

Reward of life/true reward

Lord Ganesha had a younger brother named Karthikeya. One day they were playing in the forest. Lord Shiva and Parvati received a special fruit from gods. Lord Shiva decided to share the fruit with Parvati. But then, they realized that the fruit can be eaten by one person only. No one was ready to eat the fruit alone.At the same time, Karthikeya and Ganesha entered and asked them what was special about the fruit. Lord Shiva told them that the fruit was of immorality and supreme knowledge. To choose who will get the fruit, Parvati and Lord Shiva said that the first one who will revolve around the world three times and come back will get the fruit.Karthikeya took his vehicle, peacock and went off to take three rounds of the world. Ganesha was worried about winning the race as his vehicle, Mouse did not have wings. Later, he took a decision based on his wisdom. He asked his parents’ permission to revolve around them as he felt that his parents were his universe. Lord Shiva and Parvati were impressed by his decision. They allowed Lord Ganeshato revolve around them three times and won the race. Finally, Ganesh got the fruit. Moral:Use wisdom at the right time and the right place. Respect your parents; there can be no one as important as them in your life.

This is a story of Ganesh, Kartikey, mouse and peacock.Moral(s) of the story: knowledge and wisdom

Lord Ganesha And Karthikeya

One day, Nasiruddin was at the king’s court when the king turned to him and said, “Mulla Nasiruddin, you are always boasting about your wisdom and cleverness. So tell me, can you teach your donkey how to read?”Nasiruddin replied, “Of course! That’s quite an easy task.”“I don’t believe you,” said the king.“I mean it and I can prove it to you,” said Nasiruddin.The king said, “Would you take it on as a challenge, then?”“Absolutely,” replied Nasiruddin. “If you give me fifty thousand dollars right now, I guarantee that by the end of eight years, I will have taught my donkey how to read.”The king said, “Fine, I agree. But my condition is that if the donkey is unable to read by then, I will have you put in prison where you will be tortured every day.”Both of them agreed to this deal and Nasiruddin left for home.The next day, Nasiruddin told his friend about what had happened at the king’s court. His friend said, “Nasiruddin, how could you ever agree to such an impossible task? You cannot even control your donkey enough to make it stand still, and now you have guaranteed that in eight years you would have taught him how to read? There is no way you can escape that prison sentence.”“Relax,” replied Nasiruddin calmly. “Eight years is a long time, my friend! By then, our king will probably be dead or he will not be in power anymore. And even if he is still the king at the end of eight years, chances are that my donkey would be dead by then. Worse come to worse, if by the end of seven years, both the king and my donkey are alive, I will still have one whole year to devise a plan to escape punishment. Moral:Taking measured chances result in our favour quite a few times. Nasiruddin was smart enough to take a chance and trick the king to get things worked in his favour. Such chances don’t always end up the way we have assumed.

This is a story of donkey, king and Mulla Nasruddin.Moral(s) of the story: smartness and wisdom

The guarantee

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful parrot who lived in a jungle with his brother. The parrot was very beautiful and lived happily with his brother.A hunter was passing through a jungle one day and saw the pair of beautiful parrots on a tree. He said, “The parrots are so beautiful. I should give them as a present to the king.” He decided to catch the beautiful parrots and made a trap. The parrots were caught in the trap at once and the hunter was very happy. The hunter took the parrots and presented them to the king as a gift. The king was happy to see the parrots. He accepted the gift from the hunter and put the parrots in a golden cage. The servants were ordered to take care of the parrots.The servants used to take care of the parrots and would offer them delicious food. The parrots were treated well and the servants took extreme care of them. The young prince would come to play with the parrots. The prince treated them with the utmost love. He loved to play with them.The parrots were happy to receive so much love and affection from the king. They were given everything without actually doing anything. One of the parrots said, “We are lucky to have been brought here.” The other parrot replied, “Yes, we are living a peaceful and comfortable life in the palace and with that, we are being loved too.” They both were very happy and satisfied with their lives. They were the main attraction of the palace and everyone loved them.Everything was fine until one day the hunter who had brought them in the palace returned with another gift for the king. This time, the hunter brought a black monkey with him. The king was very happy to receive the present. He happily accepted the gift from the hunter.Gradually, the monkey became the main attraction in the palace. He was loved by everyone and the servants took care of the monkey and fed him delicious food. The servants at times forgot to feed the parrots. The young prince started playing with the monkey. He even gave more attention to the monkey and the poor parrots were neglected. The parrots felt very bad. The younger parrot said, “The monkey has ruined our lives. Nobody looks out for us anymore.” The older brother replied, “Do not worry little brother. Nothing is permanent in this world. Everything will change soon.”The monkey was mischievous and active. One day, he created a lot of problems in the palace for everyone. Servants were fed up with the monkey and the young prince was afraid of the mischievous black monkey. One day, the king ordered to throw the monkey out in the jungle. The monkey was thrown in the jungle.Now, again the parrots became the centre of attraction of the palace. Everyone started giving all the attention to the parrots. The parrots were very happy as their fun days were back. The younger brother realized what his elder brother told him. “Time never stays the same,” the younger brother said. The elder brother replied, “See, I told you nothing is permanent. You should never get depressed in bad times.” The younger brother then decided to never lose patience in bad times or unfavourable conditions. Moral:Nothing is permanent in our lives. Everything changes with time and nothing stands still.

This is a story of king, monkey and parrot.Moral(s) of the story: wisdom

wisdom 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 Origin of Sarawati

The Red Bud Tree

Just one question

Akbar’s ring

The giant and the helpless Brahmin

Reward of life/true reward

Lord Ganesha And Karthikeya

The guarantee

The Wise Parrot

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