THE MONKEY AND THE CROCODILE Long, long ago, there lived a huge crocodile in the river Ganges. The river flowed through a dense jungle. On both sides of the river there stood tall jamun and other fruit trees. In one such tree there lived a big monkey by the name of Raktamukha. He ate fruits from the tree and passed his days happily jumping from one tree to another. Sometimes, he climbed down the tree; took a bath in the river and rested for a while on its bank. One day, the crocodile came out of the river and sat under the big jamun tree in which the monkey lived. The monkey who was sitt ... read more

THE LITTLE MICE AND THE BIG ELEPHANTS Once upon a time a village was devastated by a strong earthquake. Damaged houses and roads could be seen everywhere. The village was, as a matter of fact, in a total ruin. The villagers had abandoned their houses and had settled in a nearby village. Finding the place totally devoid of residents, the mice began to live in the ruined houses. Soon their number grew into thousands and millions. There was also a big lake situated near the ruined village. A herd of elephants used to visit the lake for drinking water. The herd had no other way but to pass t ... read more

THE WIND AND THE SUN Long ago, there lived a wolf in a dense forest. The forest was surrounded by hills and gorges. A small river flowed through it. Once the wolf was drinking water at the head of a stream, when he saw a lamb drinking water from the same source down at some distance. The cunning wolf began to think of an excuse for attacking the gentle lamb and eating him. So he shouted down at the lamb, "How dare you make the water dirty I am drinking?" "You must be mistaken, sir," said the poor lamb gently. "How can I be making your water dirty, since it flows from you to me and not f ... read more

THE SAGE AND THE MOUSE There lived a famous sage in a dense forest. Everyday, the animals of the forest came to him to listen to his spiritual preachings. They would gather around the meditating sage and the sage would tell them the good things of life. There was also a little mouse living in the same forest. He too used to go to the sage daily to listen to his preachings. One day, while he was roaming in the forest to collect berries for the sage, he was attacked by a big cat, who was watching him from behind the thick bushes. The mouse was scared. He ran straight to the ashram of the s ... read more

THE LION'S BAD BREATH Long ago, there lived a lion in a dense forest. One morning his wife told him that his breath was bad and unpleasant. The lion became very angry and got embarassed to hear this comment. He wanted to check this fact with his councillors, as well. So he summoned them one by one to his court. First came the sheep. "Hello friend sheep," said the lion, opening his mouth wide, "tell me, if my mouth smells bad?" The sheep thought that king lion wanted an honest answer from him, so he said, "Yes, Your Majesty. There seems to be something wrong with your breath." This plain ... read more