Once upon a time, in Shinshin in Japan, there lived a monkey-man who used to travel to different places and showed monkey tricks. This was his only source of income. One evening, when the man returned home, he was in a very bad mood. He told his wife to send for the butcher the next […]
Once, there lived an honest man with his wife. They loved their pet dog and raised him with affection. One day, when the old man was working in the garden, the dog began barking. The old man began digging there. They found a box full of gold pieces. The stingy neighbour heard the story and
Long ago, in Japan, there lived two brothers. Hoori was generous and a happy hunter. He hunted to feed the family. Hoderi was greedy. He spent his days fishing only for himself. There was always a silent competition between them. One day, their deity parents gave a magical hook to Hoderi and a magical bow
Once upon a time in Japan, there was an awful goblin. He roamed about in the woods of a province known as Adachigahara. People were afraid of the goblin as he killed everyone who came in its way. The goblin also had the ability to transform itself. It often took the garb of an old
Long ago, a couple lived in the remote part of Japan with their only daughter. She was beautiful and they loved her tenderly. One day, the father had to go to Kyoto for business. Before leaving, the father told his daughter that if she behaved properly and listened to her mother, he would get a
A very long time ago, a rich man named Toyonari Fujiwara lived in Nara, the ancient Capital of Japan. His wife was a kind and beautiful woman named Murasaki (Violet). When they were young, they were married according to the Japanese customs. Since then, they had happily lived together. Their only cause of sorrow was
Long ago, there lived an old bamboo cutter named Taketori no Okina. One day, while walking through the forest, he saw a glittering stalk of bamboo. He went and picked it up. Wanting to know what made it shine, he cut it open. Inside was a beautiful and tiny little girl, about 7 centimetres tall.
Long ago, there lived a man named Sentaro. He lived on a small fortune inherited from his father. Suddenly, one day, the thought of death and sickness overpowered him. The thought of falling ill or dying made him sad. ‘I want to live for five hundred years,’ he said to himself. Sentaro had heard numerous
Long ago, in a faraway village along the coast of the sea of Japan lived a young fisherman named Urashima Taro. He lived with his old mother. One morning, he went down to the shore for fishing. He saw three boys torturing a turtle with heavy sticks. Taro screamed at the children, “Hey, get away
Once upon a time in Japan, there lived a kind woodcutter and his greedy wife. One day, while he was collecting wood, he came across an injured sparrow. He took it home, fed it and nursed it. The sparrow sang for him and made him happy. But his wife did not like animals and birds.
Long ago, there lived an old couple who had no children. Every day, they prayed to God and begged for a child. Finally, the old woman gave birth to a child who was as small as the old man’s thumb. They called him Issunboushi. They brought him up with love and care. One day, he
Topography is the study of the shape and features of the Earth’s surface. Variations in the climate in different regions of the Earth are a part of topography. Distance of a place from the equator decides the climate of that particular region. This difference in location and related differential climate results in a variable ecosystem
The Earth rotates on its axis around the Sun in the same direction or a fixed orbit. It takes 365.25 days to complete this journey. These 365.25 days are counted as one year, which is also called an ‘Earth year’. The distance covered by the Earth in one Earth year is about 960,000,000 km. The
The Earth’s magnetic field is also known as ‘the geomagnetic field’. Since past, our ancestors have used magnetic compasses to find their way around the Earth. Magnetic compasses have a needle made up of magnet that lines up with the Earth’s magnetic field, which is aligned north-south wherever you are on the Earth. This geomagnetic
Revolution is the movement of the Earth around the Sun in its orbit. The revolution is commonly known as the annual cycle of the Earth. The revolution of the Earth takes place from west to east, same as the rotation. The Earth takes 365.25 days to complete one revolution and this period is referred as