There was a garden that was very neglected and lonely. It had a lake also in it. There, a snake lived, barely getting enough to eat to live. He was old and weak and could not move around to find his prey. So, he lay down on the shore of the lake and waited. One […]
“A good man will always think that others also will be as honest as he is,” said Meghavarna. “That is why he can be fooled easily.” King Jewel Plume asked Meghavarna how he had managed to live for so long with his enemy, King Silver Plume, whom he actually thought of as his enemy. “Sir,
Once upon a time, there lived a flea in a king’s bed. She fed on his blood and was happy and content. One day, a bug entered the king’s bedroom. The flea said, “You cannot stay here. Leave immediately.” The bug said, “I’m just a guest. Once I have a taste of the king’s blood,
The crow spoke loudly so that Chitrakarna might hear him, “Sir, I haven’t found any food in the forest, though I have searched for so long. Please accept my body as your food now, as I cannot bear to see you hungry.” The King Lion refused. Then the jackal came up and offered himself as
The lion looked around to see what was available. All he could see was the forest wet with rain and his three followers. Chitrakarna was chewing some thorns near by. “What is available here?” asked the King Lion. “Chitrakarna,” whispered the crow, going close to him. The king was indignant. “I have given him shelter!
It was the monsoon season and the rain fell heavily. The lion was unable to go out and hunt. As a result, his three followers were also starving. The three wicked fellows made a plan to let the King himself kill Chitrakarna. In any case, he was not like them; he ate thorns and leaves!
“You see, Sir,” said Meghavarna, who was telling the story, “a saintly person can be fooled by a wicked man, even to the extent of killing himself!” “How do you say that?” asked the King. “There is the story of Chitrakarna, Sir,” said Meghavarna. So, he told Chitrakarna’s story to the King. In a forest
The Brahmin was now thoroughly confused about whether it was a goat or a dog that he was carrying home. A few miles ahead, the third robber stopped him, saying, “Why are you carrying a dog? It is a disgrace for a Brahmin to carry a dog on his shoulders.” This time, the Brahmin was
Once, there was a villager who had many camels. He would sell their milk for a living. There was a baby camel he was particularly fond of.The camels went grazing in a jungle every day. But the baby camel would stray away. He had a habit of roaming around everywhere. Since the villager was worried
So, the first robber met him on the way, and cheerfully asked him, “Hello, friend! Why are you carrying a dog on your shoulders?” “What a silly remark!” said the Brahmin, “Can’t you see it’s a goat?” “Is it?” asked the robber, “Well, if you say so, that is fine.” The Brahmin went along on
King Jewel Plume was curious to know about the Brahmin with the goat. So Meghavarna told him the story. In a hut in a forest long ago, there lived a Brahmin. He was invited to a ritual sacrifice in the town near by. After the ceremony and the feast was over, he was given a
“How can we do that?” asked Silver Plume. “There is Mahabala, the heron king of the Sinhala island. Let him create some disturbance for King Jewel Plume first.” The King agreed and, therefore, a secret message was sent to Mahabala through Vichitra, a crane. Meanwhile, the spy who had been sent to the King of
“How does one deal with enemies, Chakravaka?” asked the King Silver Plume. “There are four ways, Sir, as told to us in the scriptures,” explained the wise minister, “We can make peace with them, win them over with gifts, punish them or create discord among them to weaken them.” A messenger had come from King
Meanwhile in the camp of the Swans, King Silver Plume was consulting his minister, Chakravaka. A spy was sent again to the camp of King Jewel Plume to find out whatever he could and return with the news. The King asked Chakravaka whose help should not be asked for during the war. “Never use a
“We will make friends with the enemy we defeated?” asked Jewel Plume, who found this was unbelievable. “If you remember, Sir, I did not advise you to start this war,” said Doordarshi. “What makes you think that Silver Plume is a good king?” asked Jewel Plume wishing to learn something from his wise minister. “There