The crow was sensible and a good friend too. He quickly understood what must have happened. The wicked jackal must be waiting somewhere to eat his share, he knew. But he also knew that he must save his friend somehow. The crow saw the farmer coming towards the deer with a stout stick. He said, […]
The deer agreed with the jackal and accepted him as a friend, trusting him. Then they would go out together, but the crow watched anxiously. One day, the jackal told the deer that there was a field of delicious green corn at the far end of the woods. The deer happily went with him, not
Every day the cat would visit the blind vulture and eat a few nestlings. Then he would leave their bones and feathers in the vulture’s hollow. He would sneak away before the birds returned. When they came home, they found some of their babies missing. So, they began to look around and soon found the
Once, a villager was passing through a jungle on a bullock cart. Two bullocks were pulling the cart. Suddenly, one of the bullocks fell into a ditch. The villager failed to rescue the bullock. So he left him there and went away. After many hours, the bullock freed himself. He drank from the river and
“How can you be so unfair?” asked the cat, “You are deciding that I am unfit merely because I happen to be a cat! You must know a person’s qualities.” “I guard the little nestlings here on this tree,” said the vulture, “You are a cat and a natural enemy of these birds. If you
On the banks of the Bhagirathi there was a fig tree. In the hollow of the tree lived an old and feeble vulture. He was blind and had lost his talons too, so he couldn’t hunt. The birds that nested on the tree usually gave him some food. One day when the birds had gone
The deer and the crow were great friends. The deer was a friendly fellow who roamed around freely in the woods. One day, a jackal saw him and his mouth watered at the thought of eating the deer. He called out to the deer and told him that he was happy to make a friend
Wise-Eye, the crow, had followed the pigeons from the old tree and saw this whole episode. He was very impressed seeing the way the Mouse King had helped the pigeons. “Mouse King!” he called, “Will you be my friend too, please?” “And who are you?” asked the cautious Mouse King. “I am Wise-Eye, the Crow,”
“Where should we go, O King?” asked the pigeons. “To a forest near the Gandaki river,” said the King, “There, I have a friend, Nibbles, the Mouse King, who will cut through this net.” The pigeons came down outside the house of the Mouse King. When the Pigeon King called out to him, the King
“Don’t blame him,” said the Pigeon King, “If you have a friend, then sticking to him even in a calamity will cause you to fall into the disaster too. We must find a way out of this trouble now. When small things combine, they can have great strength.” He thought for a while. Then he
Once, a Brahmin lived in a small village. He made a living by performing rituals. One day, a rich merchant gave him a goat for his services. The Brahmin slung the goat over his shoulders and walked towards his home. On the way, two crooks saw the Brahmin. They wanted to cheat him and take
One morning, King Lion was in a bad mood. Queen Lioness had told him that he had bad breath. He wanted to confirm the same, so he called upon his three counsellors – the sheep, the wolf and the fox. First he asked the sheep, “Do I have bad breath?” The sheep bowed and said,
There was a mango tree by a river. It was home to many birds who lived on its branches. A little bird lived there too. She had worked hard collecting straws, leaves and feathers to build her nest. She was proud of her lovely home. One evening, it rained heavily. All the birds and the
It was a hot summer. Waters in the lake had dried up. King Elephant called his subjects and said, “I know of a huge lake in another forest. Let’s go there.” They marched towards that forest and reached the lake after five nights. The elephants were so ecstatic to see water that they unknowingly trampled
One day, the birds of a jungle gathered to choose their king. An owl was perched on a tree near by. The discussion went on for hours. Finally, a parrot suggested, “The owl should be our king.” The owl couldn’t see anything in the daylight but heard everything clearly. He was glad. As the birds