Princess Chandralekha thought for a moment and then replied, “My husband should be strong and talented. He should also be courageous.” Her mother said, “If this is so, then look for these qualities yourself in the princes who propose to you for marriage.” Chandralekha replied, “Yes Mother, I will.” Some days later, a prince named […]
King Vikramaditya cautiously approached the peepal tree. The corpse was hanging upside down as usual. He took the corpse down. Placing it on his shoulder, he marched towards his kingdom. On the way, Baital the ghost said to him, “I am going to tell you another story. Listen to it carefully and answer my question
The blind sons came and as the three were leaving, the King asked the old man, “I have seen your sons’ talents. What is yours?” The old man replied, “I can tell the reality of a man.” The King asked, “Who am I?” “You are the son of a thief,” replied the old man. The
After a few days, a jeweller came to the King’s court. He brought several precious stones and gems. The King liked a diamond. He gave it to the blind son and asked him to examine it. The blind son examined the diamond. He rubbed it between his palms several times. Then he said to the
King Vikram was a very brave king. But, one day, he lost a battle and had to flee. He took shelter in a cave. While sitting there, he saw a small spider trying to weave a web across the cave ceiling. As the spider crawled up, a thread of the web broke and the spider
The King, on the other hand, thought about what the blind son said. Then he commanded, “Let a horse expert ride this horse.” So, an expert rider sat on the horse. But no sooner did he sit than the horse threw him off its back. The trader was stunned. He exclaimed, “The horse never behaves
Once, there lived a king cobra in a small hole. All the small animals feared him. This made him proud. He thought, ‘Since I am so powerful, let me move from this small hole to a bigger place.’ He searched for a place to suit his size and status. He kept looking. Finally, he came
Days went by. One day, a horse trader came to the court to sell a horse to the King. The trader stated that the horse was of a good Arabian breed. He boasted that it was very faithful and a good runner. The King did not wish to buy the horse blindly, so he asked
The old man continued, “Sir, my sons are blind but they are gifted. They will serve you well.” The King was surprised. He asked, “How can these blind sons of yours be of any service to me?” The old man replied, “Well, my elder son is an expert judge of horses. And my younger son
Once upon a time, a man had a very bad habit of finding fault with everything. He was a nitpicker and looked into the tiniest of details. Many of his friends stayed away from him due to this bad habit of his. One day, he felt like having some seafood, so he went to a
“The city of Andhak was ruled by a very righteous King. He personally looked into the affairs of his people. He listened to their complaints and redressed them as well. People were free to visit his court whenever they wished. They could express themselves freely. One day, an old man came to the King’s court.
Baital continued, “But I have a condition. You will not utter a word till you have arrived at your destination. If you speak on the way, I will fly back to my peepal tree.” King Vikramaditya agreed to the condition immediately. Baital continued, “During my travels, I recount to have heard that you are the
Once, a hen had three friends: a duck, a cat and a dog. Now one day, the hen found some seeds of wheat. “Who amongst you will sow the seeds?” she asked her friends. “Not me, friend,” refused the duck. “Nor can I,” declined the cat. “Count me out,” the dog said. So, the hen
So, on the next moonless night, King Vikramaditya went to the forest. After looking for hours, King Vikramaditya found the peepal tree. He pulled the corpse down, placed it on his shoulder and started for his kingdom to give the corpse to the hermit. As King Vikramaditya travelled some distance, he heard a voice. It
The hermit continued, “I can give you more of these. Your kingdom will prosper and so will your people. But you will have to do something for me in return.” The King thought for a while and asked, “What can I do for you?” The hermit replied, “In the forest of Tanakpur is a peepal