“So you see, Sir,” said the vulture, “an unworthy person should not be given undue reward.” “It is not easy to hold a kingdom like Karpuradweepa, Sir,” advised the vulture, “You must find a good solution. If you give the charge to someone like Meghavarna, the Crow King, he will deceive you like he deceived […]
One day, it so happened that a tiger came sniffing around the sage’s hut. It saw the dog and chased it. The dog was frightened out of its wits seeing the huge tiger rushing after it, snarling. The sage, once more taking pity on the poor animal, transformed the dog into a tiger. The mouse
Doordarshi told King Jewel Plume the story of an arrogant mouse to illustrate his point of view. Long ago in a forest, there lived a sage named Mahatapas. One day, as he was meditating, a mouse, fleeing from a cat, jumped into his lap. Mahatapas gave it shelter and fed it grains. Soon, it grew
“That is why I said that one must listen to good advice from friends,” said Chakravaka to King Silver Plume. The King sighed because it was too late to repair the damage caused by his defeat. Just then the spy they had sent returned to tell them that it had indeed been Meghavarna, the crow,
Once, there lived a mouse in a village. His friend, the town mouse, had come to visit him. The town mouse complained about the boring village life. “There are big houses and many things to eat in the town,” he boasted. Before leaving, the town mouse invited his friend to visit him and see his
As they flew over a village, people looked up in amazement seeing the swans carrying the tortoise. They pointed out the strange sight to one another, and cheered and shouted. At first, the tortoise was very happy to be the cause for so much sensation. He sailed along happily. But soon, he could hear their
“What are you trying to tell me?” asked the tortoise. “You have to be alert to all the dangers before you undertake a plan,” said the swans. “When we are flying to the new lake, you must be very alert. People will see us as we fly and will comment on it. You must not
The mongoose came out of its burrow the next day and saw the meat lying on the ground. He was tempted, but he was a cautious fellow. He wondered if this was some kind of a trap set by a hunter perhaps. So, he watched from inside his hollow. In a day or two, he
On the mountain of Gridhrakuta there was a large fig tree. Many cranes had built their nests on it. In a hollow at its base lived an old snake. It used to climb up the tree and eat up the fledglings of the cranes. The cranes were very distressed. They held a meeting to find
The tortoise’s story was told so that the swans might plan in advance for their safety. The three friends thought about several plans but there was always one difficulty. The swans could fly, but the tortoise couldn’t! “How will I go with you both?” wondered the tortoise. Finally, they came up with a good plan.
Morning came. The first fish had already left for a safe place. The second fish had thought out a plan. The third one hoped everything would work out fine in the end! The fishermen waited till it was light and came as they had said earlier carrying their nets. They cast their nets over the
There were four Brahmin friends. After finishing their education in the gurukul, they were ready to go back home. On their way, they had to pass through a forest. After walking a distance, they saw a pile of bones on the ground. They wanted to test their knowledge. The first Brahmin chanted a mantra and
“She wasn’t a good woman. But the story shows that it is the presence of mind that saves us from disaster,” said the second fish. The third fish was not very sensible, and could not make up his mind what to do. He was a fellow who waited for something good to turn up or
In Vikramapura long ago, there lived a merchant and his wife. She was a wicked woman who was in love with a servant in the house. One day, the merchant saw her giving a kiss to the servant and was very angry. But the merchant’s wife was a cunning woman. When she saw that her
The tortoise told them the story of the three fishes. “They lived in this lake,” began the tortoise, “and they faced the same situation that we are facing now. Some fishermen had decided to lay nets to catch all the fish in the lake.” The three fishes consulted one another. The first fish decided that