The Lion and the Mouse

Once when a lion, the king of the jungle, was asleep, a

little mouse began running up and down on him. This soon
awakened the lion, who placed his huge paw on the mouse, and
opened his big jaws to swallow him.
"Pardon, O King!" cried the little mouse. "Forgive me
this time. I shall never repeat it and I shall never forget your
kindness. And who knows, I may be able to do you a good turn
one of these days!”

The lion was so tickled by the idea of the mouse being

able to help him that he lifted his paw and let him go.

Sometime later, a few hunters captured the lion, and tied

him to a tree. After that they went in search of a wagon, to take
him to the zoo.

Just then the little mouse happened to pass by.

On seeing the lion’s plight, he ran up to him and gnawed away
the ropes that bound him, the king of the jungle.
"Was I not, right?" said the little mouse, very happy to help the
lion.

MORAL: SMALL ACTS OF KINDNESS WILL BE REWARDED

GREATLY.

Questions:
 What are the characteristics of the lion and the mouse?
 What was the problem in the story the Lion and the Mouse?
 Why did the Lion let the Mouse go?
 How did the mouse help the lion?
 What is the message of the story?
 The Ant and the Grasshopper
Once there lived an ant and a grasshopper in a grassy meadow. All day long the
ant would work hard, collecting grains of wheat from the farmer’s field far away. She would
hurry to the field every morning, as soon as it was light enough to see by, and toil back with a
heavy grain of wheat balanced on her head. She would put the grain of wheat carefully away
in her larder, and then hurry back to the field for another one. All day long she would work,
without stop or rest, scurrying back and forth from the field, collecting the grains of wheat
and storing them carefully in her larder.

The grasshopper would look at her and laugh. ‘Why do you work so hard, dear
ant?’ he would say. ‘Come, rest awhile, listen to my song. Summer is here, the days are long
and bright. Why waste the sunshine in labor and toil?’

The ant would ignore him, and head bent, would just hurry to the field a little
faster. This would make the grasshopper laugh even louder. ‘What a silly little ant you are!’
he would call after her. ‘Come, come and dance with me! Forget about work! Enjoy the
summer! Live a little!’ And the grasshopper would hop away across the meadow, singing and
dancing merrily.

Summer faded into autumn, and autumn turned into winter. The sun was hardly
seen, and the days were short and grey, the nights long and dark. It became freezing cold,
and snow began to fall.

The grasshopper didn’t feel like singing any more. He was cold and hungry. He
had nowhere to shelter from the snow, and nothing to eat. The meadow and the farmer’s field
were covered in snow, and there was no food to be had. ‘Oh what shall I do? Where shall I
go?’ wailed the grasshopper. Suddenly he remembered the ant. ‘Ah – I shall go to the ant and
ask her for food and shelter!’ declared the grasshopper, perking up. So off he went to the
ant’s house and knocked at her door. ‘Hello ant!’ he cried cheerfully. ‘Here I am, to sing for
you, as I warm myself by your fire, while you get me some food from that larder of yours!’
The ant looked at the grasshopper and said, ‘All summer long I worked hard
while you made fun of me, and sang and danced. You should have thought of winter then!
Find somewhere else to sing, grasshopper! There is no warmth or food for you here!’ And the
ant shut the door in the grasshopper’s face.

MORAL: WORK TODAY AND YOU CAN REAP THE BENEFITS

TOMORROW!

Questions:
 What did the ants do during summer? How about the grasshopper?
 What was the problem in the story the Lion and the Mouse?
 What happened during the winter with the grasshopper?
 Why did the ant not help the grasshopper?
 The Monkey and the Dolphin
Long time ago, some sailors launched their ships into the water.
They used to take long journeys. For a long trip, one of the sailors
brought his pet monkey. When they were out at sea, a strong storm
caused the ship to sink into the ocean.

The crew members, including the monkey and sailors, had to

swim for their life. Their ship flipped over in a violent storm. The
monkey was certain that he would drown when everyone else fell into
the water. They were all in grave trouble. The monkey made an effort to
protect himself. A dolphin witnessed the monkey battling the waters. It
emerged out of the sea and grabbed him.

They arrived at the island quickly. Then the monkey came

down from the dolphin’s back. “Do you know this place?” the dolphin
enquired of the monkey. The monkey responded, "I do, indeed! The
island's king is my closest friend.”

“Do you realize that I am a royal in reality?" said the monkey.

Knowing that no one lived on the island, the dolphin said, "Well! Well!
You are a Prince, then! You can now reign as King!". "How can I be the
King?" the monkey inquired. The dolphin replied, "That is easy as you
are the only species on this island so that you will be the King,". The
dolphin began to swim away. The dolphin left the monkey on the island
after becoming furious at this deception.

MORAL: THOSE WHO LIE AND BOAST MAY END UP IN TROUBLE.

Questions:
 Who went out to sea in a sailing ship?
 Who lied about being a prince?
 Why do you think the monkey lied?
 What do you think happened to the other sailors?
 The Goose that Laid Golden Eggs
Once upon a time, there lived a poor farmer in a village with
his wife. One day, the farmer bought a goose thinking that the goose will
lay eggs which he can eat and sell the remaining. He took the goose home
and made a nest for it to lay eggs.

Next day morning, the farmer went to the nest to check if the
goose has laid any eggs. To his surprise, the goose had laid a golden egg.
The farmer went to the town and sold the golden egg for a good price.
The goose started laying a golden egg every day. The farmer sold those
eggs and made a good fortune. As the farmer started becoming richer
and richer by selling the golden he became more greedy too.

One day, while the farmer and his wife were talking, his wife
said: "If we could get all the eggs that are inside the goose we could be
richer faster”.

"You are right," said the farmer, " we wouldn't have to wait
for the goose to lay her egg every day.“ So, the couple decided to cut
open the goose and get the gold mine inside the goose all at once.

Next day, they went to the nest and killed the goose and cut her open
only to find that she was just like every other goose. She didn’t have any
golden eggs inside her.

Now, the farmer and his wife had lost the goose and they would never
get any golden eggs again.

MORAL: GREEDINESS WILL ALWAYS LEADS TO GREAT LOSS

Questions:
 What type eggs did the special goose lay?
 How did the farmer get rich?
 Why did the farmer's wife want the goose killed?
 What happened after the farmer was too greedy?
 The Cunning Fox and
the Clever Stork
Once upon a time, there lived a very cunning and mischievous fox. He
used to speak to other animals sweetly and gain their trust, before playing tricks
on them.

One day the fox met a stork. He befriended the stork and acted like a
very good friend. Soon, he invited the stork to have a feast with him. The stork
happily accepted the invitation.
The day of the feast came, and the stork went to the fox’s house. To her
surprise and disappointment, the fox said that he could not make a big feast as
promised, and just offered some soup. When he brought the soup out of the
kitchen, the stork saw that it was in a shallow bowl!

The hungry stork replied, “Oh it is good, but my stomach is upset, and
I can’t take any more soup!”

“I’m sorry for troubling you,” said the fox.

The stork replied, “Oh dear, please don’t say sorry. I have some health
problem and cannot enjoy what you offer.”

She left the place after thanking the fox, and inviting him to her house
for dinner.

The day arrived and the fox reached the stork’s place. After
exchanging pleasantries, the stork served soup for both of them, in a narrow jar
with a long neck.

She was able to have the soup very easily with her long bill, but the fox
obviously could not.

After finishing hers, the stork asked the fox if he was enjoying the soup.
The fox remembered the feast he himself had given the stork, and felt very
ashamed. He stammered, “I…I’d better leave now. I have a tummy ache.”

Humiliated, he left the place running.

MORAL: ONE BAD TURN BEGETS ANOTHER.

Questions:
 Why did they invite each other into their own house?
 What is the conflict between the stork and the fox​
 What happen to the fox when he tries to drink the soup using tall jar?
 Were the characters true friend? Why or why not?
 The Tortoise and the Hare
A long time ago there was a hare who wouldn’t stop teasing a tortoise
for his slowness. “I’m the fastest runner in the woods and you are the slowest one!
We should compete!” he jeered.

One day the tortoise, tired of the hare showing off, agreed to have a
running competition. “You may be fast, but I am persistent”, he said.

The next day the tortoise and the hare stood at the start, ready for the
race. “One, two, three, go”, said the hare and they started running.
The hare was a long way in front of the tortoise when he saw a field of
cabbages. He looked back and almost couldn’t see the tortoise. “Take your time!”
he shouted to the tortoise, “I’ll have a snack here and still I’ll win the race!”

When he had finished his breakfast, the hare looked around to see how
far the tortoise had got. He still hadn’t passed halfway! Feeling sleepy after his
snack, the hare thought to himself, “I will have a quick snooze now and when I
wake up I will quickly run past the finish line.”

He fell into a deep sleep and dreamed of winning the competition. Time
passed and the sun was already setting when the hare woke up. He jumped and
looked around to see the tortoise a few steps from the finish line.

The hare rushed towards the finish line as fast as he could, but the
tortoise was already crossing it, winning the competition. “You don’t always have
to be the fastest to win”, the tortoise told the hare, who was sobbing in disgrace.

MORAL: YOU CAN BE MORE SUCCESSFUL BY DOING THINGS

SLOWLY AND STEADILY THAN BY ACTING QUICKLY AND
CARELESSLY.

Questions:
 Why did the tortoise challenge the hare to a race?
 Why was the hare so sure that he would win the race?
 Why did the hare take a nap during the race?
 How did the tortoise win the race even though he was slow?
 Do you think the hare deserved to lose the race? Why or why not?
 The hungry fox who got caught
in the tree trunk
Once upon a time, there live a hungry fox that was looking for
food to eat. The fox was very hungry. The fox tried all his best but, he
could not find any food. Finally, he went to the boundaries of a forest to
searched there for food. Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of a big tree with
a hole in it.

Inside that hole was a package. This hungry fox straight away
thought that there might be some food in it, and he was very happy. And
immediately jumped into the hole and when he opened the package, he
found out there was a lot of food, bread and meat in it!

It was been placed there by an old woodcutter as he usually put

his food in the tree trunk while he was busy cutting down trees in that
forest. He was going to eat that foods as his lunch.

The fox began happily eating it. After the he has finished eating
the food, he felt very thirsty and decided to come out from the trunk and
drink some water in the nearby spring. However, no matter how hard he
tried, he was not able to get out of the hole. Do you know why? .Yes, the
fox had eaten so much food to an extent that he had become too big to in
shape through the hole.

The fox then become very sad and upset. And then said to
himself, "I wish that I had think a little before jumping into this hole.“

MORAL: ALWAYS THINK FIRST BEFORE DOING ANYTHING.

Questions:
 Why was the fox wandering in the forest?
 Why did the fox who got caught in the tree trunk?
 Why was the fox not able to come out of the trunk?
 A Hole in the Fence
In a small village, a little boy lived with his father and mother. He was the only
son. The parents of the little boy were very depressed due to his bad temper. The boy used to
get angry very soon and taunt others with his words. His bad temper made him use words
that hurt others. He scolded kids, neighbors and even his friends due to anger. His friends
and neighbors avoided him, and his parents were really worried about him.

His mother and father advised him many times to control his anger and develop
kindness. Unfortunately, all their attempts failed. Finally, the boy’s father came up with an
idea.

One day, his father gave him a huge bag of nails. He asked his son to hammer
one nail to the fence every time he became angry and lost his temper. The little boy found it
amusing and accepted the task.

Every time he lost his temper, he ran to the fence and hammered a nail. His
anger drove him to hammer nails on the fence 30 times on the first day! After the next few
days, the number of nails hammered on the fence was reduced to half. The little boy found it
very difficult to hammer the nails and decided to control his temper. Gradually, the number
of nails hammered to the fence was reduced and the day arrived when no nail was
hammered! The boy did not lose his temper at all that day. For the next several days, he did
not lose his temper, and so did not hammer any nail.

Now, his father told him to remove the nails each time the boy controlled his
anger. Several days passed and the boy was able to pull out most of the nails from the fence.
However, there remained a few nails that he could not pull out. The boy told his father about
it. The father appreciated him and asked him pointing to a hole, “What do you see there?”
The boy replied, “a hole in the fence!”

He told the boy, “The nails were your bad temper and they were hammered on
people. You can remove the nails but the holes in the fence will remain. The fence will never
look the same. It has scars all over. Some nails cannot even be pulled out. You can stab a man
with a knife, and say sorry later, but the wound will remain there forever. Your bad temper
and angry words were like that! Words are more painful than physical abuse! Use words for
good purposes. Use them to grow relationships. Use them to show the love and kindness in
your heart!”

MORAL: UNKIND WORDS CAUSE LASTING DAMAGE:

LET OUR WORDS BE KIND AND SWEET.

Questions:
 What did the father show his son?
 Why were the boy’s parents worried?
 Why did the boy have no friends?
 What does the hole in the fence symbolizes?
 The Boy Who Cried Wolf
There once was a shepherd boy who was bored as he sat on the hillside
watching the village sheep. To amuse himself he took a great breath and sang out,
"Wolf! Wolf! The Wolf is chasing the sheep!“
The villagers came running up the hill to help the boy drive the wolf away.
But when they arrived at the top of the hill, they found no wolf. The boy laughed at the
sight of their angry faces. "Don't cry 'wolf', shepherd boy," said the villagers, "when
there's no wolf!" They went grumbling back down the hill.
Later, the boy sang out again, "Wolf! Wolf! The wolf is chasing the sheep!"
To his naughty delight, he watched the villagers run up the hill to help him drive the
wolf away.

When the villagers saw no wolf, they sternly said, "Save your frightened
song for when there is really something wrong! Don't cry 'wolf' when there is NO
wolf!"

But the boy just grinned and watched them go grumbling down the hill
once more. Later, he saw a REAL wolf prowling about his flock. Alarmed, he leaped to
his feet and sang out as loudly as he could, "Wolf! Wolf!"
But the villagers thought he was trying to fool them again, and so they
didn't come.

At sunset, everyone wondered why the shepherd boy hadn't returned to the
village with their sheep. They went up the hill to find the boy. They found him weeping.
"There really was a wolf here! The flock has scattered! I cried out, "Wolf!" Why didn't
you come?“

An old man tried to comfort the boy as they walked back to the village.
"We'll help you look for the lost sheep in the morning," he said, putting his arm
around the youth, "Nobody believes a liar...even when he is telling the truth!“

MORAL: A LIAR IS NEVER BELIEVED EVEN WHEN

HE SPEAKS THE TRUTH.”

Questions:
 Why are the villagers angry with the boy?
 How does the boy improve his trick when he does it a second time?
 Why do the villagers not believe the boy the third time he "cries wolf"?
 Gold Coins and the Selfish Man
Sam was a greedy and selfish man. He always desired to have lots and lots of
money and never hesitated to cheat others to make money. Also, he never wished to share
anything with others. He paid very low wages to his servants.

However, one day, he learned a lesson that changed his life forever. It so
happened that one day, a small bag that belonged to Sam was missing. The bag had 50 gold
coins in it. Sam searched high and low for the bag but could not find it. Sam’s friends and
neighbors also joined in the search, but all their efforts were in vain.

After a couple of days, the ten-year-old daughter of a man working for Sam
found the bag. She told her father about it. Her father identified the bag as the one that was
missing, and immediately decided to take it to his master.

He gave the bag back to his master Sam and asked him to check whether the bag
had 50 gold coins. Sam was exultant to get the coins back, but he decided to play a trick. He
shouted at his worker, “there were 75 gold coins in this bag, but you gave me only 50! Where
are the other coins? You have stolen them!”

The worker was shocked to hear this and pleaded his innocence. Selfish and
greedy, Sam did not accept the worker’s story, and decided to take the issue to court. The
judge heard both the sides. He questioned the daughter and the worker about the number of
coins they had found in the bag, and they assured it was only 50.

He cross-examined Sam and Sam replied, “Yes, my lord, I had 75 gold coins in
my bag, and they gave me only 50. Hence, it is quite obvious that they have stolen 25 coins!”
The judge then asked, “Are you sure that your bag had 75 coins?”
Sam nodded vigorously. The judge then made his judgment.
“Since Sam lost a bag of 75 gold coins and the bag found by the girl had only 50 coins, it is
obvious that the bag that was found does not belong to Sam. It was lost by someone else. If
anyone finds a bag of 75 gold coins, I will declare that it belongs to Sam. As there are no
complaints about the loss of 50 coins, I order the girl and his father to take those 50 coins as a
token of appreciation for their honesty!”

MORAL: HONESTY WILL ALWAYS BE REWARDED WHILE

THE GREED IS MEANT TO BE PUNISHED

Questions:
 Why did Sam play a trick and said the bag had 75 coins?
 What do you think of the judge decision?
 How do you feel about the worker?
 If you were the worker, what would you do?
 Cocoon and the Butterfly
One day, a man saw a cocoon. He loved butterflies and had a craze for its
wonderful combination of colors. In fact, he used to spend a lot of time around butterflies. He
knew how a butterfly would struggle to transform from an ugly caterpillar into a beautiful
one.

He saw the cocoon with a tiny opening. It meant that the butterfly was trying to
make its way out to enjoy the world. He decided to watch how the butterfly would come out
of the cocoon. He was watching the butterfly struggling to break the shell for several hours.
He spent almost more than 10 hours with the cocoon and the butterfly. The butterfly had
been struggling very hard for hours to come out through the tiny opening. Unfortunately,
even after continuous attempts for several hours, there was no progress. It seemed that the
butterfly had tried its best and could not give any more try.

The man, who had a passion and love for butterflies, decided to help the
butterfly. He got a pair of scissors and tweaked the cocoon to make larger opening for the
butterfly and removed the remaining cocoon. The butterfly emerged without any struggle!

Unfortunately, the butterfly looked no longer beautiful and had a swollen body with small
and withered wings.

The man was happy that he had made the butterfly come out of the cocoon
without any more struggles. He continued to watch the butterfly and was quite eager to see it
fly with its beautiful wings. He thought that at any time, the butterfly might expand its wings,
shrink the body and the wings could support the body. Unfortunately, neither did the wings
expand nor the swollen body reduce.

Unfortunately, the butterfly just crawled around with withered wings and a huge
body. It was never able to fly. Although the man did it with a good intention, he did not know
that only by going through struggles the butterfly can emerge to be beautiful, with strong
wings. The continuous effort from the butterfly to come out of its cocoon would let the fluid
stored in the body be converted into wings. Thus, the body would become lighter and smaller,
and the wings would be beautiful and large.

If we don’t want to undergo any struggle, we won’t be able to fly!

MORAL: NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, HARD WORK

WILL ALWAYS LEAD TO SUCCESS.

Questions:
 What happens to a butterfly in the cocoon?
 How could the butterfly achieved its freedom from the cocoon?
 What happens if a butterfly doesn't come out of its cocoon?
 The Thirsty Crow
It was a sweltering day with the sun overhead when birds and animals
could find very little to drink to quench their thirst. Among them was a thirsty
crow who searched for water all over the fields. He looked everywhere, but there
was not a drop to drink.

He felt weak and sad and thought to himself, “Caw, caw, caw. I have
been searching for water since the morning, but there is not a drop in sight!”
“The thirst is making me dizzy.”

Just as the crow was glooming, he suddenly saw a water pitcher.

“Thank goodness! I hope there is some water in that little pitcher.”

He flew straight down to that pitcher to see if water was left in it. And
to his surprise, there was some water in the pitcher.

As the crow pushed his head into the pitcher, it could not go deeper.
“Oh no. I could not get to the water.” The pitcher was high with a narrow neck,
and the water level was too low. He tried pushing the pitcher to a side for the
water to flow out. “If I tilt this pitcher, maybe the water would come out, and I
will easily drink it.” But the pitcher was very heavy to tilt.

The crow did not lose hope. He looked around and started thinking of a
way to get water out of the pitcher. Then, an idea struck him! He saw some
pebbles on the ground. The crow started collecting pebbles one by one and
dropped them into the pitcher. As more and more pebbles went into the pitcher,
the water rose up. Soon enough, the water came to a level through which the crow
could drink water. He drank the water happily and thanked mother nature.

MORAL: “WHERE THERE IS A WILL, THERE IS A WAY!”

Questions:
 How was the Crow feeling?
 Why was the crow flew from place to place?
 What happened when the pebbles were dropped into the jug?
 Was the crow happy, at the end of the story? Why
 The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing
Once upon a time, there lived a wolf near a farm. The wolf used to keep an eye on
the farm as he wanted to eat the sheep on that farm. The sheep would follow anyone,
anywhere. The sheep followed the shepherd. The sheep followed the shepherd’s son. The
sheep followed the shepherd’s dog. Whenever the sheep were alone, they just followed other
sheep.
The wolf watched from some distance and said to himself, “Ha ha, foolish sheep.
They follow anyone.”
One fine day, the wolf went to the farm to get the sheep to follow him away from
the farm. “Follow me, little sheep,” the wolf said to one sheep. The sheep were not as stupid
as the wolf thought them to be. They were naturally afraid of the big wolf. The little sheep
cried, “Ba ba!” and the shepherd, who was not very far away, came to protect the sheep. The
wolf ran away quickly.
The wolf thought for some time and came up with an idea. He calculated that the
sheep would not follow a wolf, but they would follow an innocent-looking sheep. So, the wolf
went back to the farm and silently attacked one sheep and ran away with it. The wolf ate the
sheep’s meat happily but protected the sheep’s skin. He used the sheep’s skin as a disguise
and put it on to look like a sheep. Now, the wolf looked like a sheep.
The next day, the wolf went to the farm disguised as a sheep. “Follow me, you
little sheep,” the wolf said.
This time the sheep followed him as they were not afraid of him. He was not
looking like a wolf at all. The sheep followed the wolf silently, and they left the farm slowly.
They were at a distance from the farm, so the shepherd could not hear them.
Ha ha, you stupid sheep. You follow anyone. Now, I will eat you!” said the wolf.
“Ba ha!” cried the little sheep. The sheep were very afraid as they were away
from the farm.
That day was special for the shepherd; he wanted to kill one sheep to eat at the
celebration. He decided to kill the first sheep he found. Just then, he saw the wolf in sheep’s
disguise and thought of him to be the biggest juicy sheep and, without a second thought,
raised his axe and killed him. This way, the life of the little sheep was saved.

MORAL: “THE EVIL DOER OFTEN COMES TO HARM

THROUGH HIS OWN DECEIT.”

Questions:
 Who stopped the wolf from eating the sheep?
 Why did the wolf wanted to go near the sheep?
 What motivates the Wolf to dress in Sheep's skin?
 Money Vs Family
He works for more than 16 hours a day. The kids cannot see him as he will leave
home early in the morning before they wake-up and reach home around midnight when kids
would sleep every day. The entire family eagerly wait to spend quality time with him and the
kids miss him so much.
The children were too curious about Sundays as his father would spend the
entire day with them. Unfortunately, to meet the increasing household expenses and
educational expenses, Rama took a weekend job to work even on Sundays. The kids were
very shattered and even Rama’s wife and parents too!
The typical routine continued for several weeks and year passed. All the hard
work of Rama earned a lot of benefits and he was offered promotion with attractive
increment.
The family moved to a new house, got better clothes and ate healthy foods.
However, as usual, Rama continues to earn more and more money. One day his wife asked
him ‘why are you running for money? We can be happy with what we have now.’ Rama
replied, ‘I want to give the best available in the world to all of you and want you to stay
happy always.’
Two years passed and Rama hardly spent time with his family. The children
yearned to have their father at home. Meanwhile, the sincere efforts of Rama reaped him a
fortune. He was offered partnership and share in profits. He continued to earn more and
more wealth. Now, Rama’s family is one of the richest families in the city. They have all the
facilities and luxuries. Still, Rama’s children strove to meet their father as he was hardly seen
at home.
His children turned teens and they are no more kids. Now, Rama earned enough
wealth to provide a luxurious life to his next five generations. Rama’s family went to their
beach house to spend their vacation. His daughter asked, ‘Dad will you please spend one day
at home and stay with us here?’ Rama replied, ‘Yes darling, tomorrow for sure, I will join
you for the lunch and be with you all for next few days. I’m tired of work and need
refreshment!’ The entire family became very happy.
Unfortunately, the next day, none in Rama’s family were alive as they were
washed out in Tsunami! Rama was too busy even to hear the news about Tsunami. When he
tried to reach his beach house, he saw sea and water everywhere and screamed for his family,
He could not even find the dead bodies of his family.
He can never have them again, cannot even see them and even by paying millions
he cannot get them back to life! He remembered his wife’s words, ‘Why are you running for
money? We can be happy with what we have now.’

MORAL: MONEY CAN’T BUY EVERYTHING!

Questions:
 What happened to Rama’s family?
 Which do you think is more important time or money? Why?
 What is the difference between money and family?
 The Ant and the Dove
Once upon a time a river ran through a green field. There lived
an ant beside the stream. One day the ant went to stream to drink water.
While drinking water, suddenly the ant fell into the running water.

“Help! Help!” shouted the ant. But no one heard him. A dove
was sitting on a tree near the stream and saw the miserable condition of
the ant. The dove felt pity.

Very quickly the dove broke off a wide leaf and throw nearer to
the ant. The little ant climbed onto the leaf. Soon the leaf struck in some
reeds and the ant climbed onto the bank. What a lucky escape!

After a few days the ant was looking for food beside the stream.
He stood still hearing the cooing of a dove. The ant saw that it was the
same dove that saved his life. It was very happy to see the dove and
wanted to show his gratefulness by waving but of no use.

Then to his utter horror he found a hunter carrying a bow and an arrow.
The hunter quietly drew took his gun and aimed at the dove. Just at that
moment the ant bit very seriously on the hunter’s leg. So, the hunter’s
aim failed and it hit a branch of the tree. The dove flapped her wings
and flew off in a hurry.

The hunter bent down to look. There was a tiny red mark on
his leg. And the ant? It was nowhere to bee seen.

MORAL: IF YOU DO GOOD, GOOD WILL COME BACK TO YOU.

Questions:
 Why do you think the dove helped the ant?
 How do you think the ant felt on finding the leaf?
 How did the ant return the favor to the dove?
 The Merchant and His Donkey
A merchant and his donkey lived in a town. He used to sell salt
bags in the market, which required the use of a donkey.

One morning, the merchant loaded two bags of salt on the

donkey’s back and started walking. On their way, there was a river, and they
had to walk through it to reach the market.

When the donkey stepped into the river, he slipped and fell into the
water. Both salt bags were dipped in the river and dissolved. The merchant
helped the donkey to come out of the river.

However, the donkey thought, “The weight had been reduced.”

The merchant had no option but returned home.

The next day, they both began to reach the market. But this time,
the donkey slipped into the river intentionally. The weight on his back was
reduced because salt dissolved in the river water. He started playing tricks
with the merchant.

But the merchant understood his trick, and he thought to teach his
donkey a lesson. A few days later, the merchant put bags on the donkey’s
back. This time, there was no salt but cotton.

When they arrived at the river, the donkey jumped in, hoping that
the weight would be lighter. However, when he emerged from the river, he
discovered that his weight had increased tenfold. Cotton absorbed the water,
causing the bags to become heavier. The donkey had learned his lesson, and
he never did it again.

MORAL: YOU CAN FOOL A PERSON ONLY A FEW TIMES NOT

ALWAYS.
PERFORM DUTIES WITH DEDICATION.

Questions:
 What did the merchant load onto his donkey?
 What happened to the donkey when they reached the river?
 Why do you think the donkey fell into the river the second time deliberately?
 How did the merchant teach the donkey a lesson?
 The Bird with Two Heads
Once upon a time, there lived a great bird named Bharunda, on the banks
of a lake. It was strange because he had two necks with two heads but shared the
common body.

One day, as the bird was wandering, it found a delicious looking red-golden fruit. One
of the heads mumbled, "Oh, what a delicious looking fruit. I am lucky to have found it.
I am sure the fruit is sent from heavens only for me". On saying so, it started eating the
fruit with utmost pleasure. While eating, it kept on praising how it was the most
delicious fruit he had ever eaten.

Hearing and seeing all this, the other head requested, "Oh dear, please also allow me to
taste the fruit that you are praising with all your heart.

The first head did not want to share it, so it laughed and said, "We share
the same stomach. Whoever amongst us eats the fruit, it goes to the same stomach. It
makes no difference on who eats the fruit. Moreover, since I am the one who found this
fruit in the first place, I have the right to eat it myself.“ This selfishness of the first
head hurt him very much, and he went silent with disappointment on hearing the first
head's reply.

Few days later, as they were wandering the second head found some fruits. The fruits
were from a poisonous tree. He declared to the first head, "You are a deceitful person.
The other day you had insulted me by not sharing the delicious fruit. Now I am going
to eat this fruit and avenge your insult".

The first head pleaded, "Please don't eat this fruit, it is a poisonous one. We
share the same stomach. If you eat it, we will both suffer“. Mocking at the first head,
the second head replied, "Shut up! Since I am the one who found this fruit in the first
place, I have the right to eat it myself".

Knowing what would happen, the first head began to cry. The second head
ate the poisonous fruit without bothering the first head's requests. As a consequence of
this action, as soon as the poison reached the stomach, the bird severely suffered.

MORAL: UNITY IS STRENGTH.

Questions:
 What made Bharunda a strange bird?
 What favour did the other head want from the first head?
 Why did the first head didn’t not share the fruit with the second head?
 Why did the first head stop the second head from eating the fruit?
 What happened when the other head ate the poisonous fruit?
 The Tale of Two Fishes and a Frog
Rinki and Chinki were two fishes who lived in a pond. They also had a loving
family and a very good friend, Cheeku the frog. Rinki and Chinki used to play all day long
with Cheeku. Their pond had fishes, frogs, crabs and other animals too. In the evening Rinki
& Chinki used to go to Cheeku’s house to talk every day.

One day a few fishermen were passing by. They had big pots and nets with them.
All of their nets and pots were full of big shiny fishes, fat frogs, and red crabs. Cheeku was
sitting near the edge of the lake and he saw them. The fishermen were passing by the pond
and looking at the fishes, crabs, and frogs inside the pond. One of the fishermen told the
other, “Hey take a look. This pond has so many fishes, crabs, and fat frogs. Perhaps we
should come back here tomorrow and catch them.”
Cheeku was listening to all of them talking. He jumped inside the pond and went
to his house. In the evening Rinki & Chinki came to his house. He had already told his family
and all of his family was ready to leave the house. He told Rinki and Chinki about what he
had heard from the fisherman. After listening to the story, Rinki burst into laughter. She said
“You are so lame, I know too many tricks to dodge the nets. I can avoid getting caught in the
net”. Cheeku was very surprised at her reaction. Meanwhile, Chinki also became arrogant
and said “It is my ancestral home. I can’t leave it for some foolish talk you heard. I have
sharp teeth and I will cut all their nets. Haha” Cheeku became sad that his best friends were
not listening to him.
After a few hours, Cheeku and his family left the pond. They took a nearby well
as their home. Meanwhile, Rinki and Chinki stayed back in the pond. They also told other
fishes and crabs to not worry and stay in the pond. In the morning the fisherman came. They
had big nets and large pots. They threw the nets all over the pond. The nets caught all of the
crabs as they could not swim fast enough. Now Rinki and Chinki were afraid for their life.
Next, they threw another small net and caught the frogs and Rinki & Chinki also. Both Rinki
& Chinki tried their best to cut the net and escape, but they failed.
The fishermen were very happy when they saw the fat and shiny fishes Rinki and
Chinki. They placed both of them separately. After placing the fishes inside their pots, they
hanged Rinki and Chinki on their shoulders. They displayed them like a prize and were very
happy. Meanwhile, Cheeku was sitting outside the well and he saw the fishermen carrying all
of the fishes. He also saw Rinki and Chinki who were their biggest catch being displayed like
a prize. Their arrogant behavior had cost them their life

MORAL: LISTEN TO THE WISDOM OF OTHERS, FOR THEIR

ADVICES MAY SAVE YOU FROM DANGER.

Questions:
 Where did the fish and the frog live?
 Why do you think the fish didn’t listen to the frog’s warning?
 What do you think the frog felt when his friends ignored his advice?
 The Hidden Treasure
Once, there was an old man who had four sons. All four of them were very lazy.
One day, the old man fell sick and was counting his last days in bed. He worried
a lot about his sons’ future as the young men hesitated a lot to work. The sons believed that
luck would favor them.
The old man’s health deteriorated every day and he decided to talk to his sons
about their future. However, his sons did not listen to him.

Finally, the old man decided to play a trick to let his sons realize the importance
of work. He called all his sons and let them sit near him on his bed. He said that he had a
treasure box with gold coins and expensive gems for them and wanted to share the treasure
equally among the four of them.
The young men were very happy and asked where his father had placed the
treasure. The old man replied, “I cannot exactly remember the place where I have hidden the
treasure. However, the treasure box is buried in our land. I’m really not sure about the place
where I have hidden the treasure box.”
Even though the lazy young sons were happy, they were sad that the old man had
forgotten the place where the treasure was hidden. After a few days, the old man died. The
sons decided to dig the land to find the treasure box.
They worked very hard and dug their land. They could not find any treasure box
in the land. Finally, they decided to dig a spot in their land that was a bit different from the
rest of the area. The sons believed that the treasure was buried in that spot. They dug the
specific spot deeply, but got nothing but water.
A passerby who noticed the land and the water flowing from the spot talked to
the sons about farming. Upon his advice, the four sons sowed vegetable seeds, and planted
greens and flowering plants in their land. Since the land was very fertile with abundant
water, within a few weeks, it became a fertile garden with nutritious vegetables and greens.
The four sons sold the vegetables at a good price and earned a good amount of money.
Then they realized that it was hard work that was referred to as ‘Treasure Box’
by their father. Gradually, the four sons overcame their laziness, worked hard, earned more
money and lived happily.

MORAL: HARD WORK ALWAYS PAYS..

Questions:
 What kind of sons the old man have?
 Why did the old man decided to play a trick on his sons?
 What did they realize in the end?
 Do you think the old man did something relevant? Why or why not?
 The King and the Foolish Monkey
One day, the king decided to go on a hunt. He went and killed a
lot of animals and birds. When the king returned, he was quite tired
from the hunt. That is why he decided to sleep early. He asked the
monkey to sit beside him and keep watch like he always did. The
monkey agreed and sat beside the king’s bed with a sword in his hand.

Suddenly the monkey noticed a fly in the king’s room. No

matter how hard he tried to shoo the fly away, it just kept buzzing
around. The monkey was very irritated with it. He thought that the
buzzing of the fly would wake up the king and he would be angry. So,
the monkey decided that it was going to kill the fly and end the buzzing
once and for all.

The monkey started following the fly around and no matter

where it went, he would swing the sword and try to kill it. But how can
the monkey kill such a small fly? Every time he swung the sword, he
would miss and the fly would just buzz away. After some time, the
monkey saw that the fly started buzzing near the king. The monkey got
worried that the king would wake up pretty soon.

So, he ran to the bedside and got ready to strike the fly once
again. Unfortunately, the fly went and sat right on top of the king’s nose.
Do you know what the foolish monkey did then? Well, he struck the
sword right there. The fly saved itself and flew away but the sword
landed on top of the king’s nose and it got cut. Now the king lay in bed
without his nose, cursing his fate for trusting such a foolish monkey.

MORAL: SMALL ACTS OF KINDNESS WILL BE REWARDED

GREATLY.

Questions:
 What did the monkey do when the king slept?
 Why did the king go to bed early?
 Why did the monkey want to kill the fly?
 What happened to the king in the end?
 Two Silly Goats
Once upon a time, in a small village near a town, there were
two silly goats. These goats were not just any ordinary goats. They
were very proud and loved to show off. They lived in the same village
as loads of people and animals. The village was surrounded by a
beautiful river, and there was a narrow bridge that connected both
sides of the village.

One fine day, the two silly goats found themselves at either
end of the bridge. They both wanted to cross the bridge at the same
time, but only one goat could cross it at a time. The problem was,
neither goat wanted to let the other goat go first!

These two silly goats were so proud and stupid that they
started crossing the bridge at the same time. They met at the middle
of the bridge and started pushing and fighting each other. Because
the bridge was so narrow, neither of them could pass each other.
They could not go backward because they were too proud.

In the end, the two goats fell from the bridge and into the
river. They were so busy fighting that they forgot they were standing
on a bridge! The poor goats drowned in the river and were never
seen again.

MORAL: WHEN YOU ARGUE AND FIGHT,

YOU LOSE SIGHT OF WHAT IS RIGHT.

Questions:
 What were the bad traits of the two goats?
 Why did the two goats fight?
 Why the two goats fell from the bridge?
 How did they solve the problem?​
 The Dog and His Reflection
Once upon a time, a dog was hungry and wandering in the streets in
search of food. After some time, he got a piece of bone near a trash bin outside a
house. He took that bone immediately and ran from that place.

The dog was holding his food in his mouth and also hiding it from other
dogs. But unfortunately, he met a group of dogs on his way. That group of dogs
tried to snatch his food but somehow he managed to save his food from them and
ran in the opposite direction.

Now he was going home with it peacefully. On this way, he had to cross
a bridge over the river to reach his home. The bridge was quite narrow and long
but there was no other way to reach home except to cross the river through the
bridge. He started to walk on the bridge. While walking he thought he saw
someone in the water.

He believed he saw another dog when he turned to look into the water.

The dog appeared to be the same as always, and he also had a piece of
bone in his mouth.

His shadow was visible in the water. It was his shadow but he didn't
understand it. "That piece of bone seems tasty. "I want it," the dog said. "My
piece is too little. That other dog's food will be taken by me. Thus, he barked at
the opposing dog. His piece of bone slipped into the water as he opened his mouth
to bark.

The last thing he ever saw of it was when it emitted a "Splash!“ He

said, "I shouldn't have lost my own piece of bone if I had let that dog keep his.“ In
this way, the dog lost his food due to his greediness.

MORAL: BEING GREEDY IS A REALLY FOOLISH ATTITUDE.

Questions:
 Who saw the reflection in this story?
 What did the dog see in the water?
 What does this story of the dog and his reflection signify?
 The Apple Tree and the Farmer
Once when a lion, the king of the jungle, was asleep, a little mouse
began running up and down on him. This soon awakened the lion, who placed his
huge paw on the mouse, and opened his big jaws to swallow him.

MORAL: SMALL ACTS OF KINDNESS WILL BE REWARDED

GREATLY.

Questions:
 What are the characteristics of the lion and the mouse?
 What was the problem in the story the Lion and the Mouse?
 Why did the Lion let the Mouse go?
 How did the mouse help the lion?
 What is the message of the story?