The Father and His Daughters Aman had two daughters. One was married to a poor farmer. The other was married to a potter. Once the father went to visit each of them and asked: ‘How the business is going on?’ ‘Very well,’ replied the first daughter, ‘but we could use more water to irrigate the land. We pray every night that God will send us rain!’ When he asked the second...

The Faithful Mongoose Indu and Lav were a young Indian couple and they had a beautiful baby boy. One day, Indu said to her husband: ‘You must look after the baby, while I go down to the river.’ Lav sat down beside the pram and the baby fell asleep at once. A short time later, a messenger arrived from the royal palace and ordered Lav to follow him there to speak...

The Bird Doctor Once there was a man who loved birds a lot. He made an aviary. It was a large cage in which the birds could live and even fly around inside. Everyday, the man would keep fresh grains, nuts and water for the birds. One day, in the absence of the man, a clever cat dressed up as a doctor and went to the aviary. There he called out,...

The Donkey and The Grasshopper A poor donkey was not happy with his voice. One summer day, while grazing in a field, he was captivated by the delightful music of the grasshopper. ‘What is it that you eat that allows you to give off a sound like that?’ he asked one of them. ‘Dew,’ answered the grasshopper, joking. ‘That’s what I need,’ thought the donkey. So he went on eating grass...

The Dog with The Little Bell There was once a dog which had the bad habit of biting anyone who came within its reach. For this reason, its master hung a little bell on the liar around its neck, so that everybody would be warned of the dog’s approach and could take care not to get too close to its somewhat fearsome teeth and extremely powerful jaws. The dog was very...

The Dog, The Cockerel and The Fox A dog and a cockerel who met while on a journey decided to travel together. Night fell. The cockerel went to sleep up in a tree and the dog settled down at the base of the trunk. Just before dawn, as was his custom, the cock crowed. He was overheard by a fox who rushed up and said, ‘What a magnificent voice! Come down,...

The Distracted Astronomer An astronomer was in the habit of going out every night to observe the stars. But no sooner he was outdoors, he was totally absorbed in the sights above him, that he did not look where he was putting his feet, so once he fell into a hole in the ground. A passer-by heard his shouts and ran to help him. How do you hope to discover what’s...

The Clever Barber One day, a barber was going to the next village. On the way he had to pass through a forest full of wild animals. Suddenly all his worst fears came true. A fierce lion came and stood before him. But the barber gathered courage and went to the lion. The lion was surprised to see the barber acting this way. The barber said, “Ah! Here you are and...