A long time ago, a sparrow carried the grain of a gram to a grinding stone to break it into two. While the grinding stone would break the grain into two, a part of the grain remained inside the wooden pricket, the pivot of the grinding stone. The sparrow diligently worked to get the trapped Read more…

In a small town in Tamil Nadu, three brothers lived together in peace. Among the three, the youngest one was crippled and lame. After their father’s demise, the three brothers divided his property and assets among themselves. The two brothers kept a good share of the property. They gave their disabled brother a scrubland, a Read more…

Once upon a time, a merchant’s daughter-in-law went to fetch water from a well outside their village. When she began drawing water from the well, four weary, thirsty travelers arrived there. One of the travelers requested her to give them some water. She hesitated to share some water with them as she didn’t have a Read more…

There lived an old woman with her seven sons in a village named Kurmachal. Six of her sons slaved away in the fields, plowing, sowing and irrigating the land. They needed to get water from a lake far away from their village. To protect their crops from the wild animals, they built a wall around Read more…

Long, long ago, a guru asked his disciples to find out the price of a horse. After inquiring, they found that it would cost them somewhere between fifty to a hundred pagodas. The guru instantly dropped the idea of buying a horse because he couldn’t afford it. One day, the cow at the ashram didn’t Read more…

Once upon a time, there lived a shy, young man by the name of Ajay Singh. While Singh’s night blindness meant that he couldn’t see at night, he undertook maximum effort to hide this shortcoming from others. One day, he decided to visit a friend. It took him quite some time to get there, and Read more…

Kapila was a Kshatriya, or warrior caste, guy who had lost his parents at a young age. As a boy, he looked after a large cattle herd that belonged to a rich man. The rich man had a son by the name of Kasia. Being the same age, Kapila and Kasia spent a lot of Read more…

One day, a group of young girls walked down to the village well to fetch water. While filling their water pots, they started talking about marriage. One vain girl told that her uncle would soon be coming over with bridal presents and the finest clothes for her. Another girl mentioned that her uncle would bring Read more…

The South-Western Indian state of Maharashtra has a rich history of folk tales related to every day of the week. Every day is reserved for a ritual to a specific deity. These rites are believed to bring emotional and financial prosperity to the devotees. This folk tale talks about the sampat vrata, or the special Read more…

Once upon time, there was a king. One early morning, a sweeper lady passed by while the king was sitting on the balcony of his palace. She uttered “Rama, Rama” and looked away. Shocked at her insolence, the king ordered his men to present the woman before him. Trembling, she stood before the king and Read more…