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mahabharat 6

The Kauravas and the Pandavas began to prepare for the battle. Drishtadyumna was chosen as the chief of the Pandava army. No one could match the valor of Bheeshma who was rightfully chosen to be the commander of the Kaurava army. But for Bheeshma, there was no difference between the Kauravas and Pandavas. It was [...]

mahabharat 5

The Pandavas were worried about the successful ending of their thirteenth year of exile, the period which they had to pass unrecognized. Duryodhana has mandated that if the Pandavas were recognized during the thirteenth year of their exile, they would have to remain in exile for another thirteen years. According to Veda Vyas’ advice the [...]

Mahabharat 3

From Ekachakra, the Pandavas, disguised as Brahmins, arrived at Panchal to attend the swyambara ceremony of Draupadi. They already had heard of the heavenly beauty of Draupadi, the daughter of king Drupad. At the swyambara assembly, the Pandavas sat next to other Brahmins, away from the royal dignitaries. No one in the assembly recognized the [...]

Mahabharat 2

The Pandavas were superior to the Kauravas in every respect, both in strength and intelligence. They were greatly appreciated for their innate noble qualities. Bheeshma advised Dhritarashtra to declare Yudishthira as the crown prince of Hastinapur since he was the eldest and was endowed with fine qualities of a king. Duryodhan’s jealousy for the Pandavas [...]

short stories

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joke 27

A lawyer’s dog, running around town unleashed, heads for a butcher shop and steals a roast. The butcher goes to the lawyer’s office and asks, “if a dog running unleashed steals a piece of meat from my store, do I have a right to demand payment for the meat from the dog’s owner?” The lawyer [...]

Panchatantra story 10

lion jackal and donkey This is the story about a lion who had a clever jackal as his servant. Whenever the lion killed an animal, he would first have his fill and leave the rest for the jackal. One day the lion made the mistake of attacking a fierce king elephant. The elephant was strong [...]

panchatantra story 11

The unreliable friend Once a merchant was leading a caravan of heavily-laden camels through a jungle when one of them, overcome by fatigue, collapsed. The farmer decided to leave the camel in the jungle and go on his way. Later, when the camel recovered his strength, he realized that he was alone in a strange [...]

panchatantra story 12

crows and owls In India, there lived a colony of crows on a huge tree, known as banyan tree. On another tree nearby, lived a colony of owls. The owls were powerful enemies, frequently attacking and harassing the crows. The owls could see at night, giving them advantage over the crows. The king of the [...]

Ramayana story 3

Hanuman in Lanka The city of Lanka was perched upon a triple-peaked mountain, fortified by high walls and surrounded by a deep moat. Armed guards patrolled the city night and day and stopped any strangers that happened by. Hanuman, being a monkey, could enter the city unchallenged. Hanuman found Lanka to be an astonishingly beautiful [...]

Ramayana story 4

The Famous Battle between Ram and Ravan Ravan decided that it was time that he took matters into his own hands. All his brave generals and warriors had been defeated and he had lost both his brother and his son. Ravan donned his armour and prepared to go into battle. Ravan’s entrance on the battleground [...]

Ramayana – I

Are your children familiar with the Ramayana? Introduce them to India’s favourite legend, one step at a time. After letting them know a little of the story, have a discussion centered around the Ramayana to find out how much they have learned, and the qualities they have imbibed. The Ramayana is rich with examples [...]

short story 201

The Dog and the Shadow A DOG, crossing a bridge over a stream with a piece of flesh in his mouth, saw his own shadow in the water and took it for that of another Dog, with a piece of meat double his own in size. He immediately let go of his own, and fiercely [...]

short story 202

The Hare and the Tortoise A hare one day ridiculed the short feet and slow pace of the Tortoise, who replied, laughing: “Though you be swift as the wind, I will beat you in a race.” The Hare, believing her assertion to be simply impossible, assented to the proposal; and they agreed that the Fox [...]

short story 204

The Charcoal-Burner and the Fuller A CHARCOAL-BURNER carried on his trade in his own house. One day he met a friend, a Fuller, and entreated him to come and live with him, saying that they should be far better neighbors and that their housekeeping expenses would be lessened. The Fuller replied, “The arrangement is impossible [...]

story 301

The Lion and the Mouse A LION was awakened from sleep by a Mouse running over his face. Rising up angrily, he caught him and was about to kill him, when the Mouse piteously entreated, saying: “If you would only spare my life, I would be sure to repay your kindness.” The Lion laughed and [...]

story 302

The Bat and the Weasels A BAT who fell upon the ground and was caught by a Weasel pleaded to be spared his life. The Weasel refused, saying that he was by nature the enemy of all birds. The Bat assured him that he was not a bird, but a mouse, and thus was set [...]

story 309

The Wolf and the Lamb WOLF, meeting with a Lamb astray from the fold, resolved not to lay violent hands on him, but to find some plea to justify to the Lamb the Wolf’s right to eat him. He thus addressed him: “Sirrah, last year you grossly insulted me.” “Indeed,” bleated the Lamb in a [...]

story 2008

The Mice That Ate Iron Once upon a time, there was a rich merchant called Naduk. But times were bad and his business was suffering. He decided to leave the city and find his fortune in a new place. He sold off all his possessions and paid off his debts. All that he had left [...]

story 2009

The Ass Has No Brains Once upon a time, there lived an old lion who was, of course, the king of the jungle. However, he was old and he could not hunt for food. With each passing day he grew weaker and weaker. He realized that he needed an assistant to bring him his food, [...]

story 2005

The Tortoise and the Geese Once upon a time, there was a tortoise who lived in a tank. He made friends with two geese who used to come and visit him at the tank. They were happy for many years. Then there was a drought that lasted for months. The tanks and rivers started drying [...]

story 2003

The Stork and the Crab Once upon a time, there was a stork who caught the fish in a particular tank. The stork always had a full meal. As the years went by, the stork grew older and weaker. His ability to catch fish diminished. At times he would even starve. He knew he had [...]

story 2004

The Crows and the Black Snake Once upon a time a family of crows lived in a huge banyan tree. There was a Father Crow, a Mother Crow, and many baby crows. One day a huge snake came to live in the hole at the bottom of the tree. The crows were unhappy about this, [...]

story 2002

The Big Lion and the Little Rabbit Once upon a time, there lived a big lion in a jungle. Every day he hunted and killed many animals to satisfy his hunger. The animals were worried that one day none of them would be left alive. They all decided to go to the lion and find [...]

story 2001

The Monkey and the CrocodileOnce upon a time, a clever monkey lived in a tree that bore juicy, red rose apples. He was very happy. One fine day, a crocodile swam up to that tree and told the monkey that he had travelled a long distance and was in search of food as he was [...]

short story 1022

AFTER BETTER PROSPECTS A priest, who performed some rites in the house of a generous landlord, was returning with a rich gift. It was a gold necklace.The road was lonely and it was late in the night. Suddenly four bandits surrounded him.The priest realized that to hide the ornament was impossible, to resist them would [...]

short story 1021

RANGA’S REPENTANCE Ranga lived in Melur on the northern bank of river Kaveri. He had the habit of doing things in haste and repenting later. His daughter lived with her husband in Muthur on the southern bank of the river. Ranga often visited his daughter by going across in a boat. One day, Ranga set [...]

short story 1019

A SURE HELP Surekha was the only daughter of her parents and they doted on her. She was not only smart and shrewd, but also active and mischievous. One night, Surekha’s mother called her and said, “My dear, please fetch the broom from the backyard.”Finding the backyard quite dark, Surekha went back and said , [...]