The Greatest Warrior Who Was a Liar
It was a bright sunny afternoon when Karna had finished his archery session. Lord Parashurama was looking tired after an intense day of training. He asked Karna, “It is too hot. I am tired. I will take some rest.” Being a good disciple, Karna asked his master to put his head on his lap. Parashurama smiled and both the teacher and student started moving towards a huge banyan tree.
Lord Parashurama, the sixth avatar of Lord Vishnu (the preserver) was one of the greatest warriors in Hindu mythology. Parashurama, a Brahmin, had received his famous axe from Lord Shiva (the destroyer).
Karna was amazed to see his guru sleeping like a baby within a few minutes. For a moment he realized that this was the man who taught him all the advanced skills of archery and the art of warfare. Today Karna was ready to fight any battle against any warrior. After a while, a bee flew in and sat on Karna’s thigh. He was feeling irritated as the bee refused to go away. Karna knew that any kind of movement could disturb the sleep of his guru. His master’s sleep was more important than the suffering this little bee gave. The stubborn bee refused to go away and started to bite and sting. It was not very long when blood started to ooze from Karna’s thigh. Within seconds, blood started to flow profusely and a stream of it touched Lord Parashurama’s cheek. Parashurama was horrified to see so much blood all around him. Karna explained to him what the bee had done and why he didn’t want to wake him up. Parashurama asked, “Karna, my love, how did you put up with so much pain without a whisper?” Karna replied, “It was not pain, My Lord. I could easily bear such discomfort.” All his life Parashurama thought that Karna was a Brahmin but a soft-bodied Brahmin could have never endured this much pain. It was not long that Parashurama realized that Karna was not a Brahmin. He was a Kshatriya (a Hindu caste of warriors). Lord Parashurama had sworn to teach his skills only to Brahmins. He demanded Karna to tell him the truth. Karna told his master that he was a charioteer’s son and was from a lower caste. He knew he had hurt his teacher’s sentiments and acquired the knowledge of mighty weapons by lying to his master. This angered Lord Parashurama, who laid a curse upon Karna that he would forget all his knowledge of weapons at the moment of his greatest need.
Years later, in the battle of Kurkhshetra (or Mahabharata War), Karna lost his powers to launch the Bramhastra (the divine weapon which could destroy anyone) and was killed by his brother and arch rival Arjun. (Abhishek Kumar)
Unity is Strength
A long time ago, an old sage had five young sons. The sons were strong enough, but they always quarreled with each other all day, and they didn’t want to share anything among them. Since he was getting old, the old person was thinking about distributing all of his assets to his children. However, he was worried that when he was gone forever, his children couldn’t maintain his hard earned assets. One fine morning, he called all his sons. He said, “Sons, bring some wood sticks to me.” Hence, they brought back some sticks and gave them to him. Then the old man tied all of the wood sticks together and kept them in front of them. After that, the old person said, “Break it and take all of my assets!” The sons tried their best to break the bunch of sticks individually, but they could not make it. They sweated, “Daddy, It’s impossible!” After that, the old man untied the wood sticks and gave one to them, “Now break a single stick”. They easily managed to break the single stick. Therefore, the old sage said to his sons, “Dear sons, if you stay together, no one can harm you. But, if you stay alone you will collapse like the single broken stick.” All of the boys then repented for their misdoings and understood the strength of unity. After that day, they never quarreled with each other and happily lived together thereafter. (Minhaz)
Folk Tale
Once upon a time, a father with his five year old son wanted to sell their donkey. One day, they decided to go to the downtown to sell their donkey. They walked the donkey on their way. A man saw this scenery and asked them, “Why did you guys not ride the donkey instead of walking it?” Thus, the father asked his son to ride on the donkey. After a period, they encountered a woman. The woman said to the son that you are not respectful to your father. After hearing these words, the son let the father ride the donkey. After some time, they encountered another woman. She said "poor kid", and blamed the father about not taking care of his son. Therefore, the father decided to ride the horse together with his son. After walking a distance, they encountered another man. This time, he accused the father and son of abusing the animal. He said that "this donkey was weak and skinny; how could you guys rode on him". The father and the son had no choice but carrying the donkey on their back and walking to the downtown. When they crossed the bridge, the donkey could not stand the torture and tried to escape. Unfortunately, when the donkey escaped, it fell to the river and drowned.
This story tells us that we do not need to always listen to others and follow their rules. Sometimes we should be confident about our choice, ideals and thought. The most important thing is that we need to have our own opinion toward a thing and make our mind to do it. (Cheng Ta)
Crane and the Crab
Once upon a time a crane used to live close to a pond. The pond was full of various types of fishes and crabs. The crane used to feed on them by catching them every day. After a long time passed the crane grew older and became weaker. It was hard for the crane to hunt in his old age because he was not agile enough. He became so weak that fish use to swim around him but he was unable to catch them. The crane became weaker and weaker as the days passed and then the crane decided to think of a different way to get his food. The crane decided to devise a plan to catch his food.
One day he went to the pond without any intention of catching any fish and looked sad. Fishes and crabs saw the crane not trying to catch them for long time. This made them curious and they asked the crane what was the matter. The crane told them that he was very sad because all of them were going to die. This made all the animals of the pond worried and they asked why would they all die. The crane replied that some people from near the village were going to fill the pond and use this land for growing crops. He further said that he could save them because there was another pond at a distance which couldn’t be covered by land. But he said that he could carry few fishes at a time and would make one trip per day because he was old and weak and could not make multiple trips.
The animals of the pond agreed with him because he portrayed himself as their savior and did not show any interest in eating them. He started taking few fishes in his beak every day and at a little distance behind the rock he used to kill and eat them. Several days passed and crane grew stronger, and then one day the crab asked the crane to carry him to the other pond. The crane thought it would be a good idea to try some new food though it would be hard to kill as compared to fish.
The crane agreed and took the crab in his beak and started taking him away. After some time the crab got suspicious and asked how far the other pond was. The crane was blind in his greed to eat the crab and replied “I am not taking you to the pond; instead I am going to kill and eat you,” without realizing that crab was better equipped to defend himself compared to fishes earlier. Crab suddenly tightened his claw on crane’s neck and bled him to death. Somehow crab managed to reach the pond and narrated his experience with the rest of the pond animals. (Pradeep Vyawahare)
Moral: Excess greed is harmful.
Pull up the Seedlings to help them Grow
In ancient China, there was a man who grew seedlings on his farm. Every day he went to the farm to check how tall his seedlings grew. He was very eager to see the seedlings grow up quickly. However, one day passed, two days passed and three days passed. The seedlings grew very slowly and you could barely see the difference. He walked around the farm anxiously and said to himself, “I have to do something to help them”. One day, he thought of a good plan. Guess what he did? He went to the farm hastily and pulled up every seedling! He worked from noon to sunset. After went back home, he said while he was still breathing heavily, “So exhausted today. But it is so delightful to see all the seedlings grow up a lot.” His son did not understand what happened, but had a bad feeling. He ran quickly to the farm, no surprise, all the leaves of seedlings began to wither.
This story tells us that we should not rush to do anything. For certain thing, it just does not work if you rush, because it needs accumulation of time. Just like another old Chinese saying “A watched pot never boils”. (Rui Liu)
Apes and the caring pigeon (from Kalila wa-dimna)
Once upon a time in very old times, there was a group of apes who lived together on a mountain. They were living a happy life until there was a long winter. The apes were not prepared for the winter and long winter nights started to get unbearable for them. They had no home and were so cold all the time, so they started looking for light, hoping that the light would be a sign of fire, which could keep them warm.
Any small light was a trigger for them to move and stay next to it, even if the light was too small and had little heat. In their search for fire, one day they found a firefly; they got so excited to see the light coming out of it. They mistook the firefly for a small fire, so they started to gather firewood to initiate a big fire. They gathered a lot of firewood, put all of it on the poor firefly and began to blow in to the firewood with their whole strength to extend the fire. Although they were trying so hard, as there was no fire to begin with, their efforts were useless.
There lived a pigeon above a tall tree, close to where the apes were trying to make fire, and he was observing the poor apes and their fruitless efforts. He knew they would not be able to make a fire with a firefly, so he thought he should go to the apes and explain to them that they cannot make a fire with a firefly. He flew and sat next to the biggest and strongest ape and started to explain to him that a firefly is not fire. He said, “I can see that you have been trying too hard to make a fire with this poor firefly, but you should know that this creature only shines at night. It is only reflecting the little light existing in the environment, but you have mistaken it for fire. This firefly cannot give you any heat and you are wasting your time!”
The strong ape was annoyed with what the pigeon said and said to him, “You should mind your own business; we are making fire here!”
There was a jackal passing by which heard the conversation between the apes and the pigeon. He thought he should help the pigeon as he knew the apes, so he went to the pigeon and said: “if you were a wise pigeon, you would not be trying to educate the apes! These apes would not accept your logic and they would only hurt you if you continue your attempts to convince them.”
But the pigeon did not accept the jackal’s advice and still wanted to help the apes, so he went to another ape and said, “Listen! you cannot make fire with a firefly, it would make no heat and you will die from cold.” He talked to many apes, so finally the apes got angry and caught and decapitated the pigeon. The apes continued their efforts to make their fire with the firefly, but the night got so cold and none of them survived till the next morning. (Sahar Mihandoust)
Golden, Silver and Iron Axe
Once upon a time, a woodman who made his living by logging completed his work. He was heading for home. He kept walking with fatigue. He found a river got in the way, and he decided to have a rest on the bridge. He leaned against a wood rail and enjoyed the beautiful riverside view. Unfortunately, his iron axe slipped from his hand at this time. The iron axe sank into the river quickly. The poor man cried, “Oh Oh! That’s my only axe! How can I make money without my axe!” Suddenly, the river was spilt open and an old man appeared in front of the woodman when he decided to dive in the river to find the axe. “I’m the patron of this river.” The old man said, “Why are you sneezing in my place?” The god asked. “I dropped my only axe into the river”, the woodman replied tearfully. “Don’t worry, my son, I can help you,” the god comforted him and disappeared. Soon the god showed up with two shining axes in his hand; one was made of gold and the other was silver. “Which one is your axe, the golden one or the silver one?” the god asked, showing these two axes to the woodman. “I’m sorry, I’m afraid they are not mine,” the woodman responded honestly, “Mine is an old and iron axe.” The woodman responded. The god smiled and held out the iron axe. “Here you go, my son. Both the golden and silver axe are yours. You deserved it for your integrity.” The god left three axes to the woodman and disappeared magically. The woodman was awarded for his honesty and he lived the rest of his life comfortably.
However, a neighbor of the woodman envied him. He purchased a new axe and dropped it into the same river on purpose. He pretended to cry on the bank of the river and squinted to find the god. The god appeared and asked him, “What can I do for you, son?” The neighbor replied, “My axe was dropped in your river.” The god disappeared for a while, and came up with golden axe and silver axe in front of the neighbor. “Which one is yours, my son?” The god asked. The neighbor chuckling answered, “Both are mine!” The god was sternly watching the neighbor, shaking his head and left nothing to him, not even his new axe. The neighbor got his penalty for his greed and dishonesty. (Tianyu Chen)
A Tiger and a Rabbit
Once upon a time, there was a little tiger in the forest. His dream was flying in the sky. You know, it is impossible for a tiger to fly in the sky. However, it was his dream. In order to achieve his dream, he got up early to exercise flying, and didn’t go to bed until midnight every day.
One day, the door of his house was struck after midnight. He asked, “Who?” A sound of fatigue came, “Is anybody there? I am a little rabbit. I am lost in the forest. Could I live in your house?” The little tiger opened the door. There was a little rabbit outside the door. By the light of the bright, the little tiger saw the little rabbit blush. Then, the little tiger let the rabbit come into the house.
After that, the little rabbit lived in the little tiger’s house. Furthermore, the tiger and the rabbit got along very well. Every time when the tiger went to exercise flying, the rabbit always accompanied the tiger. When the tiger felt sad because it was difficult for him to fly, the rabbit always encouraged and comforted the tiger. On the other hand, when other animals bullied the little rabbit, the little tiger always bravely stood up to help the rabbit. As the time went by, they got used to living together.
Suddenly one day, an angel came to meet with the little tiger. The angel said, “I am touched by your exercise. I can help you grow wings to fly in the sky, but you will never return to this forest.” The tiger was very happy because he would achieve his dream soon. The little rabbit was also happy for the little tiger. However, the little tiger could not see the sadness and pain in the eyes of the little rabbit. On the second day, the little tiger went with the angel. The rabbit was very sad, crying all day.
After a few days, the little tiger began to miss the little rabbit. He missed the smile, the shadow, and the embrace which made him reassured. But he could not return to the forest any more. He was very regretful to leave the little rabbit. He was worried that there would be other animals to bully the little rabbit. But, he could not do anything.
The little tiger went to ask for the help of the angel, and he said, “Dear angel, could you please help me? I don’t want to fly in the sky any more. I want to return to the forest. I want to live together with the rabbit.” The angel said, “It is ok. I can let you go back to the rabbit, before you have to be a watchdog for us in two years. You will lose your dignity as a tiger if you have to be a watchdog for us.” The tiger said, “Yes, I will do it.”
After two years, the little tiger fulfilled the watchdog mission. Then, he returned to his house successfully. When he arrived at the door of his house, he was worried and he wasn’t sure that the rabbit was still in his house. He was wandering in the door of his house, and dared not knock on the door, because he is afraid of nobody inside. Suddenly, the door was open. The little rabbit was still waiting for him in the tiger’s house.
“Will you love me in the morning?”
“Forever, and ever.” (Yiting Dong)
Three Stars
There was a red star, a green star, and a yellow star in the sky. They were very good friends with each other. They were playing a game of hide-and-seek one day. The red star saw a piece of white cloud and ran towards the white cloud quickly trying to hide under the white cloud. Unfortunately, the red star was running in a big rush and fell to the ground. Bang! The red star fell on a tree that was beside a broad road.
Hoot! A car was driving on the road. The car saw the red star and stopped. The red star wondered: “Why don’t you go?” The car said, “Because you are red light. I need to wait for green light to go.” In a short time, there were a lot of cars stopping in front of the red star. The various cars blocked the road, and they honked the horn and shouted: “Change to green light! Change to green light!” The red star was worried. “Where can I find green light? Oh, I can ask for help from the green star!” The red star figured out a great solution. However, the green star was in the sky, and who could go and ask for help from the green star?
A little bird said: “I can go to tell the green star.” The little bird used all her energy, and her wings were sour after a while. She could not fly anymore, and she saw an eagle. The eagle said: “I will go and tell the green star.” The eagle opened his wide wings and flew to the sky. On the half way to the sky, the eagle was tired and he saw an airplane. The airplane said, “I will go and tell the green star.” The airplane flew very fast and reached very high, but she still could not reach the green star. At that time, the airplane saw a rocket, and the rocket said, “I can go to tell the green star.” The rocket flew to the sky in one second. The green star and the yellow star were looking for the red star when the rocket reached the sky. The green star ran down immediately after hearing that the red star was waiting for help. The yellow star followed the green star and said: “I want to go, too.”
Once the green star arrived, all the cars were very happy, but no car started to drive. The red star asked: “Why don’t you start to drive?” The cars said: “Close your eyes. You need to close your eyes.” The red star closed the eyes immediately. And the green star and yellow star followed the red star and closed their eyes also. The cars said: “Open your eyes! Open your eyes!” All the three stars opened their eyes.
“No. Green star open eyes, red star and yellow star close eyes.” The cars said: “That is right, you three take turns to open eyes.” The red star and the yellow star closed their eyes immediately, and the green star opened the eyes widely. And all the cars left one by one sequentially. (Yu Hua)
More folk tales for Landon and Annabel
Still more folk tales
