Famous Indian Folktales with Morals for Kids to Read

A country there was a Raja who had an only son who every day went out to hunt. One day the Rani, his mother, said to him, "You can hunt wherever you like on these three sides; but you must never go to the fourth side.

Poor blind Brahman and his wife were dependent on their son for their subsistence. Every day the young fellow used to go out and get what he could by begging. This continued for some time, till at last

Merchant started his son in life with three hundred rupees, and bade him go to another country and try his luck in trade. The son took the money and departed. He had not gone far before he came across some herdsmen

Once upon a time there lived a King who had seven Queens, but no children. This was a great grief to him, especially when he remembered that on his death there would be no heir to inherit the kingdom.

Here was once a farmer who suffered much at the hands of a money-lender. Good harvests, or bad, the farmer was always poor, the money-lender rich.

Here was once upon a time a King who had no children. Now this King went and laid him down to rest at a place where four roads met, so that everyone who passed had to step over him.

There is a certain fisherwoman passed by a palace crying her fish, the queen appeared at one of the windows and beckoned her to come near and show what she had. At that moment a very big fish jumped about in the bottom of the basket.

One day Sun, Moon, and Wind went out to dine with their uncle and aunts Thunder and Lightning. Their mother (one of the most distant Stars you see far up in the sky) waited alone for her children's return.

One day a young prince was out practising archery with the son of his father's chief vizier, when one of the arrows accidentally struck the wife of a merchant, who was walking about in an upper room of a house close by.

There was once a man who had six sons and two daughters and he died leaving his wife pregnant of a ninth child. And when the child was born it proved to be a monkey.

There was once a rich merchant who lived in a Raja’s city; and the Raja founded a school in order that his own children might have some education, and the boys and the girls of the town used to go to the school

There was once a Goala who was in charge of a herd of cattle and every day he used to bring the herd for their midday rest to the foot of a peepul tree. One day the peepul tree spoke and said to him

Once upon a time there was a man who had four sons: two of them were married and two were unmarried and the youngest was named Lita. One day Lita went to his father and asked for fifty or sixty rupees

Once upon a time there was a Raja who had no children. So he and his wife agreed that he should marry again. His second wife bore him two sons, and they were very pleased that the Raja should have heirs

Once upon a time there were a Raja and a rich merchant, and they each had one son. The two boys went to the same school and in the course of time became great friends; they were always together out of school hours;

There was once a Raja who was very rich. He was a stern man and overbearing and would brook no contradiction. Not one of his servants or his subjects dared to question his orders; if they did so they got nothing but abuse and blows.

There were once two brothers who lived together; the elder was married but the younger had no wife. The elder brother used to cultivate their lands and his wife used to draw water and fetch fuel and the younger brother

There once lived a group of monkeys in a jungle. An old monkey was the chief of the group and he ruled them wisely and well. One day, the chief's wife had a wish, "Husband, I think we should all go on a fast."

Once upon a time, there lived a poor couple in Yelavathi.Every day they begged for food and managed with meager offerings from kind people. The husband's favorite dish was dosas "oh, how I long for a nice, crisp dosa!"

Once upon a time Andhra Pradesh, there ruled a very generous King. He was known for his kindness. Every day two beggars would visit the king. One was old and other was a very young man.

Once upon a time, there lived a pundit. One day, he was crossing a field on his way home. As he walked, he suddenly felt something stuck in his throat and started to cough. The object came up to his mouth.

A very long time ago, there lived a king and his three daughters. One day, the king wanted to find out which of his daughters loved him the most. So, he called his daughters and asked

There once was a wise saint who lived in an ashram. He had several devotees who studied under him. Every day, he would teach them things about God and world."Guruji, where is God?" asked a devotee one day.

Once upon a time, there lived a man who had a long beard that he was very proud of. Every day, he would clean his bushy beard and comb it neatly. Then, he would stroke his bread, stretching his neck with pride.

A long time ago, in a village in Mizoram, people believed - long names bring great fortune, and longer ones being even greater! In many of the families, it was customary to keep long names for at least one of the children.

There once lived four traders, who jointly owned a big shop of grains. Year after year, their business flourished and they made quite a profit. Until one season, some rats took refuge in the shop.

There once lived a merchant in a village in Orissa. One morning, he was taking a stroll by the seaside. Some distance away, he saw a man squatting on the beach and filling a cup with sand.

Long ago, there lived a lazy man. He never wanted to work, and was always looking for an easy way to get food. One day, as he was passing by a temple, he saw a mango tree full of juicy mangoes.

One day, a Brahmin was traveling through a forest. A crocodile saw him and called out, "Help me, O Brahmin! I have been separated from my parents, who live in the holy river Ganga!

In a field far away lived a dung beetle. All day it remained immersed in cow dung, lazing around. His favorite pastime was to make balls of cow dung and play with them. "Surely, this is heaven," he would think to himself every day.

Once upon a time, there was a king who had a child with the body of a normal baby, but the ears of an ox! The king always kept his baby's ears covered and don't allow anyone to see him.

A very long time ago, there was a young girl named Tanaiya. She lived in a small hut by a beautiful lake. Tanaiya loved water and would swim in the lake all day long. "Ah, how lovely!" she would sigh with joy.

Once, there lived four friends. One of them was a waver, the other a carpenter, the third a goldsmith and the fourth a hawker who sold vermilion. Every evening, they would meet in the woods and share the day's experience.

Many years ago, it is said, that elephants had small trunks with stubbed noses. One year, it did not rain for many months. The ponds and lakes began to dry up, and the streams had very little water.

In a small village in Haryana, there lived a hardworking farmer. Once, he had grown a huge watermelon in his garden. It was the biggest anyone had ever seen. The farmer was very proud of his watermelon.

At the foot of the Kumaon Hills, there lived a donkey. His master, the farmer, made him work day and night. One day, the donkey thought, "I have a deep voice and I can sing. Why should I work for the cruel farmer?

In a village, there once lived a young man with his one-year-old son. Unfortunately, his wife had died soon after giving birth to the boy, and as there was no one to look after the baby, the young man married again.

Once upon a time, there was a young lion. He lived in the forests of Vrindavan. All the animals of Vrindavan were afraid of the lion as he was a fierce beast.

There once was a poor Woodcutter. One day while working, he feet tired and sat down under a tree to rest for a while. A little bird flying about happened to see the woodcutter and felt sad at his miserable condition.

Once, there lived two brothers-the elder one was rich, while the younger poor. The elder brother was very selfish and arrogant. But, the younger brother was kind-hearted and generous.

The kingdom of Birpur was under constant threat from its enemies. The king ordered his subjects to move into the nearby forest for safety. All the people moved into the forest, except for Sobha Singh’s family.

One evening, a young man named Gopu was traveling through a forest, which was the hideout of many thieves. When he reached the forest, which was the hideout of many thieves.

Once, a farmer was ploughing his field when suddenly his pick-axe hit something under the ground. "Clink!" came the sound. "What could it be?" the farmer wondered.

There once lived a cunning and crafty man in a small village. He always used to make money through deceit. "Why should I work when I have the ability to deceive others!" he would think.

There once was a rich merchant in Bonga. He was so miserly that no one likes him. He never paid his taxes, and he saved every paisa he had. One day, he had to take his goods to another town to sell.

Long ago, there lived three brothers. They had a small firm and little cottage, in which they lived. The eldest brother, Tanyen, worked hard in the firm while his lazy and selfish brothers, Zhoshu and Penhun, ate and slept all day.

Once upon a time, there lived two rodents in a town. One lived in a go down and was very happy there, feeding on the grain in storage: the other lived in a lovely vegetable garden and was very proud of the fresh food he got to eat everyday.

Once upon a time, there lived a very poor man named Ponnan. Although he had little money and food, he always shared whatever he had with people: some, he hardly even knew. His wife would despair over this.

Once upon a time, there lived a rich merchant who had a very cunning servant. One day, the merchant decided to visit his mother. "Pack some food for me and a basket of fruits for my mother," he instructed his servant.

Once a Thakur borrowed money from a Bania. "I will pay you back as soon as possible," he promised. Several days passed and the money was not returned. The Bania reminded him often but to no avail.

Once in a village near a desert, there was a huge mansion with seven doors. The mansion belonged to a rich woman and her three daughters. Every night, the woman would instruct her daughters to lock all the seven doors properly.

Once upon a time, there lived a king named Rana charya. He was a man of high principles and valued hard work and sincerity. The king's favorite proverb was- work is worship.

One day, a traveller was passing through a desert. After walking for a few miles, he felt tried, hungry and thirsty. "How I wish I could rest for a while under a tree!" he thought.

There was a king who had a daughter who never could be induced to laugh; she was always sad. So the king proclaimed that she should be given to any one who could cause her to laugh.

Hans had served his Master seven years, and at the end of that time he said to him: "Master, since my time is up, I should like to go home to my mother; so give me my wages, if you please."

Once upon a time there was a king, who had a daughter, and she was so lovely that the reports of her beauty went far and wide; but she was so melancholy that she never laughed, and besides she was so grand and proud that she said

Once on a time Ananzi planned a scheme. He went to town and bought ever so many firkins of fat, and ever so many sacks, and ever so many balls of string, and a very big frying pan, then he went to the bay and blew a shell

There was a king, who was already old, and had but one son. Once upon a time he called this son to him and said to him: "My dear son! you know that old fruit falls to make room for other fruit.

It is a common saying among men that to forget favours received is the part of a bird or a beast: an ungrateful man will be ill spoken of by all the world. And yet even birds and beasts will show gratitude;

There was an emperor who had three sons. One day the eldest son went out hunting, and, when he got outside the town, up sprang a hare out of a bush, and he after it, and hither and thith

Once upon a time Luck met Intelligence on a garden-seat. "Make room for me!" said Luck. Intelligence was then as yet inexperienced, and didn't know who ought to make room for whom.

One fine spring day two friends went out to a moor to gather fern, attended by a boy with a bottle of wine and a box of provisions. As they were straying about, they saw at the foot of a hill two foxes that had brought out their cub to play;

Once upon a time there were five women who were in a field reaping corn. None of them had any children, but they were all wishing for a child. All at once they found a big goose egg, almost as big as a man's head.

Once on a time there was a lad who was walking along a road cracking nuts, so he found one that was worm-eaten, and just at that very moment he met the Deil.

The Lord was angered at mankind, and for three years there was a great famine over all the world; nowhere in the world was even a grain of corn produced, and what people sowed failed to come up from a drought

There was a certain king who died leaving four sons behind him with his queen. The queen was passionately fond of the youngest of the princes. She gave him the best robes, the best horses, the best food, and the best furniture.

There was a man who was very poor, but so well supplied with children that he was utterly unable to maintain them, and one morning more than once prepared to kill them, in order not to see their misery in dying of hunger

"I 'clar' ter gracious, honey," Uncle Remus exclaimed one night, as the little boy ran in, "you sholy ain't chaw'd yo' vittles. Hit ain't bin no time, skacely, sence de supper-bell rung, en ef you go on dis a-way

Once on a time there was an old widow who had one son and, as she was poorly and weak, her son had to go up into the safe to fetch meal for cooking; but when he got outside the safe, and was just going down the steps

Well, once upon a time there were a woman, and she baked five pies. And when they come out of the oven, they was that overbaked the crust were too hard to eat. So she says to her darter:

Goguelet, an old soldier who fought under Napoleon, tells the story of his wonderful General and Emperor to a group of eager listeners in the country doctor's barn.

When gods and shepherds piped and the stars sang, that was the day of musicians! But the triumph of Phœbus Apollo himself was not so wonderful as the triumph of a mortal man who lived on earth

Once on a time, but it was a long, long time ago, there were two brothers, one rich and one poor. Now, one Christmas eve, the poor one hadn't so much as a crumb in the house, either of meat or bread, so he went to his brother

Once upon a time, the reckless whim of a lad came near to destroying the Earth and robbing the spheres of their wits.

There are so many tales of the vanity of kings and queens that the half of them cannot be told. There was Cassiopaeia, queen of Aethiopia, who boasted that her beauty outshone the beauty of all the sea-nymphs

Venus did not always befriend true lovers, as she had befriended Hippomenes, with her three golden apples. Sometimes, in the enchanted island of Cyprus, she forgot her worshipers far away, and they called on her in vain.

Among all those mortals who grew so wise that they learned the secrets of the gods, none was more cunning than Daedalus.