Story Prism

Aesop's fables are a group of stories thought to have been written by Aesop, a Greek Storyteller. Each Aesop story demonstrates a moral lesson.

Today’s story is an Aesop Fable - The Town Mouse and The country mouse, It’s a story of a country mouse who visits a big city to experience all of its luxuries and realizes the price at which it comes.

Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/archive-the-town-mouse-and-the-country-mouse

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Transcript

A town and a country mouse were cousins. The country mouse was simple and lived inside a cosy log by the side of a beautiful sunflower field.

Children, what do you think the country mouse ate?

Ya, Probably!

Life was. simple in the countryside and the mouse got by on a few sunflower seeds and wheat stalks most of the days. Some days would be a treat as he would get bread crumbs and cheese left over after the farmer’s meal. There was a fresh bubbling stream next to the log, which had all the clean water he needed whenever he was thirsty.

Children, what do you think a town mouse eats and drinks?

Probably!

The town mouse would occasionally visit his country cousin for a breath of fresh air and an escape from the hustle and bustle of the mechanized world. The town mouse was used to lavish varieties of food in the city, and the simple country experience was a nice change for him to relax and unwind. Although the country was a peaceful place to live, the town mouse wouldn’t give up the pleasures of his town to settle for a laid-back life with little to do. He often remarked that he couldn’t grasp why any mouse would want to live in the countryside with so little and barely getting by.

Since the country mouse had never visited the big town, the town mouse on one of his trips to the country suggested that he come to stay with him and experience the town all for himself and not just listen to his adventures and stories. The country mouse happily accepted his cousin’s offer. He was eager to experience real life in the town.

They set off at once for the town.

Children, can you think of one thing that the country mouse would find different in the city?

Upon arrival, the country mouse was astonished at the size of his cousin’s house; a four-storied building with cast-iron railings, white stucco pillars, and massive doors leading to endlessly long hallways. The brightly polished furniture and oak floors sparkled with the reflection of the ceiling’s crystal chandeliers. After a tour of his upscale mansion, it was finally time for the country mouse to try out the delicious spread of food his cousin always gloated about. The cheese, cream, cakes, truffles, tender meat, and champagne were something the country mouse had only imagined.

The dining room was massive. The country mouse gasped at the sight of the assortment of food left behind on the table. The humans were just done with their dinner and there was so much to eat for the mice; cookies, jellies, meat cuts, fresh bread, and ice cream. They jumped in and buried themselves in the rich food. The country mouse stuffed his mouth with the delicious cakes, drank the sweet champagne, and staggered around dizzy. He was having the time of his life with a full belly and having forgotten what it’s like to have little most days or starve sometimes. The world couldn’t be a happier place!

Suddenly there’s a commotion at the other end of the dining hall.

Children, what was the commotion about?

The country mouse sees his cousin dash across the table like his life depended on it and dragged him away. He turns around and to his horror sees the biggest furriest cat he has ever laid eyes on in his life in pursuit. The overfed cat is also clumsy and fails to catch them at every corner and turn. At the same time, a maid steps in with a long broom and beats the floor determined to squash them with it barely missing the mice. Finally, they reach their hole in the skirting board at the end of the hall barely missing and getting clawed by the most vicious beast that is every mouse’s nightmare, the cat.

“HAHA! That was close! But wasn’t it worth it??” Exclaims the town mouse in glee. The country mouse is dizzy, but this time out of fear as he almost got squashed and clawed to death. This isn’t something a simple country mouse can live with every day he thinks to himself and leaves the town having bid farewell to his cousin.

The moral of the story is that it is better to live a peaceful life that has little and is secure than to live in a luxury that can end any moment in disaster.

World Environment Day is around the corner on 5th June. This day is a reminder that people must act now to save the planet Earth.

The Red Moon is s short story that would remind you not just on 5th June, but always to take care of our blue planet.

Free activity sheet available at https://www.rituvaish.com/the-red-moon

Send your artwork to [email protected].

Transcript

There was once a little grey planet that was very sad. The people living there hadn't looked after it, despite them having all the inventions and spaceships you could ever need. They had contaminated the whole countryside so much with rubbish and pollution that there were no plants or animals left.

One day, a little boy was walking on the planet, when he passed a cave and noticed a small red flower inside. The flower was very sick - almost dying - so the boy carefully dug up the flower, with roots, soil and everything. Then, he started looking for a place where he could look after it.

Children, where do you think he will plant the red flower plant?

Let’s listen ahead.

He searched all over the planet but everywhere was so contaminated that there was no place the flower could possibly live in. Then he looked up at the sky and noticed the moon. It seemed to the boy that maybe the plant could survive there.

So the little boy put on his astronaut suit and climbed into a spaceship. He put the little red flower in the back, and off they went to the moon.

Far away from all that pollution - and with the boy visiting it every day to tend it - the flower started to grow. 

Children, how do you look after the plants?

That’s great.

The flower was so well cared for, that it soon germinated, giving birth to others, and these other flowers spread onto other flowers. Before long, the whole moon was completely covered with flowers.

That's why, whenever the little boy's flowers open up, for a few minutes the moon takes on a soft red sheen, like a warning light. Maybe it's telling us that if you don't look after your planet, a day will come when flowers will only be able to grow on the moon.

So children, promise to take care of our planet Earth and remember the 4R’s -reducing, reusing, recycling, and recovering. These help to remind us of the importance of reducing waste production which in turn would save the planet Earth.

Panchatantra stories are one of the most widely translated books in history and are known for their wisdom on practical life. The stories are delightfully narrated, with animals and birds often being the central characters. Thus they provide valuable life lessons in a light-hearted manner.

In today's story, a merchant leaves an iron chest in the care of his friend while he travels to a neighbouring village. And returning, the friend, who was very greedy, told the merchant that the mice ate up his iron chest. To find out how does the merchant get his revenge, listen to the story

Free activity sheet available at https://www.rituvaish.com/the-mice-that-ate-iron-archive

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Transcript

Once there was a rich merchant called Naduk. Time passed, and his business turned for the worse.

Soon it was so bad that he not only lost all his money but also got into debt. He decided to leave the city and find his fortune in a new place. He sold all his possessions to pay off his debts.

Children, what is your favourite possession, something that you would not want to let go of? 

All that he was left with what is a heavy iron chest.

Before leaving his town, Naduk went to see his good friend Bondu. He requested him to keep the chest with him till he returned.

“Of course my friend! I will keep the chest safe for you,” said Bondu.

Naduk thanked him and left.

He travelled far and wide for many years and worked very hard. He started trading in spices and soon all his hard work paid off and he became rich again.

Children, can you name a few spices?

That’s nice.

Happy, that he was rich again, Naduk returned to his town.

He bought a new house and opened a very large shop.

Bondu had also heard that Naduk was back in town and has started a new business with the money that he had earned in all these years. Bondu was getting a little jealous of Naduk. 

One day after work Naduk went to visit his friend Bondu who welcomed him warmly. They talked for long. As he was about to leave, Naduk asked Bondu to return his iron chest.

Bondu had no intention of returning it as he knew that when he sold it, it would fetch him a good price. He put on a sad face and said, “Something bad has happened. I had kept the chest safely in my storeroom, but the mice have eaten it. I am really sorry.”

Children, do you think a mouse can eat iron??

Certainly not!

Naduk understood what was going on in Bondu’s mind.

Patting Bondu’s shoulder Naduk said, “Please don't feel sorry. It's not fair. It is not your fault that the mice ate the iron chest,”

Bondu was pleased to see that Nadu had fallen for his lie.

“How stupid can one be,” thought Bondu.

Children, do you think Naduk is stupid?

Listen ahead.

Meanwhile, Naduk asked Bondu to send his son home with him so that he could hand over the gifts that he had brought for him.

Bondu immediately asked his son Pinto to go with Naduk and fetch the gifts.

Naduk took the boy home and locked him in the cellar of his house.

Children, what do you think will happen now?

When Pinto didn't return by evening, his father got worried and came to ask about the whereabouts of his son.

Naduk said, “Oh! It was so unfortunate that while we were coming to my house, a hawk swooped and carried the boy off. I followed the hawk for some time but could not keep pace. I am sorry my friend.”

On hearing this, Bondu became furious he accused Naduk of lying. He insisted that a hawk could not carry a 15-year-old boy.

A quarrel started and they both went to the court

“Your honour, I had sent my son with this man to fetch some gifts from his house. But my son has not returned since. This man has stolen my son,” cried Bondu.

The magistrate ordered Naduk to return the boy to his father.

But Naduk insisted that a hawk carried off the boy. The magistrate asked him how it was possible.

To this Naduk replied, “If mice can eat up an iron chest, surely a hawk can carry off a boy!”

The magistrate understood that there was more to it than meets the eye here. He asked Naduk to explain everything in detail.

Naduk then narrated the entire story. Everyone in the courtroom had a good laugh. The magistrate ordered Bondu to return the iron chest to Naduk and Naduk to return Bondu’s son.

Tenali Raman was a learned scholar and a poet in King Krishnadevaraya’s court. He was a minister in the court and was also one of the eight poets. He was famous for his wit and quick thinking.

On the Story Prism podcast, Tenali Raman tales are a collection of some of those stories.

Today's story- Raman Outsmarts a Thief is a story that teaches us that being a quick thinker and witty can save us from dire situations. Do you think Raman would be able to save himself this time?

Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/tenali-outsmarts-a-thief

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Transcript

Once upon a time, Raman set out on a long journey. In those days, one had to walk through the jungle to get to another city.

Children, how can we travel from one place to another nowadays?

That’s a lot of ways, but long-long ago, people had to walk if they wanted to travel.

So, Raman started his journey. On the way, another traveller joined Raman, who said, “This forest is infested with thieves. I am afraid they will rob me. Can I travel with you?” the man asked Raman. Raman readily agreed.

That night, the two of them stopped at some place in the forest to rest. Raman was tired and fell asleep soon. His companion was waiting for this moment. In fact, he was a thief who used to rob travellers. He got up and looked under Raman’s pillow without disturbing him. He found nothing. He carefully searched Raman’s pockets looking for money. To his disappointment, he did not find even a paisa! Then he opened the bundle Raman was carrying. Again, he found nothing.

The next morning, the two resumed their journey. They halted for the night again. Raman again had a sound sleep. Whereas his companion yet again searched Raman’s belongings, looking for money and valuables. Again, he was disappointed.

The next day, the two travellers reached the holy city of Tirupati, the famous holy city in southern India.  This was where Raman and his companion had to part company.

At that moment the companion confessed that he was a thief. “ I have never met with failure. But this time I failed. Now that we are parting company, please tell me where you hid the money in the night?” pleaded the thief. “Unless I know your secret, I may not be able to sleep,” he confessed.

Raman smiled, “I knew you were a thief the moment I saw you. I took care to hide money where you would never find it.”

Children, where do you think Raman hid his money?

Let’s listen ahead.

“But where? I looked for it everywhere,” cried out the thief.

“Did you look for it under your pillow?” asked Raman.

“I looked for it under your pillow and found nothing. Why should I look for your money under my pillow?” asked the bewildered thief.

“Because I hid the money under your pillow,” said Raman, “I was confident it was the one place you would never look for my money.”

That indeed surprised the thief's companion. He quietly went off his way thinking about how witty Raman was.

Careful and smart thinking can help one beat even the worst people in the world

Aesop's fables are a group of stories thought to have been written by Aesop, a Greek Storyteller. Each Aesop story demonstrates a moral lesson. Today's story the Foolish Stag is from the Aesop category. In this story, the stag admires his antlers but despises his legs till he faces a challenge. Is the realization too late for him,? Let’s listen to the story.

Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/the-foolish-stag

Send your artwork to [email protected].

Transcript

There lived a stag in a forest, and one day he was very thirsty. After searching for water, he found a lake nearby and bent down to the lake to drink. As he bent over the surface, he saw his reflection in the water. Looking at his own reflection he greatly admired his graceful antlers. He became very proud of his antlers.

“No other animal has such beautiful antlers,” he thought to himself while still looking at his reflection.

He went on, “Ahha! What a great pair of branching horns are these! How gracefully do those antlers hang over my forehead, and add beauty to my face.”

Suddenly, he saw his legs in reflection and he became very much ashamed of his thin legs.

“How can it be,” he sighed, “that I should be cursed with such legs when I have such a magnificent crown.” This made him sad.

At that moment he scented a lion and in an instant was bounding away through the forest. While he was running in the open grasslands, he was really fast as his legs were strong. But once he entered the woods, his wide-spreading antlers caught in the branches of the trees. The more he tried to free himself, the more difficult it became. As the stag was struggling to get free, the lion came nearer and nearer.

Children, what do you think would happen in the story now?

Let’s listen ahead.

The stag realized his mistake and thought that how he praised his horns and but they proved to be useless ornaments on his head. Now he understood the real value of his legs, which almost took him to safety. Soon the lion caught him, and he was the food of the lion now.

So children from this story we learn that we should be thankful for what we have.

Today’s story- The Blue Jackal is from the Panchatantra. It’s a story about a jackal who acts like someone else and tries to rule the forest, but does he succeed? Listen to the story to find out.

Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/panchatantra-the-blue-jackal

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Transcript

Once there was an adventurous jackal in a forest who frequently strayed into the neighbouring village looking for food. The village was filled with dogs that scared the jackal. Although he was scared of the dogs, the jackal loved food and travelled to the city again and again.

One day, as he was going to enter a house, he heard barking. He was shocked to find a gang of dogs running towards the house. They looked violent and caused the jackal to panic. In a hurry, he ran to the next house he saw open. It happened to be the house of a washerman. Scared, the jackal tumbled into a tub of indigo, the blue dye used for bleaching clothes. The dogs couldn’t see the jackal and they ran another way.

Children, what colour was the jackal now?

Let’s listen ahead.

The jackal came back to the forest with his body dyed in blue. He appeared very different from any other animal. With his cunning mind at work, he was pleased as no one would be able to recognize him and he could easily fool anyone in the jungle.

Just like he had thought, everyone in the forest was surprised to see such an unusual animal.

When the lions, tigers, panthers, wolves and other animals in the forest saw him, they were frightened and ran in all directions. They thought to themselves, "We do not know his power and strength. It is better we keep a distance from him. Haven't the elders warned us not to trust strangers?”

Finally, the lions and the tigers gathered courage and asked who he was and who had sent him.

“I have been sent by God himself to look after you. I will now be the king of the jungle,” the jackal said.

The lion protested, “Don’t you know, I have always been the king of the forest.”

“From now, that must change and all of you must serve me” The Jackal said happily.

Some animals like the tiger protested and asked what would happen if they didn’t obey him. He replied, “God would destroy the entire forest if you all didn’t obey me.”

Scared for their lives and their forest, the animals asked the blue Jackal what he would like them to do.

“Bring me lots of food,” said the blue jackal promptly.

The animals quickly scurried and returned with lots of food for the Jackal.

He had so much food that he gave his leftovers to the other animals and said, “ You must serve me fresh food every day. Hope that is clear.”

He even threw out the pack of jackals from the forest because he knew that they could identify him someday.

The blue Jackal was very happy with himself for fooling the entire forest and was happy to be away from the city dogs.

But one day the banned pack of jackals was walking around the forest, howling loudly. The blue jackal began howling too out of habit.

Because of this mistake, the lions and other animals immediately recognized that their king was after all a jackal and not a God-send creature. They at once pounced on the blue jackal and in turn, banished him from the forest forever.

This story is about a very lazy baby dragon. He learns a life lesson and changes for the better.

Free activity sheet available at www.rituvaish.com/originals-the-lazy-dragon.

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Transcript

"Get up Slothy. Don't you want to join your siblings in learning how to breathe out fire?" said the mother dragon lovingly.

"Umm. Please mummy, let me just sleep in a little more. I know how to breathe out fire," muttered Slothy, the baby dragon. He turned the other way and snoozed again.

There were many things Slothy enjoyed doing.

First, Slothy loved to sleep.

Next, he loved to watch television.

There was yet another thing that he loved to do. He loved to play games on the mobile phone.

But what he did not enjoy was learning, from blowing out fire to building stamina to fly fast and far.

Slothy's parents encouraged and motivated him, but all in vain. Father used to try enticing him by doing dragon training at fun places. One day he called out, “Slothy, today we are all going to the top of the mountain. We’ll all blow out fire there. Come, join us.”

“Thanks, Dad, but I am feeling tired, would rather sleep and watch a show to relax myself.”

Mother added, “ You are a dragon and, a fire-blowing dragon, you must practice it too!”

“I know all about being a dragon. Don’t worry mumma!” Slothy muttered watching his favourite Television show.

In short, we can say he was a couch potato.

One day, Slothy's mother coaxed him to get some fruits from the forest.

“I need some fruits as your uncle is coming over for dinner.”

Reluctantly, Slothy agreed and sluggishly walked over to the adjoining forest. The trees were dense and formed a beautiful canopy. The flowers were pretty spreading a lovely fragrance all around. The birds were chirping a sweet song and the earthy smell was refreshing. But none of these interested Slothy. He just wanted to get back to his TV shows.

Plodding through the forest, he arrived at a forest clearing. It was a campsite and some children were enjoying. Slothy stopped to look at them as they were singing songs around the campfire.

The ants go marching one by one, Hurrah-Hurrah!

The ants go marching one by one, Hurrah-Hurrah!

The ants go marching one by one,

The little one stopped to suck his thumb!!

And They all giggled

As the children stopped singing, one of the kids saw Slothy and exclaimed, "Wow, a dragon!"

"Hey, are you a real dragon?" asked the others.

Slothy proudly claimed, "Of course. I am a fire-breathing dragon."

“Wow! That’s amazing,” one child yelled out a thrilling cry.

"We'll believe you when you blow out fire for us," dared one of the children, not believing Slothy.

"Here you go," said Slothy and puffed. But, what was that? He couldn't blow fire. He puffed yet again, but he still could not blow out fire.

The children jeered, "No, you are not a real dragon.”

"But see, I can fly." Slothy flapped his wings and lifted himself just a little above the ground. Plonk, he fell right down.

"Little dragon, don't fool us. Learn to blow fire and fly and then come back to us," they said teasingly.

All you lovely children listening out there, can you guess why Slothy couldn’t blow out fire?

Yes, Indeed that’s because he didn’t practice.

To learn something new we all need to practice, right?

Well, in our story so far, Slothy was a lazy baby dragon and didn’t want to learn anything. He only lazed around and watched TV or played video games.

He felt embarrassed when the children at the camp asked him to blow fire, but he could not!. 

He was sad. Tears rolling down his cheeks. He returned home and locked himself in his room.

That day he felt very humiliated. He decided that he would change and learn to be a real dragon. A real fire-blowing, flying dragon. He would not be lazy and would stop watching television and playing games on the mobile phone.

He went to his father and said, “Dad, I would join my siblings in learning to blow fire, learning to fly fast and far, and whatever else you teach me! I want to be a real dragon”

“Dear son, I am very happy to hear that,” father said feeling elated.

From that day, Slothy diligently learnt all that his father taught. He practised really hard. In the beginning, he couldn't blow fire, but his father reminded him -Practice makes one perfect. Sometimes Slothy made mistakes or failed at a task, but he did not give up and kept on trying. 

Slothy admitted to his mother, “All this is really exciting! I am becoming a real dragon!”

Proudly mother patted him on his shoulder.

One day mummy again sent Slothy to collect fruits from the forest. This time he was excited and immediately agreed. As he walked into the forest, he was fascinated by the trees that formed a beautiful canopy, was awestruck by the vibrant flowers, and was captivated by the birds chirping. He also found the earthy smell very refreshing

While collecting fruits for his family, Slothy reached the same campsite. This time there were two families there. They looked kind of upset.

Slothy went closer to see what the matter was. Looking at Slothy, a little girl yelled out "Look, a fire-blowing dragon. He could help us!"

“Please come and help us dragon, we forgot to get our match sticks and therefore cannot cook our meal on the campfire.”

Children, can you guess how Slothy would help the campers?

Listen ahead .

Slothy said that he could surely help them light the fire for he was the fire-blowing dragon. He mustered up his strength and puffed. There was a spark but not quite strong to start a fire.

Slothy remembered his father's teachings and took a moment to collect his thoughts before focusing again on the task., He puffed again and Lo and behold he blew a hot stream of fire on the logs and lit the campfire.

The little girl’s eyes sparkled. She and all the campers thanked Slothy. They were all delighted.

“Now we can roast our marshmallows!” the little girl jumped in joy.

Slothy, seeing them happy, was elated as well. Waving goodbye, he soared high in the sky.

Indeed, we have to practice if we want to learn something properly, Isn’t it?

Today’s story: The Greedy Fox is a story where the fox learns a lesson about not being greedy. It’s an adapted Folktale from Aesop.

Free activity sheet available at https://www.rituvaish.com/the-greedy-fox-archive

Send your artwork to [email protected].

Transcript

It was deep mid-winter and Felix the Fox was very, very hungry.

But Felix was an extremely lazy fox and was always eyeing other people’s food and planning to steal food by hook or by crook.

His cunning mind was racing fast, "Where am I going to find something to eat?" As he was wandering in the forest as he passed a big oak tree his nose twitched. “Is that some delicious food that I smell?”

He slowly retraced his steps back to the oak tree, trying to trace the source of the smell.

He stopped right in front of the oak tree. He took a deep breath to absorb the aroma.

With his mouth watering, he thought, “It’s my lucky day. I can smell some delicious bread and meat inside this hollow in the trunk. Some shepherd must have left there.”

He couldn’t resist anymore and made himself as small as he could and wriggled inside.

Once he successfully crept inside, he relished the bread and the meat. He ate and he ate and he ate. And then he ate some more. He had never eaten so much food in his life.

"Marvellous," he said, licking his lips when he'd finished the very last crumb.

Children, what do you think happened to him?

Ready to listen ahead?

He was now so fat he couldn't get out again!

He squeezed... and he squeezed ... and he squeezed... but it was no good.

Of course, he hadn’t realized that he had eaten too much.

He thought that the tree had gotten smaller. He panicked.

He poked his head out of the hole and yelled, “Help! Get me out of this horrible hole.”

A weasel who was passing by stopped and asked, “ What happened?”

The fox yelled out, “This tree is shrinking, it’s crushing me to death. Help!”

The weasel lived nearby and used to pass this oak tree every morning as he went about doing his morning chores and every evening when he returned home, knew the oak tree well. He calmly explained, “I don’t think so. It looks about the same size when I passed it in the morning. Probably you have grown bigger.”

Felix with only his eyes poking out screamed, “Stop talking nonsense. And get me out.” “ I am dying I tell you!”

Weasel knew the greedy fox had been eating too much and nonchalantly said, “Well it serves you right for eating too much. You’ll just have to stay there until you get thinner, and then you can clamber out. Perhaps next time you won’t eat so much.”

Saying that the weasel waved bye-bye and walked away.

At noon the shepherd, who had safely placed his food in the tree hollow returned.

“Help,” shouted Felix, the greedy fox, “I can explain what happened.”

But seeing a fox there, the shepherd got scared and ran away.

So, poor Felix had to stay in his miserable hole for 2 days and 2 long nights. But he never ever ate too much food again.

Panchatantra stories are one of the most widely translated books in history and are known for their wisdom on practical life. The stories are delightfully narrated, with animals and birds often being the central characters. Thus they provide valuable life lessons in a light-hearted manner.

Today's story is - The King and the Parrots

This story tells that our environment affects our speech, our behaviour and our personality.

Free activity sheet available at https://www.rituvaish.com/the-king-and-the-parrots

Send your artwork to [email protected].

Transcript

Once upon a time, a tribal king who was hunting in the forest caught two parrots in his net. He was very pleased with this and thought that he would teach the parrots to talk and his children would be happy to play with the talking parrots.

Children, if you had a talking parrot, what would teach him to speak?

Great!

As the tribal king was returning home with his catch, one of the parrots somehow escaped from the net and flew away to the other end of the forest. At the other end of the forest was a sage’s hut. The parrot that escaped started living here with the sage. The other parrot was carried to the tribal king’s home and he began living there with the tribal king and his family.

Many months later, one day, a king from a nearby kingdom was passing through the forest on his horse. While riding, he came near the tribal king’s house. As he came nearer to the house, the tribal king’s parrot who was kept in a cage outside the house, started shouting loudly, “Who is there? Catch this man who is coming here and beat him black and blue.”

Children, why do you think the parrot was saying such things?

Let’s listen ahead.

The king was displeased on hearing the parrot talk in such a filthy way and decided to ride in the other direction. Soon, he reached the other end of the forest where the sage’s hut was situated. When the king came closer to the hut, the sage’s parrot, who was also kept in a cage outside the hut, said politely, “You are welcome, dear sir. Please come in and have a seat. Would you like a glass of water and some sweets?” After having welcomed the guest with proper manners, the parrot called out to his master, “Guruji, you have a visitor. Please take him inside and offer him some food.”

The king was amazed to see the intelligence and manners of this parrot. He realized the contrast between the tribal king’s parrot who was extremely rude and the sage’s parrot who was polite and courteous. He understood that a good environment and training always give better results and that a man is known by the company he keeps.

oday’s story: The Four Friends is an adapted folktale from India. It’s a story about 4 animal friends who save each other from the hunters.

Free activity sheet available at https://www.rituvaish.com/the-four-friends-archive

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Transcript

Once in India, in a beautiful jungle, there lived a crow, a mouse, and a turtle who were the best of friends. The three met every day by the pond to talk and sing. They were always ready to help each other. Isn’t that what friends are for?

Children, I am sure you also help your friends. Can you please share an incident where you helped a friend?

One day while they sat together, a gold-spotted deer ran up, her eyes huge with fear. In a frightened voice, she cried, “Help me, please! The hunters are coming to kill me.”

At once, Turtle pointed to some tall grass. Deer bent her head and slipped into the green grass. Within seconds she was hidden. The three friends then moved around to cover her tracks.

 Children, why did they cover the deer’s tracks?

 Yes, so that the hunters would not be able to trace them.

 And that’s what happened. When the hunters came, they glanced over and when they couldn’t find the deer, they rode away.

“It is safe now,” called Mouse after the hunters had left.. Deer came out, thanked the three, and stayed to talk and play with them. She enjoyed herself and decided to live near her new friends.

 Children, how many friends they are now?

That’s right, now they are 4 friends.

Many days passed happily. Everything was peaceful, and the forest was a happy place for them. Then one morning, Crow, Mouse, and Turtle met as usual. But their friend Deer did not come. They waited for hours and hours. When still she didn't come they grew worried

“We must go and search,” said Crow and flew off at once. Suddenly, the high-flying crow saw Deer below in a nearby clearing. Her leg was caught in a hunter’s trap and she could not move. Crow quickly called his friends and they came to help.

“Don't worry, dear friend,” said the Turtle kindly. “We won't leave you. We'll all think of a way to help you.” Turtle talked and talked comforting Deer, while Mouse quickly nibbled through the rope and freed her.

Into the woods jumped Deer as Crow flew off and Mouse scampered away. But while the slow-moving Turtle crawled to safety the hunter returned.

“Oh, My deer has escaped,” he shouted furiously. “But at least I have a Turtle.” He picked up poor Turtle, tied a rope around his leg, and started towards home. Crow looked down as he flew and saw his poor friend being carried away.

He quickly found Deer and Mouse and worriedly said, “Now we must save Turtle.”

And the friends quickly hatched a plan.

Deer, with Mouse on her back, ran swiftly ahead of the hunter. Then she laid down in the path, as still as could be, while Mouse hid. Crow perched right on Deer’s face and looked like he was pecking at the dead body.

 Children, can you guess the friends’ plan?

Listen ahead.

The hunter came up. He smiled when he saw the deer, thinking, “Ah, the deer didn't go too far. I'll just scare off that hungry crow and take my dinner home. It will be better than old turtle's meat.”

He tossed Turtle, took out his knife, and walked eagerly towards Deer. Meanwhile, Mouse ran right up and chewed off Turtle’s rope. Turtle slipped into a nearby pond and Mouse scurried under a stone.

When the hunter was about 3 feet away, Deer suddenly jumped up and ran away to safety. At the same time, Crow flew off, leaving the hunter alone. He waved his hands and stomped his feet in a rage.

“Well, at least I have the turtle,” he said after a while. He turned back but Turtle was gone. He looked all around but never found him.

The hunter was now alone in the silent forest. And very-very mad. But there wasn't anything he could do. So at last he walked home, with a frown on his face and nothing in his hands.

When his footsteps had faded and the woods were safe again, the four best friends met together at the pond. They had a grand time talking about their adventures while they celebrated both freedom and friendship.