The Clever Violinist

One day a violinist decided to play some music as he was walking through the woods. But this attracted a large fierce bear.
‘How well you play,’ he said to the man, to gain his confidence.’ could you teach me to play as well? ’
‘Of course,’ answered the violinist, not fooled at all.’ as long as you do what I tell you. Put your paws in the crack of this tree.’
The bear did as he was told and the musician was quick to jam his paws in the crack with a large stone. The bear was stuck tight.

The next time the violinist played, he attracted a lion, and the same scene was repeated. This time the beast was caught in a trap an ended up hanging by its tale from a tree. Then it was a turn of a tiger, which was captured by a similar trick.

When the three wild beasts managed to free themselves, they chased after the violinist, seeking revenge; but they found him in the company of a new friend: A huge woodsman and a giant axe, which chased the animals away.

And, so the clever violinist crossed the forest in safety.

The Fox and the Goat

A thirsty fox was wondering about the countryside looking for water. Eventually he found a well, but the water was only at the bottom.The fox studied the problem and realized that there was a pulley system to bring up the water, one bucket going down causing another bucket to come up. So the fox jumped in to the bucket at the top and his weight immediately caused it to drop to the bottom, where he could drink all the water he desired.
However now he could not get back up, But the fox had ago realized that the world is full of fools. And a short time later along came a goat, looking for water in the well.

The fox explained the situation and said to the goat,’Get in to the bucket, then you can come down and I can go up.’
‘Yes but what about afterwards?' asked the goat.
‘That’s even simpler; then you can come up and I can go down.’
So the goat got in to the bucket, and in a moment she was at the bottom of the well, and the fox was at the top. But as soon as he was up, the fox bade farewell to the goat and made to leave.
‘Wait a minute,’ shouted the goat. ‘You promised to get me back up.’

‘Who promised?’ asked the fox.
‘All we did was to discuss the possibilities.’
Said the fox at last.

The Frog Prince

A young and very beautiful princess lost her ball in the water, while she was playing by the side of a lake. She began to cry so sadly that the frog who sat beside the lake croaked to her,’ what will you give me if I get you your ball back?’

‘All the gold you could wish for!’ replied the princess.’ No, I asked only that I be allowed to stay with you and be your friend,’ said the frog. The princess gave her word (what did such a promise cost her if it meant she could have her ball back?), but she had absolutely no intention of keeping her promise.

In fact, the moment she had her ball she ran off so fast that the frog could not keep up with her. Nevertheless, after a while the frog arrived at the place.
As soon as she saw the frog, the princess was frightened. She ran to ask for help from her father, but the king, who knew what had happened, ordered his daughter to keep her promise. So the princess picked the frog up gently in her hand, but with a shiver of disgust, she let it drop to the ground again.

But that one brief touch was enough to break the spell that bound the frog, and caused it to turn back in to a young and handsome prince, he had been before.
The story ends with the happiest of wedding ceremonies.

Where there is great love, there are always miracles

The camel and the Jackal

(The story of the cunning jackal)

Once there was a jackal that hated water but needed to cross the river. He decided to come to an agreement with a camel.
‘If you carry me to the other side of the river,’ he proposed to the camel,’ I will show you a field full of sugar cane. Then while you eat sugar cane, I will dine on the fish and crabs I find on the river bank.’

The camel agreed to this bargain and the jackal jumped up on his back. The crossing went perfectly. But afterwards the jackal, which had a much smaller stomach, satisfied his hunger long before the camel. While the camel was still eating, the jackal began to howl. The noise brought the farmers running with big sticks. The little jackal managed to escape, but the camel could not avoid beating.
‘Why on earth did you do that?’ asked the camel when he was carrying the jackal back across the river.

‘Oh, it’s just that I nearly always sing for a while after dinner,’ replied the jackal.
‘Well, I nearly always have a roll in the water when I’ve finished eating,’ said the camel, and he splashed down in the river.
So with a ducking in the river, the camel repaid the jackal for the beating it had received.

THE EVIL OF CUNNING.

The Mongose and the Child

Nimal and Kanthi lived in a large country house with their little son Ganesh. They kept a mongoose as a pet. Ganesh and the mongoose were very fond of each other. They became good playmates.
One day Nimal was at his farm. Kanthi had gone out for some work. Ganesh was fast asleep in his cradle. The mongoose was sitting by the cradle to protect Ganesh from any harm. Suddenly it saw a serpent creeping towards Ganesh. It jumped up and caught the serpent's neck. There was a fierce fight between the mongoose and the serpent. At last the mongoose killed the serpent.

After some time, the mongoose saw Kanthi coming towards the house. It ran to the entrance to greet its mistress. Kanthi saw the marks of blood on the mouth and paws of the pet. She feared that it had killed her beloved son. Wild with anger, she picked up a stick from the verandah. She rained heavy blows on the poor animal and killed it.

Then she ran into the inner room. She was very happy to find Ganesh safe and sound. She also saw the dead serpent. Now she realised her mistake. She had killed the innocent and faithful animal who had saved the life of her son. Her sorrow knew no bounds. But it was no use crying over spilt milk.

LOOK BEFORE YOU LEAP.

The Story of the wise Partridge

This story (Thiththira Jathaka) was told by the Buddha in order to teach that respect must be paid to age, that is, to senior & elders

Once upon a time, long long ago, in the days when birds & beasts used to talk to each other in their own speech, there were three friends –a partridge, a monkey and an elephant.
They lived near each other and met together almost everyday in the shade of a great banyan tree that grew on the side of one of the great mountains in the country.
It is true that they did not quarrel or fight with each other, but it was a fact that, in there speech as well as conduct, they did not obey nor show respect one to another. There was no common life in their case.
In course of time each began to think and to feel that it was not right for them to live in this way. They saw that the correct thing for them to do was first to find out which of them was the senior, that is, the oldest among them, and then to honor and obey him.
One day as all three sat together in the shade of the old Banyan tree, an idea came to them.
Both the Partridge and the monkey, turning to the elephant, said to him:
“Friend Elephant, how long have you known this Banyan tree? How big and high was it when first you saw it?”
Said the Elephant in reply:
“When I was a baby, this Banyan tree was only a young little plant. And when I walked over it, as I used to do in those days, I remember that the tip of its top most branches just touched the underside of my Belly. Thus I have known this tree from the time it was a little young plant.”

The monkey was next asked the same question by the other two, and this was his reply:
“Friends when I was a little one, I remember that as I sat on the ground I was able, without stretching out of my neck, to eat the top most shoots or sprouts of this Banyan tree. So you will see I have known this Banyan tree from the days when it was but a small tender plant”
Then the wise Partridge in turn was asked the same question by the other two, and this is how he replied:
“Friends, a long long time ago, there was a great Banyan tree at a certain spot not very far away from this place remember I ate a fruit of that tree and voided the seed here. It was from that seed that this Banyan tree sprouted and grew. Thus my knowledge of this Banyan tree goes back to a time even before it sprouted forth. And so I am older than two of you.”

Hereupon the monkey and the Elephant said to the wise Partridge:
“Friend, there can be no doubt that you are the oldest. From now on, being the senior among us three, you shall always receive from us honor and respect, homage and obedience, service and attention; and , in word as well as deed, all the duty and regard due to an elder. Moreover, we will accept and abide by your advice at all times. And we trust that you, for your part, will be pleased to give us advice as we may need us anytime. ”
From that time onward the wise partridge gave them advice as and when the need arose. And he made them observe the moral law as he himself did.
Living in this manner, in peace and amity, these three friends –The partridge, the monkey and the Elephant-passed their days happily till, in the fullness of time, they died and were reborn in Heaven.

Respect for Age

Sirimal and the Bottle of Toffees

On a New Year Day, Sirimal went with his mother to a rich lady's house. The rich lady was his mother's friend. The two ladies embraced and wished "A Happy New Year" to each other. Sirimal bowed down to the lady and received her blessings.
The lady put a bottle of toffees before Sirimal and said, "Sirimal, have as many toffees as you please." Sirimal's eyes gleamed with joy. He put his hand into the bottle and filled his fist with many toffees as his fist could hold.

Now, the fist filled with the toffees was much bigger than the narrow mouth of the bottle. So Sirimal could not take out his hand from the bottle even though he tried hard. He pushed and pulled the bottle with his free hand. He turned the bottle right and left. Sirimal's wrestling with the bottle amused the two ladies.

After some time, his mother said, "Sirimal, don't act silly. Just open your fist and let a few toffees go.If you do so, you can easily pull out your hand." Sirimal followed her advice and pulled out his hand.

DON'T TRY TO GRAB TOO MUCH AT A TIME.

The Poor Man and the Rich Man

A poor cobbler and rich businessman were neighbours. The cobbler's house was also his workshop. He sang merrily while he mended shoes. He never felt it necessary to shut and bolt the door and windows of his house. At night he would say his prayers and go to bed. He enjoyed sound sleep all through the night.

The rich man always saw the merry cobbler. He saw that there was nothing that worried his poor neighbour. But the rich man was full of worries himself. He could neither sing nor smile. He always shut and bolted each and every door and window of his house at night. He could never sleep peacefully. He was always worried about the safety of his wealth.

One day the rich man called the cobbler to his house. He gave him five thousand rupees and said, "I don't need this money. Please keep it with you. It's yours."

At first the cobbler was happy to receive the money. But soon the big amount of money disturbed his carefree and peaceful life. For the first time he closed and bolted the door and windows of his house. He woke up several times during the night to make sure that the money was safe.

The very next morning the cobbler went to his rich neighbour's house. With folded hands, he said to the rich man, "Sir, please take back your money so that my merry songs and sound sleep can come back to me."

WEALTH DOES NOT ALWAYS
BRING HAPPINESS.