Hitopadesha
The Hitopadesha is a Sanskrit collection of counsel through stories, with sections concerned with gaining friends, losing friends, war and peace. Animal encounters and human disputes explore how advice, suspicion and alliances affect decisions.
Sources here include Edwin Arnold’s Book of Good Counsels. Follow the source note for each selection, especially when a short tale sits inside a larger conversation or contains another story.
13 stories are in this collection right now.
Hitopadesha
All Ages
The Doves and the Hunter’s Net
Caught together in a hunter’s net, a flock of doves follows their wise king’s plan to fly off with the net and seek help from a friendly mouse.
Hitopadesha
Ages 9-12
The Story of the Herons and the Mongoose
Herons trick a mongoose into getting rid of the snake that eats their babies, but they forget to ask what the mongoose might do next.
Hitopadesha
Ages 9-12
The Duel of the Giants
Two giants ask for Parvati as though she were a prize, then accept a judgment that sends them into a duel in which both die.
Hitopadesha
Ages 6-8
The Story of the Brahman and the Goat
Three tricksters set out to steal a Brahman’s goat without lifting a finger, simply by telling him, one after another, that he is carrying a dog.
Hitopadesha
Ages 9-12
The Story of the Tiger and the Traveller
An old tiger offers a golden bangle and a story of repentance, persuading a traveller to approach a danger he initially recognizes.
Hitopadesha
Ages 9-12
The Story of the Jackal, Deer, and Crow
A sly jackal pretends to be a deer’s loyal friend while secretly hoping to eat him, and only a wise old crow sees through his sweet talk.
Hitopadesha
Ages 9-12
The Story of the Vulture, the Cat, and the Birds
A hungry cat talks his way into the home of a blind old vulture by pretending to be holy, and the little birds of the fig tree pay the price.
Hitopadesha
Ages 6-8
The Story of the Cat Who Served the Lion
A lion hires a cat to keep a pesky mouse away from his mane, but once the cat catches the mouse he discovers his fine dinners have come to an end.
Hitopadesha
Ages 9-12
The Story of the Washerman’s Donkey
When a thief creeps into the washerman’s house, the guard dog refuses to bark, so the donkey decides to raise the alarm himself, with painful results.
Hitopadesha
Ages 6-8
The Story of the Terrible Bell
A whole town flees from a bell-ringing goblin in the hills, until one sensible woman goes to see for herself what is really making the noise.
Hitopadesha
The Prince, the Sea-Princess and the Barber
A wandering prince who lost a sea-princess through his own curiosity saves an innocent barber by telling the judge what he saw one night in a herdsman’s hut.
Hitopadesha
The Story of the Faithful Rajpoot
A king secretly follows his highly paid soldier and discovers a demand for a terrible family sacrifice, followed by a supernatural reversal.