Indian Folk Tales
Village tricksters, rajas and ranis, resourceful daughters, talking animals and figures such as Raja Rasalu appear in these selections associated with Indian storytelling traditions. Published sources include Flora Annie Steel’s Tales of the Punjab and stories selected for Andrew Lang’s fairy books.
The source notes identify the version used and any regional connection that can be supported. A collection label is a way to browse, not proof that a travelling story has only one origin.
123 stories are in this collection right now.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 6-8
The Blind Men and the Elephant
A king gathers all the blind men of his city to feel an elephant, and each of them is certain that he alone knows what an elephant is really like.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
King Shibi and the Dove
A frightened dove flies into King Shibi's robe, and when the eagle chasing it demands its prey, the king offers his own flesh instead.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Savitri and the Lord of Death
When a wise man warns that her chosen husband will die within a year, Princess Savitri marries him anyway, and when Death comes for him, she follows.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Vikram and the Vampire: The King’s Ultimate Test
During one night in a cremation ground, a king repeatedly carries a talking corpse whose riddles delay a dangerous ceremony.
The Cat, the Mouse, the Lizard and the Owl
A cat caught in a hunter's snare begs her old enemy the mouse to bite through the string, and the mouse agrees, but only on his own careful terms.
Indian Folk Tales
The King Who Would Be Stronger Than Fate
A hermit tells a proud king that his baby daughter will marry the son of a slave, and the king sets out to prove that he is stronger than fate.
The King Who Would See Paradise
A king who cannot believe in what he cannot see makes a holy man promise to show him Paradise, and the glimpse he gets costs him far more than he expects.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Why Brahmans Cannot Eat in the Dark
On his wedding night a young bridegroom is caught by a crocodile and begs to be let go until midnight, but his clever bride follows him with a hidden lamp.
Indian Folk Tales
Wali Dad the Simple-Hearted
A poor old grass-cutter spends his life savings on a gold bracelet for a princess he has never met, and his gift sets off a chain of ever grander presents.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
The Beggar and the Five Muffins
A poor beggar and his wife make five muffins and cannot agree who gets the extra one, so they agree that whoever speaks first will get only two.
The Goat Who Laughed and Wept
A goat being made ready for a feast laughs out loud and then weeps, and when the teacher asks why, the goat’s answer changes the way he thinks.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
The Brahman Priest Who Became an Amildar
A king makes his household priest a district governor and gives him three pieces of advice, which the priest follows word for word, with ridiculous results.