South India
Explore stories associated with southern Indian traditions, including selections from Tales of the Sun; or, Folklore of Southern India. The source notes give the particular collection and regional information available for each telling, including its historical assumptions and later adaptations.
29 stories are in this region right now.
Tales of the Sun (South India)
Ages 9-12
The Mother-in-Law Who Became a Donkey
A cruel wife sends her mother to copy her mother-in-law’s magic mango wish, but the goddess sees through the lie and turns her into a donkey.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 6-8
The Lost Camel
Four travelers describe a lost camel they never saw—lame, one-eyed, short-tailed, and belly-sick—and a king makes them ministers.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 6-8
The Monkey with the Tom-tom
A crafty monkey loses the tip of his tail, then swaps and tricks his way from a razor to firewood to puddings and finally to a drum he loves to beat.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
The Poisoned Food
A young pilgrim shares rice with a starving elder; serpent venom from a kite’s meal kills the old man, and villagers blame the helper.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
The Good Husband and the Bad Wife
A kind Brahmin invites a guest to dinner, but his bad-tempered wife tells a wild lie about a wooden pestle, and the poor visitor runs for his life.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
The Gardener’s Cunning Wife
A gardener steals the goddess’s mangoes and fish, his greedy wife eats every bite, and then she pretends to be possessed by Kali to escape his anger.
Indian Folk Tales
The Faithless Wife and the Ungrateful Blind Man
Abandoned in a forest, a blind man is rescued by a kind merchant and his wife, then repays them with a wicked lie that could cost them their lives.
Indian Folk Tales
Retaliation
Two sacrificed goats are reborn as a king and his minister who come to sacrifice a holy priest—until the goddess shows him how to escape a second death.
Pride Goes Before a Fall
Three proud robbers strip ten cloth merchants and make them dance, but the merchants' leader sings a secret trade-code song telling his friends how to strike.
Indian Folk Tales
Ranavirasing
A dying king leaves his young son in the care of his faithful servant Ranavirasing, for a greedy minister is waiting to seize the throne for himself.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Mr. Mighty-of-His-Mouth
Mr. Mighty-of-his-Mouth uses nothing but quick words to scare off a whole tribe of goblins, proving to his strong friend that wit beats muscle.
Indian Folk Tales
Ages 9-12
Mr. Won’t-Give and Mr. Won’t-Leave
A miserly beggar-Brahmin tries to starve out a clinging guest; both husband and wife playact until the guest drops from the loft for dinner.