151 Aesop’s Fables

Long ago, the birds and the beasts were enemies. Then, a kind and wise lion became the ruler of the jungle. He found that there was disharmony among the animals. The lion was peace-loving and did not like this at all. He wanted to bring about a change in the jungle. He wanted everyone to […]

It was the winter season. An ass was unhappy as he had to eat dry stems and straw. One day, the ass wished, ‘If spring comes soon, I will get fresh grass to eat.’ But when spring came, the ass had to work hard. The lazy ass did not like to work. He thought, ‘I

Once, some diggers were digging precious stones from a mountain. While digging, they found a huge toad. A digger said, “This toad must be as old as the mountain itself.” Hearing this, the toad swelled with pride. The proud toad said, “I am very old. Is there anyone who can claim that he is older

A bear loved to travel. But, he was curious by nature. He always questioned everything. One day, the bear was walking through a village. He saw many fowls in a farm. They were drinking water from a pool. After every sip, they would raise their heads to the sky. His curiosity grew as he watched.

Once there were two birds, a woodcock and a mallard. They were feeding at the edge of a pond. Many insects lived there. The insects were sad as they knew their end had come. Now, the woodcock was choosy about his food. He liked only a few things and ate only the best. The mallard,

A dog decided to go for a walk along the river. His mother warned him by saying, “Do not go too close to the river. It is full of monsters that eat living beings.” The dog said, “Yes mother. I will not.” Then he left. After walking for a few miles, the dog felt thirsty.

A fox asked a wolf to teach him how to hunt like a wolf. The wolf agreed. He said to the fox, “You will find my brother’s dead body near the river. Wear his skin and come back here.” The fox did as he was told. After that the wolf taught the fox how to

Once, a lion was drinking water from a river when a goat came from behind and hit him with her horns. The lion was very angry as he was injured. He gave an order, “No creature with horns will be allowed to stay in this forest from now on. If I find any creature with

Once, a cook kept a hen in his kitchen. The cook also owned a falcon. The hen knew that the cook would kill her one day. She felt very frightened. Thus, she went about looking miserable. She hid in the kitchen all day and did not talk to anyone. Finally, the day arrived when she

Once, there was a serpent. As is known, the serpent’s head moves first and its tail moves last. But the tail did not like moving last. It wanted to lead the serpent. One day, the tail argued with the head, “You always move first. I have to follow you.” The head smiled and replied, “I

Some mice lived in an old woman’s house. One day, the mice saw a big piece of cheese. All of them looked greedily at the piece of cheese and wanted to eat it. They decided to go inside the room. But, three mice decided not to go. The others asked them in surprise, “Why are

A pig lived in a forest. She once gave birth to many babies. She loved and protected them and gave them what they needed. One day, a wolf saw the babies. His mouth started watering. He wanted to eat them but could not as the mother was near by. He thought, ‘I must make this

Once, the birds of a forest decided to choose their king. They all decided to make the peacock their king, for he was very majestic. Suddenly, a magpie came and stood before all the birds. She said to the peacock, “You are very beautiful. I admire you. Can I ask you a question?” The peacock

God created man as His best work. Man had intelligence, strength, power, speech and so on. When the animals saw man, they were impressed. They were also envious of man’s qualities. They started imitating the qualities of man. The lion took on man’s strength and dynamism. The fox took on man’s cleverness. The dog gained

Once, there was a rat kingdom. A wise king ruled it. One day, the rat king went out of his kingdom. On the way, he found some good cheese. He bought the delicious cheese and decided to distribute it among his people. When the king returned, he called his ministers and said, “Take this cheese