MOST POPULAR INDIAN FOLK TALES | STORIES OF INDIA

Whether it is to preserve history or providing a moral lesson, Indian folk tales has done both its work in an exceptional way. The easy read and stories full of pictures, Indian folk tales have been a part of teaching morality since millenniums to human beings. They were and are the sources of enlighting the children through tales wisdom and knowledge. When it comes to Indian folk tales, the country of diverse religions, languages, and cultures has a complete range of tales and short stories.

HERE ARE SOME FOLK TALES OF INDIA THAT ARE STILL SHOWERING THEIR WISDOM AS THEY WERE THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO.

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• VIKRAM - BETAL 

The most popular tale of every Indian home, Vikram and Betal is a story about a king Vikramaditya and a dead body whose soul is searching for liberation 'Betal'. King Vikramaditya being the righteous man of his time. P.S. It is said to be a real story, that means Vikram and Betaal were actually the living creature of this planet ages ago. So the story goes like this. Vikram being the righteous man of this Earth. Once a brahmin entered his palace and ask for help from the king. This thing is to be noted that Brahmins of that time were treated the same as a god, as they possess godlike powers. So, when Brahmin ask for the help, Vikram couldn't deny him. So brahmin told king Vikram to bring a dead body which is located at [this] place so I can make your kingdom more prosperous and wealthy by doing certain rituals. King agreed and went to the forest where the dead body was hanging on the tree. Vikram, cut tree's branch and pick up the dead body. Sooner, the soul entered the body and starting talking to the king in a very horrid way and laughed disturbingly. When Betal asked Vikram as to where is he taking him, So Vikram told everything. Listening to this, Betal got shocked as he knew something about that Brahmin's plan. So, Betal puts a condition on Vikram that if he utters a single word from his mouth, he will go back to that tree again. Betal tried many exercises to make King Vikram speak, but King Vikram didn't utter a word. So, Betal tried another tactic. He told king Vikram that it will take us so long to get to the kingdom so let me recite you a story as this will be a better time pass to you and for me also and after completion of the story I will ask you some morality question although you are the righteous man, Betal said and if you're unable to tell the answer and didn't say the answer knowing that you know the answer to the question, I'll burst your head into thousand pieces. So Betal told him 25 stories and Vikram gave all the answers to his question correctly. But what the tactic Betal used here was that whenever King Vikram answer to the Betal's question. King Vikram, violates the first condition i.e "If you utter a single word I'll fly away to the tree again and hang up there". 

Still, King Vikram was able to take Betal to that Brahmin who was something in disguise. You'll let know when you will read the story. I left the story incomplete for you guys to read it yourself.

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• AKBAR AND BIRBAL TALES

The one very fascinating folk tale of King Akbar and his minister Birbal is very popular in India. Once the king's barber was trimming the hairs of King Akbar. Soon at the balcony of King's room where the barber was trimming the king's hair reached a crow and starts making noises "caw-caw caw-caw". Listening to this noise king ordered barber to rid off this crow, "flew him away, barber!". When barber listened to the order of king's he used his brain and said "The great Mughal king! This crow is not making a noise. He has come here as a messenger of you ancestor who is feeling thirsty and needs water to drink in heaven.". King on hearing this shocked suddenly and asked the barber, "You can understand this crow?". "yes mighty king I can" said the barber. So he asked the barber "how can I go to the heaven, and if I am not able to go to the heaven my ancestor will be very unhappy of me, So who can I ask for?". Baber replied, "You have many intelligent ministers in your palace. Ask them, they might have some solution". And suddenly barber prompted, "Birbal! Birbal is the right one to go the heaven.". Though Birbal was the smartest minister of his kingdom, Akbar approached him and asked Birbal if he is willing to do such a thing? Birbal took some time and said "yes!". 

So Birbal did some arrangement which took some months. When Akbar asked, what is he doing? He said, "I'm building a ladder to heaven". "But I can't see any ladder here"- said Akbar. "Yeah! that is a magical ladder for the magical world, I will do your work. Have faith in me."- said Birbal. So, one day when the day came for the Birbal to go the heaven, everyone so there to see him visit. Birbal sat under a pile of logs and asked a man to burn that pile of logs. Clever Birbal vanished away from a pile of logs from an underground way to some other nearby village making people thinking that he has gone to heaven to meet Akbar's ancestor. Months pass away, Akbar was very anxious to know what is happing up there in heaven. He asked the royal barber to ask the crow what is happening in heaven, but every time barber rejected him by saying that "It is not that crow which brought you a message." 

After many months, Birbal came to the palace with long hair and long beard saying King Akbar that he saw his ancestor and that now they need a barber to cut the hair because there is no barber up their. Once again, Akbar wants to fulfill his ancestor desires, So now he ordered royal barber to visit heaven same way the Birbal go up there by sitting on a pile of logs and burning himself down. The Barber got scared and the told the whole truth that he was joking around with him about his ancestor's message and I don't know any bird language. 

So in end, Barber ended his life in prison and once again King Akbar was awestruck with Birbal's cleverness.

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• TENALI-RAMA

There was a woman named Vidhyulatha in the Vijayanagara Kingdom. She was proud of her accomplishments in the field of fine arts and was arrogant too. One day she put up a board in front of her house. On the board, it was written that whoever would defeat her wit, intelligence, wisdom, and knowledge in ancient books, she would reward that person with one thousand gold coins. Many scholars took the challenge but could not defeat her. Days passed but no one could defeat her. One day a man selling firewood was shouting on top of his voice just outside her house. When this went on for quite some time, Vidhyulatha got irritated. She came outside and asked him to sell her the firewood. The man hearing that said that he did not want to sell his firewood in exchange for money but for a handful grain. Vidhyulatha agreed and asked him to dump the firewood at her backyard. The man insisted that she did not understand what he had actually asked for. He further told her that now if she couldn’t pay the exact price of a handful grain, then she must give the thousand gold coins and also take off the board asking people to come for an intellectual argument with her. Vidhyuulatha got angry and said, “what nonsense are you saying?” The vendor replied that it was not nonsense, and she had failed to understand what he meant, and hence had lost her in the war of words. When she heard what he just said, she got very angry. After a heated argument between the two, Vidhyulatha approached the Provincial Court. The judge heard what Vidhyulatha had to say. Then he asked the firewood seller what he wanted. He told the judge that in lieu of the firewood, he had asked her for a handful grain which means a grain which would fill her hand. Since she had failed to understand such a simple thing, she isn’t as wise as she assumes to be and therefore should take off the board in front of her house. The judge was impressed by the firewood seller’s intelligence and wit and asked Vidhyulatha to pay him one thousand gold coins and to take off the board outside his house. Tenali Raman had actually disguised himself as the firewood seller in order to teach the arrogant and snobbish Vidhyulatha a lesson.

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