The Lucky Fortune Teller Part 2

Manduka was also appointed as a Royal astrologer of the King’s Court. 

It was during this time that a very learned man came to the court. The learned man had a jar in his hands. 

The jar was closed tightly and the learned man held it in his hands. The learned man looked at the king. “This is a test for the royal astrologer, your majesty. If he is able to pass it I shall admit that he is the best astrologer in the world.” 

The king was confident that Manduka would be able to meet the challenge and summoned Manduka to court. 

Manduka was fearful but put on a face of false bravado as he came to the court. 

The learned man held up the closed jar and showed it to Manduka. “I have been to various pilgrimage places and I found something in Rameshwaram which is in the south of the country. I have put that inside this jar. Can you tell me what is inside it?” 

Manduka kept staring at the jar for a long time and he was genuinely afraid. He knew that he could not find the answer to this question so he looked around for some help and found none. 

Finally feeling hopeless, Manduka cried out. “Your time is up Manduka! The game is over.” 

The learned man was shocked because when he opened the chair a frog jumped out of the jar and a frog is a Manduka in Sanskrit. 

The learned man admitted that Manduka was indeed a great astrologer and left the place. 

Manduka became even more famous in the entire kingdom.

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Adapted from the Katha Sarith Sagara

The Lucky Fortune Teller - Part 1

Once they lived a well read man in a village who was unfortunately ignored by all the people there. He was called as Manduka which means frog in Sanskrit. Manduka's 'jihva' or tongue got frozen when he was asked to speak. So everyone in the village believed that he was a dullard.

However Manduka wanted to change this perception.

There was a lavish wedding conducted by a rich merchant in the very village that Manduka lived. 

However Manduka was not invited to the marriage. 

As he looked at the wedding house, Manduka had a sudden idea. 

He led the horse on which the bride groom was supposed to ride inside, away from the place where the wedding was to take place. 

That day there was a great frenzy at the wedding. Everyone was looking for the horse to bring the groom to the place but it was missing. 

The merchant even appointed an astrologer to look into the stars and find out where the horse was. 

However they were not able to find it anywhere. 

Finally Manduka's wife went to the merchant and said that her husband was very well read and he may be able to help the merchant. 

Having no choice, the merchant went to Manduka. 

Manduka was able to guide the merchant's men to the horse because he was the one who had hidden the horse in the forest near a pond. Because no one knew that.

The merchant was thrilled at getting his horse back and he lavishly paid Manduka a lot of money. 

After this incident people in the village started respecting Manduka and his fame spread far and wide throughout the kingdom. 

It so happened that the king of the kingdom also heard of Manduka. 

Now the king had a problem.

The precious jewels of the queen were missing from the queen's quarters. No matter where they searched for it they could not find it. 

Having no other choice the king approached Manduka for help. 

The king asked Manduka to come to the palace and stay there to find the jewels or guide the kingsman in finding the jewels. 

When Manduka arrived at the palace the king was very particular that Manduka should not leave the palace without finding the jewels pointing out who had stolen the jewels.

The jewels had been stolen by Jeeva, a servant in the palace. She had been worried as soon as Manduka had come to the palace. She was worried that Manduka would be able to find out that she had hidden the jewels. She stood outside the quarters assigned to Manduka hoping to overhear Manduka and know whom he suspected.

Manduka was worriedly pacing his quarters because he was sure that now everyone would know that he was not a fortune teller but just a person who had been deceiving others.

He was berating himself for his silliness at taking the horse of the bride groom and hiding it in the forests. "Jivha, you are doomed. You have brought this upon yourself."

Naturally Jeeva, the servant who was at the door heard it and she was frightened. 

She was sure that Manduka had figured out that she was a thief. 

She ran and fell at the feet of the fortune teller. "I shall return all the jewels. Please save me."

Now that the king had got back the jewels, Manduka became even richer and more powerful in the kingdom.

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Adapted from the Katha Sarith Sagara

The Eagle, the Hen and the Needle - Part Two

The hen had gone out and it was not available at home. 

It was at this time that all the other birds had finished using the needle and made beautiful wings for themselves.

The last of the birds using the needle had come to the house of the hen to return the needle. 

Unfortunately as the hen had gone out, the children of the hen took the needle. The children of the hen played with the needle and instead of keeping it carefully, they left the needle in the sand.

Now the eagle which had started flying well from the additional wings found that some of the wings had loosened because of the constant flying. To fix the feathers back the eagle needed the needle back. So the eagle came back to the hen's house and asked for the needle. 

The hen looked around the house and everywhere but the hen could not find the needle. 

She looked at the eagle shame-faced. “Please give me a day. I will find the needle so that you can fix your wings.” 

The Eagle was annoyed. “I can give you only one more day. If you can't find the needle, I will take away one of your chicks instead of the needle, as payment.”

The next day and soon as the eagle came, the hen started scratching the sand to find the needle. But the hen could not find the needle. The Eagle took away one of the chicks of the hens instead. Since then whenever the eagle appeared the hen started scratching the sand for the needle. Since then the young ones of the hen also run away on seeing the shadow of the eagle because they know that eagle would carry it away as payment.

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Adapted from African Folktales

The Eagle, the Hen and the Needle - Part One

In the land of birds, it so happened that none of the birds could fly. Unfortunately, during that time there was famine in the land. The Eagle had to go very far to find food and because it could not fly the eagle had to walk all the distance. 

The eagle came back very tired and the eagle lay on the ground and went to sleep and grumbled to itself that there had to be an easy way to travel. 

The hen heard this and it also went to bed. 

When the hen woke up it had a brilliant idea. It collected the feathers of the other birds and decided to sew the feathers on top of its own feathers. 

The hen was sure that the extra feathers would help it fly and make it easier to travel.

The Eagle was the only bird in the village that had a needle and so the hen went to the eagle and told it of its plan.

The Eagle heard the idea and realized that it was a very good idea. Soon the eagle set about to work for itself before giving the needle to the hen. 

The Eagle sewed the wings on both sides. Using the wings, the Eagle flew high up.

The hen was happy that its plan had succeeded and using the needle it started making wings for itself. 

However, making wings was not an easy job. The hen got tired and kept the needle aside and walked away from there. Soon the hen was preparing food for its young ones and forgot all about the needle. 

However, by this time the other birds had seen the eagle fly away. They all went to the hen's house and asked for the needle so that they could see feathers for themselves.

The hen’s idea worked for the other birds and they started flying too.

Audio Story on Youtube

Adapted from African Folktales

Athena and Poseidon

 Poseidon is one of the Greek Gods. He is the God of Sea, Storms, Earthquakes and horses.

Poseidon was the son of Cronos and Rhea.

Cronos is the youngest and the leader of the Titans, the ancient Gods of the Greeks. The Titans are the first generation of offspring of Gaia who is Mother Earth and Uranus who is Father Sky.

In certain Greek myths, it is believed that Rhea is the daughter of Oceanus and Tethys. Oceanus is the God of River Gods and he is believed to be the river surrounding the earth.

Zeus is sometimes considered as the youngest of the Greek Gods, but it is believed that he was the one who overthrew Cronos and the other Titans in a huge war.

After the war with the Titans, Zeus shared the world with his brothers. Zeus got the sky, Poseidon got the sea and Hades got the underworld.

Athena is a powerful Greek Goddess. She is the daughter of Zeus, the chief of all the Greek Gods. She is the Goddess of wisdom, strategic warfare, justice and law. She is also the protector of the city of Athens.

Athena is believed to have been born directly from Zeus’s forehead. She was born without a mother in some myths. She was born fully grown and with a powerful armour. Though there were some beliefs that Zeus did not like Athena because it was believed that she would overthrow him, eventually Athena became Zeus’s favourite daughter.

It was at that time that there lived a king called Cecrops.

Cecrops was born directly from the earth and he was a great ruler for his people. He was so good that the place that he ruled flourished and prospered at a tremendous rate. Even the Greek Gods noticed the city which was ruled by Cecrops.

Therefore at this time, Athena and Poseidon both wanted to bring the city ruled by Cecrops under their control.

Zeus looked at the two Gods and realized that a war between the two Gods could spell destruction and wanted to solve the issue amicably. He wanted the two Gods to create something for the people in the kingdom ruled by Cecrops. Looking at the two creations, the people of the kingdom could themselves decide about who could be their patron God.

So a competition between the two Gods was organized at the Acropolis.

Poseidon struck his trident on the Acropolis and supposedly created an underground sea and from there seawater sprang out in the city.

This was the gift of Poseidon to the people. (It is sometimes believed that Poseidon gifted a horse to the people in the city.)

Using her spear, Athena on the other hand, created a fully grown olive tree to the city. The fruits of the tree were nutritious to the people and the wood of the tree was very strong.

The people of the city were very impressed with Athena’s gift and they named her as the victor of the competition.

That was how Athena became the patron Goddess of the city.

That was also when the kingdom ruled by Cecrops was renamed after its patron Goddess and the city was called Athens.

Following this, Poseidon was furious with the people of Athens and he flooded Thriasia with water and put the city of Attika under the sea.

Subsequently, in the Acropolis there was a beautiful building called Erectheum.

This building is unique because though the Acropolis and the entire city was under the patronage of Athena, the place at Erectheum was half in the honour of Poseidon and half in the honour of Athena.

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The Stonecutter

In a far away lands, there lived a Stonecutter. He was a very hard worker and he knew exactly what type of stone was needed for what purpose. He knew about the perfect type of stone needed for gravestones and about the perfect stone which was needed to make the roofs of houses. People around him were very happy with his work and his services were always in demand.

In the mountain near the Stonecutter’s house lived a Mountain Spirit who granted the wishes of all people and made people rich and prosperous.

The Stonecutter was a hard worker and he was very contended in his work and he had never even met the Spirit, nor did the Stonecutter want to meet the Spirit.

Once, as the Stonecutter carried a huge rock down to a rich man’s house and there inside the rich man’s house, the Stonecutter saw luxuries the likes of which he had never even imagined. It was that minute that the Stonecutter lost the desire to work. The stonecutter could not work that day as he put his tools down.

‘How I wish I was a rich man, so that I could enjoy all these luxuries and not have to work hard!’

The stonecutter did not know it, but the mountain spirit had granted his wish.

The Stonecutter came to the place where there was his hut and there he found that there was a grand house there and the house had every single luxury which he could think about. The stonecutter happily settled in the new house as a rich man and soon forgot all about his profession.

Once, during the months of summer when the sun was blazing, the stonecutter looked out of the window. There he saw a prince who was being driven in a carriage. The servants of the prince were dressed in blue and silver and they were carrying a golden umbrella over the head of the prince.

Then the stonecutter sighed to himself.

‘How I wish I was a prince where there would be servants to hold an umbrella on my head to protect me from the sun!’

The mountain spirit granted this boon of the stonecutter and soon the stonecutter found himself to be the prince of the land.

However, now there was a deep desire in the heart of the stonecutter.

Looking around, the stonecutter realized that despite the fact that he was protected by the umbrella, the sun scorched the grass around him and despite all protection, the stonecutter found himself getting browner and browner in the sun rays.

‘The sun is mightier than me. How I wish I were the sun!’ The stonecutter thought to himself.

The mountain spirit granted the wish and the stonecutter became the sun. For some time, the stonecutter was proud of himself and he felt that he had done everything and that there was nothing more left for him to do.

That was when a cloud came and hid the earth from his face.

‘The cloud is mightier than me. I have to be the cloud!’ The stonecutter thought to himself.

The mountain spirit granted this wish and soon the stonecutter became the cloud.

For some time, the stonecutter was a cloud. He caught the sun’s rays and he poured down the rains. The earth flourished under the rains and it was beautiful. The earth’s mud was all washed away by the rain and all that remained was the rock which was unmovable.

Then the stonecutter realized that the rock was stronger than the cloud.

‘I wish to be a rock, which is stronger than the clouds.’

The mountain spirit granted this and soon the stonecutter became a rock, which was strong, tough and unmoving.

So the rock stood proud on the earth and neither the sun, or the wind or rains could move it.

That was when a strange sound came to the rock. A stonecutter was driving his tools into the rock to break it.

‘A child of the earth is stronger than the rock. I wish to be a man!’

The mountain spirit granted this boon.

The man then carried on his work of stonecutting. His bed was hard and he got a little food, but the stonecutter was very happy. He learned to be what he was and not aspire for something that he was not. He was so happy that he never heard the voice of the mountain spirit and nor did he desire to meet the Spirit.

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-Japanese Folk Stories

The Single-Tusked Ganesha

Ganesha is an elephant headed God in Hinduism. He is pot-bellied, short and stout and he is loved by all. In Hinduism it is believed that any and all occasions have to be commenced by the first worship to Ganesha.

One of the names of Ganesha is Vigneshwara – which means the ‘remover of obstacles’. That is the reason for worshiping Ganesha before the commencement of any work – Ganesha removes the obstacles and this helps in the successful completion of the work.

One of the mounts of Ganesha is the mouse. 

In folk stories it is very often believed that the mouse was a destructive pet as it destroyed crops. However, the mouse is placed at the foot of Ganesha with the idea that Ganesha is someone who can control even such destruction and hence Ganesha is considered as the remover of obstacles.

However, in most of the idols of Ganesha, he is shown with only one tusk.

There are countless stories in Hinduism about the single tusk of Ganesha.

The moon and its dark spots and the waning and the waxing period of the moon has been the subject of folk stories in almost all cultures.

In most of the ancient cultures, the Moon is worshiped either as a God or a Goddess. In ancient Greece, Selene is the Goddess of the Moon. Similarly, Luna is the Roman Lunar Goddess. Among ancient Egyptians, Ibis and Khonsu were male Gods of the Moon. In Hinduism, the Moon God is called as Chandra Deva.

This is the story of Ganesha and the moon.

************

Ganesha was very happy.

His devotees had given him plenty of sweets and he had taken as many as he could and stuffed himself with a lot of sweets as he was walking home.

Naturally, Ganesha was traveling on his vehicle – the mouse, and the two of them scurried along and they were back home.

As they were passing along a dense forest basking under the bright moonlight, out of nowhere, came a huge snake.

On seeing its natural enemy, Ganesha’s mouse trembled and ran from there.

Ganesha did not even have time to soothe his pet, as he fell down hard on the ground, and the sweets which he was carrying split and scattered all over the ground.

But Ganesha had a bigger problem. As Ganesha had fallen, his stomach had pierced.

Quickly, Ganesha pulled the snake with one hand and tied it as a belt around his stomach to prevent any further damage.

However Ganesha’s misadventure had not been unobserved.

The moon God – Chandra Deva saw this and unable to stop himself, the Moon God laughed.

Angrily, Ganesha pulled one of his tusk and threw it at the Moon God, breaking the moon into many pieces.

Chandra Deva was shocked but Ganesha was not yet done.
"You will always be dark!" The little Ganesha cursed the Moon God.

***********

After being cursed by Ganesha, the dark Chandra Deva pleaded with Ganesha in vain to take back his curse. But Ganesha was adamant. 

Shiva

So finally, Chandra Deva went to Shiva. Shiva is the father of Ganesha. Shiva is a three-eyed God who lives in Kailash with his wife Parvathi and two children – Ganesha and Kartikeya.

Finally with the intervention of Lord Shiva, Ganesha agreed to modify the curse on the moon and so came the fifteen days of growing moon and the fifteen days of the waning moon.

As Ganesha had plucked his tusk and threw it at the Moon to break it into 

many pieces, this is believed to be as one of the reasons why Ganesha has 

only one tusk.

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