Four friends

 Four Friends

Once upon a time in a small village lived four Brahmins named Satyanand, Vidhyanand, Dharmanand and Sivanand. They had grown up together to become good friends. Satyanand, Vidhyanand and Dharmanand were very knowledgeable. But Sivanand spent most of his time eating and sleeping. He was considered foolish by everyone.

Once famine struck the village. All the crops failed. Rivers and lakes started to dry up. The people of the villages started moving to other villages to save their lives.

"We also need to move to another place soon or else we will also die like many others," said Satyanand. They all agreed with him.

"But what about Sivanand?" Asked Satyanand.

"Do we need him with us? He has no skills or learning. We cannot take him with us," replied Dharmanand. "He will be a burden on us."

"How can we leave him behind? He grew up with us," said Vidhyanand. "We will share what ever we earn equally among the four of us."

They all agreed to take Sivanand along with them.

They packed all necessary things and set out for a nearby town. On the way, they had to cross a forest.

As they were walking through the forest, they came across the bones of an animal. They became curious and stopped to take a closer look at the bones.

"Those are the bones of a lion," said Vidhyanand.

The others agreed.

"This is a great opportunity to test our learning," said Satyanand.

"I can put the bones together." So saying, he brought the bones together to form the skeleton of a lion.

"Dharmanand said, "I can put muscles and tissue on it." Soon a lifeless lion lay before them.

"I can breathe life into that body." said Vidhyanand.

But before he could continue, Sivanand jumped up to stop him. "No. Don't! If you put life into that lion, it will kill us all," he cried.

"Oh you coward! You can't stop me from testing my skills and learning," shouted an angry Vidhyanand. "You are here with us only because I requested the others to let you come along."

"Then please let me climb that tree first,' said a frightened Sivanand running towards the nearest tree. Just as Sivanand pulled himself on to the tallest branch of the tree Vidhyanand brought life into the lion. Getting up with a deafening roar, the lion attacked and killed the three learned Brahmins.

The hungry fox

 The hungry fox who got caught in the tree trunk:

Once upon a time, there was a hungry fox that was looking for something to eat. He was very hungry. No matter how hard he tried, the fox could not find food. Finally he went to the edge of the forest and searched there for food. Suddenly he caught sight of a big tree with a hole in it.

Inside the hole was a package. The hungry fox immediately thought that there might be food in it, and became very happy. He jumped into the hole. When he opened the package, he saw slices of bread, meat and fruit in it!

An old woodcutter had placed the food in the tree trunk before he began to cut down trees in the forest. He was going to eat it for his lunch.

The fox happily began to eat. After he finished eating, he felt thirsty and decided to leave the hole and drink some water from a nearby spring. However, no matter how hard he tried, he could not get out of the hole. Do you know why? Yes, the fox had eaten so much food that he became too big to fit through the hole!

The fox was very sad and upset. He told himself, "I wish I had thought a little before jumping into the hole."

Yes children, this is the result of doing something without thinking about it first.

Go By Heart

 Go By Heart:

This brought me to tears. What a powerful lesson on time.

A rich man was retiring when an angel of death came to him. He had worked long and hard to acquire massive wealth and retire in luxury, and could not believe that his time was up. Being a very wealthy person, he decided to buy some more time from the angel of death at any cost. He bargained for a long time but the angel was unmoved. Desperate, the rich man made the last proposal to the angel… Give me just one hour of my life, so that I could admire the beauty of this earth for the last time and spend some time with my family and friends whom I haven't seen for a long time and I will give you all of my wealth. But the angel refused again. Finally, the man asked if the angel could give him at least one minute so that he could write a goodbye note. His wish was granted and he wrote a note….

"Spend your time, which was given to you, in the right way. I couldn't buy even an hour of life with all of my wealth. Listen to your heart and check if the things surrounding you have a true value. Cherish every minute of your life."

The Little Girl And Mushrooms

 The Little Girl And Mushrooms

It was a fine summer morning, perfect to be outdoors. Two sisters had been out mushroom picking, and were on their home with heavy baskets full of mushrooms. They sang songs on the way, and played with each other.

Soon they reached a point where they had to cross a railway track. They did not think twice about crossing it since there was no train coming, and they could not hear any whistle. They slowly climbed the embankment to cross the track, taking care not to drop the baskets. They were very near the track and the little sister was about the cross it, when they heard the distinct horn of a train.

The older sister got frightened and ran back. She thought that the young one was following her. She turned back and was shocked to see her little sister still crossing the track. "Come back here, run back fast," she screamed.

It seemed that the little girl could not hear her sister. She was still concentrating on stepping over the track with her little feet, and holding on to the basket. Then she tripped and fell on the track, scattering her mushrooms around. She sat down and began picking them up and putting in her basket.

In the meanwhile the elder sister had become hysteric. She cried and screamed, calling her little sister to leave the mushrooms and run back, but it seemed as though the little one could not hear her.

The engine driver panicked on seeing the girl and blew his whistle with all his might, but she appeared not to hear the whistle. Her sister was now crying loudly, overcome by panic, as the little sister crawled between the tracks on her hands and knees, to pick the rest of the mushrooms.

The engine driver was helpless as it was not possible for him to stop the engine suddenly. He blew the whistle as hard as he could, but the engine rolled over the little girl. The older sister clasped her face with her trembling hands and cried bitterly. The passengers too panicked at the thought of the sight they would have to witness. The guard ran down to the end of the train to see what happened to the little girl. When the train passed, everybody saw her lying very still between the tracks with her face down.

Then she raised her head, sprang to her knees and began gathering the remaining mushrooms.

The big sister ran towards her, tears streaming down her face. They hugged and kissed each other, crying out of happiness, tears of joy flowing down their little cheeks. Never were two souls so happily united as at that moment. She promised her little sister that thereafter she would hold her hand tightly while crossing the railway line.

The two sisters then picked all the remaining mushrooms, and hand in hand, solemnly walked back home. They were indeed two souls who had become wiser than their years, in the span of a few minutes.

Always Stay Alert

 Always Stay Alert

Once upon a time there was a lion that grew so old that he was unable to kill any prey for his food. So, he said to himself, I must do something to stay my stomach else I will die of starvation.

He kept thinking and thinking and at last an idea clicked him. He decided to lie down in the cave pretending to be ill and then who-so-ever will come to inquire about his health, will become his prey. The old lion put his wicked plan into practice and it started working. Many of his well-wishers got killed. But evil is short lived.

One day, a fox came to visit the ailing lion. As foxes are clever by nature, the fox stood at the mouth of the cave and looked about. His sixth sense worked and he came to know the reality. So, he called out to the lion from outside and said, How are you, sir?

The lion replied, I am not feeling well at all. But why don’t you come inside?

Then the fox replied, I would love to come in, sir! But on seeing, all foot prints going to your cave and none coming out, I would be foolish enough to come in.

Saying so, the fox went to alert the other animals.

Moral: Always Keep Your Eyes Open and Stay Alert before Walking in Any Situation.

The Elephant Rope (Belief):

 The Elephant Rope (Belief):

Sometimes an inspiring story helps us find out the strength within us. An inspiring story helps you inspire yourself and motivate yourself. It also helps find out what you can do and what you cannot. There are hundreds you may have read in your life. But how many of them actually made changes in your mind is a question.

Here are some inspiring short stories that not only gives a powerful lesson, but can also be helpful to learn about some unknown truths about life.

A gentleman was walking through an elephant camp, and he spotted that the elephants weren’t being kept in cages or held by the use of chains.

All that was holding them back from escaping the camp, was a small piece of rope tied to one of their legs.

As the man gazed upon the elephants, he was completely confused as to why the elephants didn’t just use their strength to break the rope and escape the camp. They could easily have done so, but instead, they didn’t try to at all.

Curious and wanting to know the answer, he asked a trainer nearby why the elephants were just standing there and never tried to escape.

The trainer replied;

“when they are very young and much smaller we use the same size rope to tie them and, at that age, it’s enough to hold them. As they grow up, they are conditioned to believe they cannot break away. They believe the rope can still hold them, so they never try to break free.”

The only reason that the elephants weren’t breaking free and escaping from the camp was that over time they adopted the belief that it just wasn’t possible.

Moral of the story:

No matter how much the world tries to hold you back, always continue with the belief that what you want to achieve is possible. Believing you can become successful is the most important step in actually achieving it.

the secret of Happiness

 The Secret of Hardiness

Once upon a time, there were three brothers named Samuel, Timothy and Xander, who lived in a cottage by the woods. They were honest and hardworking. Every day, they would venture into the forest to fell wood. Later, they would sell it in the market where it would fetch a decent price. Thus, their life continued in this manner.

However, the brothers were always sad and morose. Even though they lived a good life, they were unhappy. Each one hankered for something or the other and would pine for it.

One day, while Samuel, Timothy and Xander were returning home from the woods carrying their bundle of logs, they saw an old haggard woman bent low with a sack on her back. As they were kind and compassionate, the brothers immediately approached the poor woman and offered to carry the sack all the way to her home. She smiled and expressed her gratefulness, while replying that the sack actually contained apples that she had collected in the forest. Samuel, Timothy and Xander took turns in carrying the sack, and at last, when they reached the woman's home, they were very tired indeed.

Now, this old woman was no ordinary person and had magical powers. Pleased with the brothers' kind and selfless nature, she asked them whether there was anything she could help them with, as a reward.

"We are not happy, and that has become our greatest cause of concern," replied Samuel. The woman asked what would make them happy. Each brother spoke of a different thing that would please him.

"A splendid mansion with plenty of servants would make me happy. There is nothing more that I would want," said Samuel.

"A big farm with lots of harvest would make me happy. Then I could be rich without having to worry," said Timothy.

"A beautiful wife would make me happy. Every day, after returning home, her sweet little face would light me up and make me forget my sorrows," said Xander.

"That is fine," said the old woman, "If these things will give you happiness, you deserve them in every respect for helping a poor helpless person like me. Go home, and each of you shall find exactly what you have wished for."

This took the brothers by surprise as they did not know about the woman's powers. Nevertheless, they took leave and returned home. But lo behold, beside their cottage, there was a huge mansion with a doorman and other servants waiting outside! They greeted Samuel and ushered him in. At some distance, a yellow farmland showed itself. A ploughman came and announced that it belonged to Timothy. Timothy gasped. Just at that moment, a beautiful maiden approached Xander and coyly said that she was his wife. The brothers were beside themselves with joy at this new turn of events. They thanked their lucky stars and adapted to their new lifestyles.

The days passed and soon a year was over. The situation was however, now different for Samuel, Timothy and Xander. Samuel had grown tired of owning the mansion. He became lazy and did not supervise his servants into taking proper care of the mansion. Timothy, who had built a decent house next to his farmland, found it burdensome to plough the fields and sow seeds from time to time. Xander too, grew used to his beautiful wife and no longer found any joy in keeping her company. In short, all of them were unhappy again.

One day, the three of them met up and decided to visit the old woman at her home. "That woman has magical powers which turned our dreams into reality. However, since we are no longer happy, we must go and seek her help now. It is she who will be able to tell us the secret to attaining happiness," said Samuel.

When they came to the old woman, she was cooking stew in a pot. Greeting her, each of the brothers recounted how he had turned unhappy again. "Please tell us how we can once more be happy," said Timothy.

Old Woman"Well," replied the old woman. "It is all in your own hands. See, when each of you made his wish and it was granted, you were happy. However, happiness never lasts without a very important thing - content. Earlier, since you were happy but never really content or satisfied, boredom and misery overcame you and you became sad again. Only if you learn to be content, can you truly enjoy the bliss of happiness."

Samuel, Timothy and Xander realized their mistake and went back home. They saw how lucky they were to have the gifts for which they had once craved. Samuel felt grateful for being the owner of a mansion and began taking good care of it. Timothy began to plough his land diligently so as to have a good harvest in time. Xander too learnt to appreciate his pretty wife's chores in the house and her devotion towards him. Remembering that happiness and content went side by side, never again did the brothers take their blessings for granted. And thus, they lived happily ever after.