Epics of India

The Foolish, Timid Rabbit   by Ellen C. Babbitt rabbit sitting under palm tree, sleeping wakes up and wonders what would happen if earth suddenly broke apart suddenly, a coconut falls from the tree, and timid rabbit thinks the earth is breaking all up he runs and yells, attracting the attention of another rabbit the other rabbit asks him why he's running, and he tells him the earth is breaking all up and needs to run, too! second rabbit runs, and tells another rabbit, who tells another rabbit, until there's a lot of rabbits running they tell deer, who tells fox, who tells elephant, and suddenly there's a big heard of animals running and panicking because they think the earth is breaking all up Lion, King of the Beasts, roars three times and tells the herd to stop. He asks them why they're running and scared they tell him the earth is breaking all up Lion asks who saw it Elephant says Fox told him, and Fox says Deer told him, and Deer says a rabbit told him,...

The Empty Lake by Noon Inayat lake covered with waterlilies lived fish, one of them told them all a story: once a great golden king fish of theirs that they admired and followed queen rain forgot to send showers to earth before the time of heat Mother Earth and thirsty sun rays drank the water of their lake and king wind destroyed all the water with his fires queen rain heard them calling and got the cloud fairies who make the water and thunder king thunder king made his army to fire, which made thunder, and lightning and water rain fell it was soft and sweet King feared the water would be taken away King fish spoke again and said King of Thunder and Queen of Rain please let it rain sky fell like a mountain of water sunrays covered and crows chased away King thunder and queen rain came down from sky they tell them they love him and just call when he needs water Lake

The Woodpecker, Turtle, and Deer by Ellen C. Babbitt deer lived in the forest, turtle lived in lake, woodpecker lived in treetops, all friends hunter comes and sees deer tracks, he sets traps near the lake deer springs the traps and calls out for help, turtle and woodpecker come to his aide turtle begins chewing off the leather straps on the trap, while woodpecker goes to the hunter's house hunter wakes up and starts to come outside with his knife, but woodpecker flies at his face, and he goes back inside to rest longer hunter wakes up and tries again, but woodpecker does it again. Lastly, hunter comes out and woodpecker flies back to his friends, yelling turtle has bloody mouth from chewing so much and deer breaks the last strap deer and woodpecker get away, but turtle is captured and put in a bag on a tree by the hunter deer comes back to save turtle. He leads the hunter far into the forest, and then runs back to free turtle deer lifts the bag from the tree and turtl...

The Girl Monkey and the String of Pearls by Ellen C. Babbitt king and his family go to the lake for a swim, queen gives her pearls to her servant who watches over them in a box within the garden garden has lots of monkeys  Girl Monkey sees the pearls and wants them. She waits for the servant to fall asleep, and then she swoops down, grabs them, and runs back up her tree. servant wakes up and sees the pearls gone, the king orders the guards to find the person responsible  chief guard discovers no one could hav taken the pearls, so it must be a monkey he comes up with a plan to trick the Girl Monkey guards set out strings of beads, then the monkeys all come down and grab them, except girl monkey because she already has a string of pearls hidden all the monkeys gloat about their beads to Girl Monkey, who finally pulls hers out to show them off, revealing herself to the chief guard they catch her and send her to the king, who thanks the chief guard for being so wise ...

The Wise and the Foolish Merchant by Ellen C. Babbitt two merchants stopping in a big city to stock up on goods and supplies so they can sell it to people throughout the countryside (desert) both are leading at the same time. Wise merchant asks if the other merchant will go before or after him other merchant, who is a fool, says he will go before him, in hopes of getting the best prices / food / path first wise merchant lets him, because he knows the fool merchant will have to dig his own wells for water, let his oxen eat the old grass, and set his prices based on the first merchant fool merchant sets out to the countryside, carrying lots of barrels of water with him and his men demon in the desert spots the convoy and decides to trick him so they can eat him demon and demon friends dress up as merchants and decorate themselves, wagons, and oxen in water-lilies and wet grass to act like there is a forest and ponds in the desert they tell the foolish merchant that they should...

The Sandy Road by Ellen C. Babbitt men traveling in a desert with oxen. They have to travel on the sand at night because it is too hot to cross during the day travel by night and sleep / eat / feed oxen by night one was a pilot and knew the stars better than others, so he lead the way and the others followed one night the pilot falls asleep, because it is hard to sleep during the day he wakes up and they traveled backwards they were so sure that they would reach the city that they threw away their water, they now were going to die if they didn't find water merchant searches endlessly until he finds a shrub they dig it up till they find a rock merchant convinces a boy not to give up; if he gives up, they all die they break the rock and all are saved when they find a lot of water The Quarrel of the Quails by Ellen C. Babbitt man who lived near forest is a fowler, he catches quails and sells them to the market he catches them by imitating the lead quail's ton...

Trial of the Princes by Sister Nivedita Drona hosts a tournament for his students Bhima and Duryodhana have to be separated from fighting  Arjuna is the best with the sword, bow, and mace Karna enters a challenges Arjuna Clouds and rainbows surround Arjuna, Karna is surrounded by the sun Duryodhana makes Karna the King of Anga  The Teacher's Fee Drona tells them they must attack and capture King Drupada. He wounds Duryodhana and Karna, and Arjuna uses this opportunity to attack and capture Drupada Drona doesn't kill Drupada, but makes him give up half his kingdom to Drona. He accepts, and by doing so, he seeks to find a son who can seek revenge against Drona The House of Lac King Dhritarashtra makes Yudhishthira his successor, making Duryodhana super jealous Vidura urges caution to his brothers Duryodhana plots to send the Pandavas away so that he may become king he sends the Pandavas away to a house that will set fire while they're inside, however, V...

How the Princes Learned to Shoot by Sister Nivedita Pandavas and Kauravas playing ball, when it goes down a well. a brahmin uses a spell to retreat the ball by making grass turn into chained darts. He also uses a spell to bring his ring back to him, using an arrow that shoots right back at him with the ring on it boys tell Bhishma, and Drona explains he was outcasted by a friend named Drupada, King of Panchala, and wants revenge Bhishma agrees to let him train the boys they have to swear they'll help him after he has taught them Arjuna becomes his favorite, and Karna because the rival boy named Ekalavya tries to join but is rejected, he goes to the forest and learns archery, he shoots seven arrows into mouth of dog Demands he it Drona's pupil and Drona demands his right thumb as his sacrifice. He does it and loses his archery skill Drona tests the boys and asks them what they see on top of a tree. None say right except Arjuna, he sees a bird. He shoots it and becomes ...

Bhishma Falls by Donald A. Mackenzie Bhishma advances ferociously in his chariot, seeking to wreck havoc Krishna knows that Bhishma will not kill a woman, so sends Shikhandin and Arjuna Arjuna is reluctant because he looks at Bhishma as a father figure. His emotions are torn Arjuna ends up fighting Bhishma because he realizes he must fight against someone he loved, just as Bhishma did the same. They battle for hours and everyone stops engaging to look at them Shikhandin charges Bhishma, and he puts his defense down because he can't fight a woman. Arjuna uses this opportunity to shoot him with arrows. He falls of his chariot and will soon die setting describes as darkness and nightfall Arjuna weeps, as do the rest of the warriors Bhishma cries in vain for peace to be resolved and for the Pandavas and Kauravas to become friends again He spoke to Karna, asking for his forgiveness, but Karna hated him, and wanted him dead Bhishma was protected by a guard all night, "p...

The Gambling Match  by  Donald A. Mackenzie Duryodhana jealous at the riches of the Pandavas  Yudhishthira is who he wants to take revenge on, but he knows he must find a way to beat him without strength or power he plans to outwit him in a game of dice, specifically known as Parcheesi he hire's Shakuni to do the betting for him. Shakuni is good at gambling, he uses loaded die they invite the Pandavas to Hastinapura for a gambling match Shakuni invites Yudhishthira to gamble with him, however, the stakes are between Yudhishitra and Duryodhana  Yud knows its a trap, but he cannot back out of a match at battle or gambling, so he has to do it he lost every single hand, losing all his riches, his cattle, his elephants, everything he owned until he gave up his life then he gives up Vidura Vidura says that he can't bet on her life because he already gave up his own, so she won't comply Duryodhana doesn't care and has guards take her anyway strange series of e...

House of Fire  by Sister Nivedita  Prince Vidura suspects that Prince  Duryodhana is setting them up to a trap Pandavas and Queen Kunti reached palace of Varanavata, amazed at its glory and beauty Prince Vidura tells Prince  Yudhishthira, who trusts him and realizes it is a  trap the palace is covered in oil and the roof is made out of wood they hired a skilled miner to dig a tunnel from the palace to outside in the nearby forest, while pretending to not know what's going on to not alert the guards Captain Purochana is in charge of looking after them and then he is supposed to burn the palace down while they are asleep inside finally the day comes, and Queen Kunti and the Pandavas are able to escape Price Bhima goes back to the palace and sets it on fire, killing Captain Purochana that same night, a mother and five boys came to the palace and asked for food. They were given food and wine, and they fell asleep at the palace. When the palace burne...

Bhishma at the Swayamvara  by Sister Nivedita Bhishma is looking for a queen for his half brother,    Vichitravirya King Benares, who has 3 daughters (Amba, Ambika, Ambalika), invites all the kings and knights from the land to come to his kingdom so that he may find a king for each of his daughters to marry place was elegantly decorated  His voice boomed loudly he declared that he wouldn't participate in the Swayamvara, but that he would take the princesses by force, and fight off any other king that would try to seize them back he scoops all three up on his chariot with his bow, he manages to fight off all kings until they surrender  He takes the three princesses back with him Amba  by Sister Nivedita  Amba tells Bhishma just before the wedding that her true love is devoted to the King of the Shalwas, so she asks if she can leave Hastinapura and go to Shalwas to be reunited with her love Bhishma agrees and sends her on her ...

Ravana's Son is Killed , by  Sister Nivedita Vibhishana and Lakshman tell Rama that Sita has been killed by Indrajit Vibhishana thinks it's a ploy to delay the monkey army so they won't attack all three pursue Ravan's son to take back Sita They arrive and do battle with Indrajit and his army Lakshman takes most of the damage, but he is blessed with protection from the gods Lakshman sends a powerful arrow through Indrajit's neck, severing it and killing him Ravana grieves hard for his son and vows to kill Sita in revenge, but his counselor convinces him not to, and once he kills Rama, Sita will be his wife Ravana's Fury , by  Sister Nivedita . Ravana is sitting and devising a plan to kill Rama setting is dark, grim, deathly, evil gnashed his teeth, bit his lips and laughed evily goes off to battle with Big-belly, Squint-Eye, and Big-Flank Battle

Rama's Wrath  by  Sister Nivedita Rama and Lakshman leave Sita alone in the forest when they come back, she is gone and they assume a rakshasa ate her they come across a bird called Jatayu, and he tells them that Jatayu fought of a rakshasa, named Ravana, and they battle for Sita before Ravana eventually won and took Sita away to the island of Lanka Rama and Lakshman are thankful for Jatayu and his sacrifice and they build a memorial for him and mourn for him the heroes trek on in search for Sita they come across another terrible rakshasa, and do battle with him, and once they defeat him the rakshasa thanks Rama, claiming he was cursed as a demon until Rama defeated him, and now his soul is free the freed soul tells Rama about a group of monkeys, one called Sugriva, who he should seek for help in order to find Sita Ravana Slain  by  Sister Nivedita Rama hymned the sun, and drank healing water Ravana and Rama come to battle, trading blows back and f...

Ramayana: Rama Attacks, by  Sister Nivedita setting: dark, cloudy, stormy, earth is shaking Ravana sends monkey spies to see what Rama is up to monkey spies come back and tell Ravana that Rama's power is limitless and they should surrender Sita Ravana gets mad at the spies and banishes them, he sends more monkey spies but they return giving him the same advice, which only angers Ravana even more Ravana comes up with a plan to fool Sita. He makes the illusion of Rama's head and his bow severed and presents it to Sita Sita cannot believe her eyes and tells Ravana to kill her so she may join Rama suddenly, Ravana gets called to battle, and as he leaves, the illusions decimate. Sita knows it is an illusion Ramayana:  Kumbhakarna, by Donald Mackenzie Kumbhakarna is a great a ferocious sleeping demon warrior. He is a giant. He used to roam the earth, killing humans and destroying anything in his past. He even defeated the god Indra. However, Brahma...

Ramayana: Sugriva and Vali, by Romesh Dutt story expands over three parts, including Sugriva and Vali, Vali's Death, and King Sugriva Tell's the story of Sugriva Sugriva and his brother went chasing after a foe, foe went down hole and Sugriva waited at the entrance to the hole while Vali chased after the enemy. Sugriva thought his brother died, so he filled the hole and returned to the kingdom. When Vali finally emerged from the hole, he returned to kingdom and claimed his brother betrayed him He banishes his brother from the kingdom Sugriva returns with Rama to their kingdom  Kishkindha  to face his brother and reclaim the throne Vali and Sugriva end up battling, and Rama comes in and shoots Vali with an arrow to end it entire monkey kingdom mourn their dead king and Sugriva mourns his brother Ramayana: Sampati and Jatayu by  Frederika Richardson Macdonald Sampati tells the story of how he earned his wounds and why he cannot fly anymore Sampati and his bro...

Battle with Khara setting is eerie, with the sky being blood red and a full eclipse occurring  Rama dares to take on the demons by himself, telling Lakshman and Sita to go to a nearby cave Rama is dressed in full gleaming armor, with a sword and bow as his weapons Khara charges at him with a chariot Rama uses fire arrows and his celestial sword to kill and wipe out the 14,000 demons Viradha demon, whom is cursed, abducts Sita from Rama and Lakshman  description of demon is grotesque, with hollow eyes and a disfigured body Rama pierced the demon with seven arrows, but the demon was immune to sharp weapons Rama and Lakshman let the demon pick them up after he sets Sita down. They then break both his arms and make him wounded. Start punching and kicking the demon, but he won't die They decide to make a pit to throw him in After they throw the demon in the pit, the demon reveals that he was actually Tumburu, and had been cursed by Kubera. Rama had to defeat Tumbu...

Ramayana: Rama Wins Sita Rama has to prove his strength by being able to bend the bow of gods, including Janak's bow of war Many warriors come from far to try to wield the bow but none can except Rama Wielded bow of Rudra Sita becomes his wife because of it Similar story to King Arthur and the legend of the sword Ramayana: King Janaka King Janaka presents the challenge of anyone being able to bend the bow of Shiva's bow may marry his daughter Rama and his brother travel to bend the bow, facing demons in their path Nobody has been able to bend it, including demons, humans, and gods Thataka Rama battles with a rakshashi, a female demon He cut off her arms and shot her with arrows She resorted to becoming invisible Rama becomes rushed by a group of rakshasas, led by the mother of Thataka, and Rama summons the weapons he was granted when he killed Thataka. One of the weapons blasts the demons thousands of miles away to see, while the other weapon consumed other demo...

The Cunning Crane and the Crab by  W. H. D. Rouse was my favorite out of all eight stories. Intriguing characters such as somewhat cunning Crane, foolish fish, and even more cunning Crab. I thought the plot build up was somewhat grotesque with the fish being eaten one-by-one. Fish had a very bittersweet death, Crane had what was coming. Fish were in a dire situation and had no chance but to take a risk for a better life. The Crane saw this opportunity and had greater ability than the fish to deceive them. Crane uses one to convince the others, and then they were eaten one-by-one. Crab, although in a dried up pond, took advantage of Crane and was able to get a ride to the lake and not be eaten. Crab even ended up killing Crane, even though Crab didn't need to for food, was purely out of karma. Crane's strengths: natural born abilities, patience, ability to detect an opportunity.  Crane's weaknesses: ability to be easily deceived, even by those with much less capabiliti...