Power of Destiny

Power of Destiny

God's will "Hath no why"

Dear Kids,

Sometimes, despite your best efforts, things happen in a way that we never expected.

You must not feel disheartened by that - You must remember that God knows what is good for each of us, and ensures that we get precisely that.

Read this nice story to find out how this happened to a rat who was destined to be a rat:

On the shore of the Ganges there was a hermitage filled with holy men dedicated to prayer, self denial, repentance, the study of holy scriptures, fasting, and meditation. They drank only small amounts of very pure water, and mortified their bodies with a diet of bulbs, roots, fruits, and water plants. Their only clothing were loincloths made from tree bark.

The father of the hermitage was named Yajnavalkya. He had just finished bathing in the Ganges and was about to rinse out his mouth when a little mouse fell from a falcon's beak into his hand. After looking at it, he set it onto a fig leaf, bathed himself once more, rinsed out his mouth, and performed his penitential and other rituals. Then through the power of his holiness he transformed the mouse into a girl.

Taking her home with him to his hermitage, he said to his wife, who was childless, "My dear, take her in place of a daughter. Bring her up with care!"

Thereafter she was reared, loved, and nurtured. When she was sufficiently old, and the wife saw that she was ready for marriage, she said to her husband, "Listen, My Master, do you not see that it is past time for our daughter's marriage?"

He said, "What you say is quite right! So if she is willing, I will find the most powerful person in the world and make her his wife. Since I think that the Sun God is the most powerful person, I will first summon the exalted Sun God and present her to him as a wife.

His wife said, "What could be said against that? Do it!"

Through the power of prayer and incantations the sun appeared without delay, saying, "Holy man, why do you summon me?"

The man answered, "Behold! Here stands my beautiful, young daughter. If she will is interested, take her as a wife!"

Having said this, he said to his daughter, "Daughter, does this exalted one please you, this sun god who illuminates the entire world?"

The daughter said, "Father, he is too hot. I do not want him. Summon a better one!"

Hearing this, the wise man said to the sun, "Exalted one, is there a being more powerful than you?"

The sun answered, "Yes, there is a stronger one than I. The cloud, through whose cover I become invisible."

Then the wise man summoned the cloud and said to his daughter, "Daughter, shall I give you to this one as a wife?"

She answered, "He is black and cold. Therefore give me to another powerful being!"

Upon this the wise man asked the cloud, "Listen, cloud! Is there anyone more powerful than you?"

The cloud answered, "The wind is more powerful than I! Driven by the wind, I am scattered into a thousand pieces."

After hearing this, the wise man summoned the wind and said, "Daughter, does the wind please you most of all as a husband?"

She answered, "Father! He is entirely too inconstant. Summon a more powerful one instead!"

The wise man said, "Wind, is there anyone more powerful than you?"

The wind said, "The mountain is more powerful than I, for however strong I am, he still stands firmly against me."

Then the wise man summoned the mountain and said to the girl, "Daughter, shall I give you to this one in marriage?"

She answered, "Father, he is hard and rigid. Therefore give me to another one."

The wise man asked the mountain, "Listen, king of the mountains, is there anyone more powerful than you?"

The mountain answered, "The mice are more powerful than I, for they make holes in my body with violence."

With that the wise man summoned a mouse prince and showed him to her, saying, "Daughter, shall I give you to him as a wife? Does this mouse prince please you?"

Seeing him, she thought, "He is of my own kind."

Her hair stood on end with pleasure, making her even more beautiful, and she said, "Father, please make me into a mouse and give me to him as a wife so I can fulfill the domestic duties prescribed for my kind!"

Through the power of his holiness he transformed her into a little mouse and gave her to the other mouse as a wife.

And the great wise man realised that even though he had converted a little mouse into a beautiful human being, if God had wanted the mouse to be born as a mouse in this world, that destiny cannot be changed. And more importantly, the mouse derives true happiness and satisfaction not from any other source, but by being a good mouse.

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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The Deaf Frog and the importance of Common Sense

The Deaf Frog and the importance of Common Sense

Dear Kids,

When you are in class, you must listen carefully and study your lessons well in order to score good marks. However, it is even more important to have common sense to be successful later on in life in any field of your choice.

Just read this story to see why!!!

A biologist was interested in studying how far frogs can jump. He brought a frog into his laboratory, set it down, and commanded, "Jump, frog, jump!" The frog jumped across the room. The biologist measured the distance, then noted in his journal, "Frog with four legs jumped eight feet."

Then he cut the frog's front legs off. Again he ordered, "Jump, frog, jump!" The frog struggled a moment, then jumped a few feet. After measuring the distance, the biologist noted in his journal, "Frog with two legs jumped three feet."

Next, the biologist cut off the frog's back legs. Once more, he shouted, "Jump, frog, jump!" The frog just lay there.

"Jump, frog, jump!" the biologist repeated.

Nothing.

The biologist noted in his journal, "Frog with no legs - lost its hearing."

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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Smart Alec Stuff

Dear Kids,

Wonder whether you've seen these '¸Ê'Š before???

Some old "Smart Alec" Ones (Get the answers translated by a friend who knows Tamil!)
Which is the best â!	º¢¡¢ôÒ
Name the best flower for small kids	¿ðÒ
The darkest flower	¸ÚôÒ
Tasty flower used for cooking	ÀÕôÒ
A note for a friend in school	ÌÈ¢ôÒ
A flower that kids must never have	¦ÅÚôÒ
The flower that parents of kids don't like	ÌÚõÒ
The quality that elder brothers are supposed to have in plenty	¦À¡ÚôÒ
What you wear in your feet	¦ºÕôÒ
The hottest flower	¦¿ÕôÒ
The feeling that you get when you see so many '¸Ê'Š like this from friends	¸ÎôÒ

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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SIMPLICITY OF ABDUL KALAM, THE OUTGOING PRESIDENT OF INDIA

SIMPLICITY OF ABDUL KALAM, THE OUTGOING PRESIDENT OF INDIA

Dear Kids,

Those of you who are from India would be familiar with our beloved Abdul Kalam - A great president, and more importantly, a loveable human being.

All of you must have heard many stories about his various positive qualities (besides his great intelligence) - simplicity, transparency, honesty, etc.

Here is an example:

One year after he became President of India, on the morning of July 14, 2003, at 8.40 am, the RAX (President's Office Phone Exchange) in the office of the secretary to the President rang.

President Kalam was at the other end.

"Mr Nair," he said in a voice that was (as always) cool and composed, "last night I could not sleep because my bedroom was leaking..."

P.M. Nair froze and muttered something. "Any other President," he now recalls, "and my head would have rolled, although for no fault of mine."

At the other end of the line, the President (sensing Nair's embarrassment), continued reassuringly, "Don't worry Mr Nair, I know you will immediately set things right in my bedroom. What I am worried about are those houses on the President's Estate where they may not have a second bedroom to shift to when the only one that is available leaks."

So Nair got moving, and with the help of the CPWD, the old staff quarters - until then dilapidated and neglected - were transformed into bright new leak-proof houses: in almost record time.

Nair tells me that he was greatly impressed at the concern and compassion shown by the President - not for himself but for other inmates on the Presidential Estate. It has been said that no man, however great, is a hero to his own secretary or his own valet. But as with all such sayings there are exceptions - from that point on, Nair had found his hero!

Truly remarkable, indeed. That too, in these times when many smaller men - politicians, managers, school authorities, doctors, etc. act as though they are "Big Shots" who should be worshipped.

All of you must learn about simplicity from such examples from the lives of great men.

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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Mercury and the Axe - Part I - Honesty is rewarded

Mercury and the Axe - Part I - Honesty is rewarded

Dear Kids,

We've always been told that Honesty is the best policy. Here's one more example of how honesty is rewarded:

Long ago in Greece there was once a man who was cutting wood by a river when his axe slipped from his hand and fell into the water. The river was deep and the current ran fast.

Hard as he looked the man could see no sign of his axe. It had disappeared forever beneath the swirling waters. Or so he thought. There was nothing he could do. As he sat on the bank, he thought of his lost axe and began to cry.

Mercury, the messenger of the Gods, happened to be passing by and saw the man crying by the riverside. He stopped and asked the man what had happened. When he was told, Mercury felt sorry for the man, so he dived into the fast flowing river. Soon he came up with a golden axe in his hand, and asked the man whether this was the axe he had lost.

'No,' said the woodcutter, 'this is not the axe I lost.'

So Mercury dived down again, and this time came up with a silver axe. 'No,' said the man, 'this is not mine either.'

So the winged god went down for a third time, and came up with the woodcutter's own axe. 'That's the one!' he said, and he thanked Mercury for all the trouble he had taken to find his lost axe. Mercury was so delighted with the honesty of the man that he made him a present of the gold and silver axes as well.

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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Troubles of partial understanding

Troubles of partial understanding

Dear Kids,

Whenever a teacher or parents tell you something, you must listen carefully and completely. If you do not understand things properly, you will only get into trouble. Here's a nice story to tell you about the result of partial understanding.

Once upon a time, in a dense forest, along the banks of a beautiful river, there lived a Sanyasin who had many disciples. One day he taught them to see God in all beings and to bow low before them all. One of the disciples went to the nearby village market to buy some essential items for the Gurukul. Suddenly he heard an outcry, "Get out of the way! A mad elephant is coming!"

All but the disciple of the holy man took to their heels. He reasoned that the elephant was God in another form. So why run away? He stood still, bowed before the animal, and began to sing its praises while the Elephant-keeper (Yanai Pahan: elephant keeper, trainer, driver, etc.) was shouting: "Run away! Run away!". All the villagers were also shouting at him, asking him to run away.

But the disciple didn't run.

The animal seized him with its trunk, cast him to one side, and went on its way. Hurt and bruised, the disciple lay unconscious on the ground. Hearing what had happened, his teacher, the great Sanyasin and his brother disciples came to him and carried him to the Gurukul.

With the help of some medicine he slowly regained consciousness.

Someone asked him, "You knew the elephant was coming - why didn't you leave the place?"

"But, "he said, "our Guruji has told us that God Himself has taken all these forms, of animals as well as men. Therefore, thinking it was God that was coming, I didn't run away."

At this the teacher said: "Yes, my child, the elephant God was coming; but the Yanai Pahan God forbade you to stay there. All the Villager Gods were asking you to run away. Why didn't you trust all those Gods who first told you to run away? The elephant God threw you around only because you did not listen first to all the other Gods!"

Hearing this, the poor disciple hung his head in shame, having learnt a good lesson.

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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Nice example of father's love and care

Story of Stubborn Kamala

Dear Kids,

Today is Thursday. All of you must be looking forward to the weekend. At the same time, some of you will be wondering what to do with your mothers, fathers, aunts, uncles, elder brothers and sisters who keep telling you:

• Do this
• Don't do that
• Don't forget your homework
• Come home in time, before dark, etc.

Those of you who are irritated by such instructions will find this story of Kamala interesting and informative:

Kamala was the third and youngest child of affectionate parents. This incident happened when she was around 12 years of age. She wanted to go out with her friends and enjoy herself in late games, movies, etc. just like her elder brother and elder sister, who were 17 and 15 years respectively.

However, her parents kept giving her all those usual instructions that you know already - basically, preventing her from "enjoying herself the way she wanted" . One day, this got to be too much. She had been running a mild fever for the past couple of days. Her mother, who was a doctor, gave her some tablets to take and told her to take one tablet without fail after dinner for the next 6 days. Her affectionate father used to remind Kamala to take the tablet after dinner every day.

It was Thursday evening, and Friday happened to be a holiday at school. Kamala was very keen to go out with her friends and enjoy herself. However, looking at her health condition, her father told her strictly to stay at home. Kamala was wildly annoyed and told her father: "Dad - if you speak another word with me, I'll not only stop eating, but will also stop eating the tablets and will go and drink all the cold water and juice that was kept in the refrigirator."

Her father knew that Kamala would precisely do that. At the same time, he wanted to ensure that Kamala did not forget her tablet in the night.

Hence, he told her: "Okay, Kamala, As you wish, I'll not talk with you till you come and ask me to talk - But on one condition: You must remember to take the tablet immediately after dinner and come and tell me. I'll have my dinner only after you have told me that you've taken your tablet."

On hearing this, Kamala understood the extent to which her father cared for her and also understood that whatever he was telling was only for her own good. She burst into tears and hugged her dad and said: "Sorry, dad. Hereafter, I'll always obey all your instructions without fail. After all you are only telling me for my own good!"

_________________________________

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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Unity is Strength

Unity is Strength

Dear Kids,

Your mother must have often told you not to fight with your friends, with your brothers and sisters. To know the reason for that, you must read this story:

Once upon a time, there was a flock of doves that flew in search of food led by their king. One day, they had flown a long distance and were very tired. The dove king encouraged them to fly a little further. The smallest dove picked up speed and found some rice scattered beneath a banyan tree. So all the doves landed and began to eat.

Suddenly a net fell over them and they were all trapped. They saw a hunter approaching carrying a huge club. The doves desperately fluttered their wings trying to get out, but to no avail.

The king had an idea. He advised all the doves to fly up together carrying the net with them. He said that there was strength in unity.

Each dove picked up a portion of the net and together they flew off carrying the net with them. The hunter looked up in astonishment. He tried to follow them, but they were flying high over hills and valleys. They flew to a hill near a city of temples where there lived a mouse who could help them. He was a faithful friend of the dove king.

When the mouse heard the loud noise of their approach, he went into hiding. The dove king gently called out to him and then the mouse was happy to see him. The dove king explained that they had been caught in a trap and needed the mouse's help to gnaw at the net with his teeth and set them free.

The mouse agreed saying that he would set the king free first. The king insisted that he first free his subjects and the king last. The mouse understood the king's feelings and compled with his wishes. He began to cut the net and one by one all the doves were freed including the dove king.

They all thanked the mouse and flew away together, united in their strength.

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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The King's Choice

The King's Choice

Dear Kids,

Here's a story which tells you to concentrate on your own area of strength!

There was a lion that was the king of the forest. He was big and handsome, fierce and strong. All the other animals brought him gifts from every corner of the forest. But the more he got, the more he wanted. 'A king must have courtiers,' he said to himself one day. The lion called a fox to his side. "You are known to be wise and clever. I want you to be adviser."

'Thank you, your Majesty," said the fox, bowing low.

Then he called a leopard. "You are known to be alert and swift-footed. You will be my bodyguard." "Thank you, your Majesty," said the leopard bowing low. The next to be called was a crow. "You are a bird and can fly quite high. You will be my messenger." "Thank you, your Majesty," said the crow, bowing low.

The fox, the crow, and the leopard took oaths of loyalty to the king. He promised them food and protection. For some time, all was well. The three courtiers never opposed the king. His wishes were law. Whenever he roared they stood in awe. Wherever he went, they followed him. When the king went hunting, they found the animals for him to kill. After he did was eat to his fill, and left the remains for them. So, they always had enough to eat.

One day, the crow came to the king. "Your Majesty, have you ever tried camel meat? It is tasty. I ate some in the desert once." The lion had never seen a camel, and he liked the idea of tasting camel meat. "But where can we get a camel?" he asked. "There is a desert some miles away. I have just been flying over it. I saw a lone camel there. It looked big and fat." The lion looked at his other advisers. They were wise and experienced. He wanted their opinion.

The fox and the leopard did not know much about a desert. But they did not want the crow to seem wiser. So they said it was a good idea. The crow could fly ahead and show them the way. Next morning the lion and his aides set out for the desert. They soon reached the edge of the desert. But once they had left the shelter of the forest, the blazing sun beat down on them. It was unbearably hot. High up in the cool air, the crow flew.

Hurry along," he called out. "The camel is not far off." But the lion could go no further. The hot sand had burned his paws. "Stop!" he shouted to the others. "Let us go back to the forest. I do not care for camel meat." His advisers were frightened. The forest was far behind them. They did not know how get the lion back home. The leopard wanted to run away.

Needless to say, this was what was running in the mind of the lion as well.

Finally, they all gave up hope and went off to their old forest.

Thus, it was, that the camel was saved!

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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Miser and the Pot of Gold

Miser & the pot of Gold

Dear Kids,

Here's a story of a miser:

A MISER sold all that he had and bought a Pot full of Gold coins, which he buried in a hole in the ground by the side of an old wall and went to look at it daily.

One of his workmen observed his frequent visits to the spot and decided to watch his movements. He soon discovered the secret of the hidden treasure, and digging down, came to the pot of gold coins, and stole it.

The Miser, on his next visit, found the hole empty and began to tear his hair and to make loud lamentations.

A Sanyasin, passing by, asked him about the matter. On seeing him overcome with grief and learning the cause, said, "Pray do not grieve so; but go and take a stone, and place it in the hole, and fancy that the gold is still lying there. It will do you quite the same service; for when the gold was there, you had it not, as you did not make the slightest use of it."

Watch out in the following days to find out what happened to the Miser and his pot of gold!?!?!?

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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FROG IN THE WELL

FROG IN THE WELL

Hi Kids!

Here's one more "Vivekananda Story" - Something that has been told by many grandparents to many grandchildren!

This is about a frog that used to live in a well. This story is a very popular folk tale and has many versions. The version that I am about to tell you is one that Swami Vivekananda told the world as part of one of his speeches at the Parliament of Religions held in Chicago on 15th September, 1893.

Once upon a time, there lived a frog in a nice, deep well. It had lived there for a long time. It was born there and brought up there. This frog, every day fed on the worms and bacilli that lived in the water of the well, and became a fat frog with a lot of energy.

Well, one day another frog that lived in the sea came and fell into the well. Our well frog asked the sea frog, "Where are you from?"

"I am from the sea." Answered the sea frog

"The sea!" exclaimed the well frog, "How big is that? Is it as big as my well?", and he took a leap from one side of the well to the other.

"My friend", said the sea frog, "how do you compare the sea with your little well?"

Then the well frog took another leap and asked, "Is your sea so big?"

The shocked sea frog exclaimed "What nonsense you speak, to compare the sea with your well!"

"Well, Well," said the well frog, "nothing can be bigger than my well; there can be nothing bigger than this; He then shouted, "this fellow is a liar, turn him out."

Swami Vivekananda told this story to explain why it was that people in this world are unable to live at peace with one another. It is petty differences like these that we human beings are unable to resolve, which then causes hate and divisiveness.

Happy reading!

Uncle N

Another one on Gandhiji

Dear Kids,

Here's one more nice story about Gandhiji's ability to learn even from children!

Once a child called Gandhiji mad, to the great embarrassment of his parents, when he was eating some fruit.

Bapuji was amused and asked the child to tell him why he (Bapuji) was mad. The little boy said that his mother had called him mad once when he ate something and did not share it with others.

"You are eating alone, and that is why you are mad," the child declared. Gandhiji told him that he was absolutely right and he offered some fruit to him.

Gandhiji was a unique man of his age. This conviction will continue to grow as long as his writings survive and little stories and anecdotes of his deep love for man are narrated to us.

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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Gandhi & Punctuality

Gandhi and Punctuality

Dear Kids,

I'm sure that your teachers, your parents, your uncles etc. keep talking to you about the importance of punctuality. While I like to be punctual, I'm sure that in my own personal life I may not always be as punctual as I would like to be.

However, here's an interesting story for you on Gandhiji's Punctuality!

It was once in Chidambaram that Gandhi dodged an unruly crowd and made good his escape in order to keep an engagement. In a sense crowds had been the curse of Gandhi's life. They had never allowed him peace. They followed some remorseless law of motion of gravitation towards him, the moment they caught sight of him. Gandhi had had some hair-breadth escapes from enthusiastic but frantic crowds who in their eagerness to gaze on him and do to him honor would have all but trampled him to death.

It was altogether a bad day at Chidambaram. Gandhi was driving to the Annamalai University, where he was to address the University Union. Seated by his side in the car was Dr. T.S.S. Rajan. Half a mile or so from the University a dense crowd had collected in one of the town's narrow streets, awaiting Gandhi's car. There were two other cars following close behind with other members of the party. The crowd held up Gandhi's car. Gandhi asked what the matter was. The spokesman for the crowd came up to explain. He and his friends had planned a feast at which high-caste Brahmins would sit with the Harijans. The feast, arranged in honor of Gandhi's visit to Chidambaram, was even then in progress in a big pandal built specially for the purpose, just a stone's throw away. They pleaded with Gandhi to alight for a moment just to look-in at the dinner. Gandhi turned to Dr. Rajan and asked when they were due at the University. Dr. Rajan answered that they had only another ten minutes left. Gandhi inquired whether this dinner was included in his programme for the day, and learnt that it was not.

Gandhi requested Dr. Rajan to explain to the crowd that he had an engagement to keep in the next ten minutes and that this interruption was an unauthorized item. But the crowd would accept no excuses, and insisted on Gandhi's alighting, if only for a minute. Dr. Rajan got into a lively argument with the crowd. Gandhi, meanwhile, quietly slipped out of the car by the other door and made a dash for the university building. For moment the crowd did not realize what was happening. They were having it out with Dr. Rajan, who, they thought, was the real culprit. That was Gandhi's chance. He soon managed to get clear of the crowd. One of the cars behind shot forward, picked him up and sped him towards the University. The crowd then saw their bird escaping and surged forward, shouting the accustomed slogan, 'Mahatma Gandhi-ki-jai.' But the car that had picked up Gandhi had got clear. Gandhi looked back and waved his hands like a merry schoolboy who had escaped from some tight corner. But the last he saw of Dr. Rajan was not a very edifying spectacle from the point of view of non-violence. The crowd was venting its wrath on Dr. Rajan, who had to make vigorous use of his fists to extricate himself from an infuriated mob! Gandhi had no time to adjudicate between the claims of violence and no-violence. He drove away in a cloud of dust. He was not more than a minute late at the meeting of the University Union. The first words he uttered were of apology for the delay.

Gandhi and his watch are inseparable companions. Punctuality with him ranks high among the virtues.

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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The Smart Monkey!

Dear Kids,

Most of you would have heard the following story: Do read this and enjoy yourself.

Once upon a time there was a nice young man called Karim. He used to sell caps for a living, and roam around several villages. One day he would be in Mughalsarai, the other day people would find him in Faizabad.

It was an afternoon in summer and he was traversing the vast plains when he felt tired and wanted to have a nap. He found a nice mango tree with lots of branches and cool shade, placed his bag of caps beside him and went to sleep.

Tired as he was, he was quickly fast asleep. When he woke up after a refreshing little nap, he found that there weren't any caps in his bag! "Oh, Allah!", he said to himself, "Did the thieves have to find me of all people?" But then he noticed that the mango tree was full of cute monkeys wearing colourful caps!

He yelled at the monkeys and they screamed back. He made faces at them and found the monkeys to be experts at that. He threw a stone at them and they showered him with raw mangoes.

"Ya Allah, how do I get my caps back," he said. Frustrated, he took off his own cap and slammed it on the ground. And lo, the stupid monkeys threw their caps too! Smart Karim didn't waste a second, collected the caps and was on his way.

Since this is probably an old story, you must read the second part of the story ......

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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The Smart Monkey!

50 Years later ....

Young Abdul, grandson of famous topiwala Karim who was also working hard at making $$$ doing his family business, was going through the same jungle. After a long walk he was very tired and found a nice mango tree with lots of branches and cool shade. Abdul decided to rest a while and very soon was fast asleep. A few hours later, when Abdul woke up, he realised that all the caps from his bag were gone!

Abdul started searching for the same and to his surprise found some monkeys sitting on mango tree wearing his caps. Abdul was frustrated and didn't know what to do. And then he remembered a story his grandfather proudly used to let him.

"Yes!!!! I can fool these monkeys!!!", said Abdul. "I'll make them imitate me and very soon I'll get all my caps back!"

· Abdul waved at the monkeys -- the Monkeys waved at Abdul.

· Abdul blew his nose -- the Monkeys blew their noses

· Abdul started dancing -- the Monkeys were also dancing

· Abdul pulled his ears -- the Monkeys pulled their ears

· Abdul raised his hands -- the Monkeys raised their hands

· Abdul threw his cap on the ground ............

And, ……

........ one of the monkeys jumped down from the tree, picked the cap, walked up to Abdul; slapped him and said:

"Idiot! Do you think ONLY YOU HAVE A GRANDPA???"

Swami Vivekananda

Dear Kids,

Here's one on Swami Vivekananda.

Happy Reading!

Uncle N

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Swami Vivekananda

He came to be known as Swami Vivekananda only when he became a sannyasi or monk. His parents called him Narendra. His father was Vishwanatha Datta and his mother Bhuvaneshwari Devi. Narendra was born on 12th January 1863 in Calcutta. As a child he was very lively and naughty. When Narendra stepped into boyhood, his naughtiness grew. He was a natural leader of the children in the neighbourhood. His companions bowed to his decision always. Once a landlord threatened the children saying, "There is a demon in the tree and he swallows children." Narendra was not impressed by this threat. He settled down on a branch. The other boys took to their heels. Narendra waited for several hours, but the demon did not appear. So, he declared that the landlord's story was a spoof. Narendra loved to tease his sisters. Meditation, too, was a sport to him. But as he meditated he became oblivious of the whole world. Not even a lizard or a snake moving near him could disturb his concentration.

Even as a child Narendra had great respect for sannyasis or ascetics. He would give away anything to anybody if asked for. On his birthday, he would wear new clothes, wouldn't he? If a beggar asked for aims he would give away the new clothes. From that day, his mother would lock him up in a room whenever a beggar passed by the house. But every beggar knew Narendra's nature very well. So beggars would stand near the window of Narendra's room. He would throw to them anything he had. The spirit of sacrifice and renunciation was already blossoming in him. In her leisure time his mother would tell him the story of the Ramayana. He could not sleep unless she told him a story. Then he would be all ears, forgetting his study and play. He had great reverence for Lord Hanuman. Once he sat before the idol of Lord Shiva, with his body all smeared with ash. His perplexed mother asked him, "Naren, what's all this?" He smiled and said, "Mother, I'm the Lord Shiva." The mother feared that her son would become a sannyasi, like his grandfather.

Narendra's father was a lawyer. So every day his house used to be crowded with his clients belonging to different castes. The house was like an inn; the clients had breakfast and lunch there. It was the custom to provide the guests with hukkas (long pipes) to smoke after food. There was a different pipe for clients of each caste. Narendra wondered what would happen if he smoked the pipe meant for people of a different caste. Finally he experimented. Nothing untoward happened. He concluded that caste had no meaning.

The maxim "The child is father of the man" was entirely true of the compassionate boy, Narendra. Once there was a display of physical exercises in a local gymnasium. Accidentally an iron bar fell on a sailor among the spectators. He fell down unconscious. The people who had gathered there ran away lest the police should question them. Narendra, with the help of two friends of his, gave the wounded sailor first aid. Then he took him to a doctor. He even raised some money for the wounded man. On another occasion Narendra pulled out one of his friends who had been caught .under the wheel of a coach drawn by horses. Likewise he helped a little boy who was a total stranger. The boy was lying on a road with high fever. He took him home. Narendra never knew what fear was.

It was not that Narendra excelled only in sports; he was quick and alert in his studies as well. After a single reading he could remember any lesson. His memory was amazing. Concentration was the key to his success in studies.

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A Story to end ALL STORIES

Dear Kids,

Long time since I told you a story. Some of you have, at last, sent me mails asking me "Why"???

I was just waiting for such emails which gives me motivation to tell you stories once more!

Here's one that I came across recently - Enjoy reading:

A Story to end ALL STORIES

A certain king was enormously learned. He knew all the arts. Once, on a whim, he sent word through his provinces that he would give a reward of a thousand rupees to anyone who could tire him out with a story; if he ever got bored and stopped saying "Hmm, hmm" to the story, he would admit defeat and pay up.

Learned pundits came to his court from over a hundred places, told him story after story till they got tired and sick. He continued to say "Hmm, hmm" every sentence of their telling. He never tired of it.

Finally a pundit came from the north. He told the clever king many long and involved stories. The king enjoyed them all and never once showed any sign of fatigue. The pundit exhausted himself and felt defeated. His face fell. One day, as he was walking away from the palace, utterly dejected, he met an old friend who asked him, "Why do you look so depressed?"

The pundit was happy to see him and unburdened himself of the whole story. The friend said, "Is that all? Cheer up. Take me with you tomorrow and I'll defeat him."

In spite of all the pundit's protests, the friend went with him to see the king, who gave him permission to begin a new story, and so he began one.

"Once upon a time, in a certain town, there lived a king. Near the town was a big pond. On its bank was a huge banyan tree. Right under it, a farmer had stored all his ragi grain in several kanajas (grain containers) after harvesting and threshing the ragi. Thousands of sparrows lived in the banyan tree. Every sparrow would eat a grain, take a small drink of water in the pond, and fly back to perch on the tree. There were twenty enormous kanajas filled with grain. Each day, a sparrow would fly down, eat a grain, take a small drink of water, and fly back to the tree. Then the next sparrow would fly down, eat a grain, take a small drink of water, and fly back to the tree," and so on.

And he went on like this for hours. The king began to get tired of saying "Hmm, hmm, hmm" to every sentence of the story. Every day, after the morning bath and food, they would gather for the story, which never seemed to end.

Again the storyteller resumed: "The grains of ragi were not exhausted. The sparrows continued to eat. One of them would eat a grain, drink the water, and go back to the tree. Then the next one would eat a grain, take a drink …," and so on.

The king was disgusted. " Thu, this fellow is repeating himself over and over. How can I keep on saying 'Hmm, hmm' to him?" he wondered wearily. Finally he asked the storyteller, "For days you've been telling me the story. Tell me, by now, how many kanajas of grain got empty?"

"Ayyo, my lord, in all that I've told you these many days, not even one quarter of a kanaja was eaten by the sparrows. There's so much more left for the sparrows to eat and for me to tell. So one of them ate a grain, drank the water, and went back to the tree. And then the next one …," and so on.

The king's heart sank. For days, he had hardly been able to attend to any of his household or state affairs. "When will all the twenty kanajas get over? Ayyo, ayyo, how many more days will it take? How long, O lord!" he cried within himself. He was afraid he would be stuck with saying "Hmm, hmm" for months. So he said to the storyteller, "You win. You're a great storyteller. With your story, you've brought me the biggest headache of my life. You've achieved something that none of the great pundits could achieve with their beautiful stories. You're greater than all."

Then he gave the man his reward of a thousand rupees and was happy to see the pair of them go.

As soon as they were outside, the two friends skipped with joy that they had taught a foolish king a lesson. "We've done it," they said. "Never more will he trouble a learned man or a storyteller."

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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Irregular posts

Dear Kids,

I've been fairly irregular in posting new posts on this blog.

Basically, I'm waiting for feedback - positive and negative - before posting more regularly.

Do get back to me from time to time!

Are you enjoying the blog? Are you bored? Do respond!

Uncle N

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Kids Perspectives - Some more of them!

11. Where there's smoke there's ___

...pollution.

12. Happy the bride who ___

...gets all the presents.

13. A penny saved is ___

...not much.

14. Two's company, three's ___

...the Musketeers.

15. Don't put off till tomorrow what ___

...you put on to go to bed.

16. Laugh and the whole world laughs with you, cry and ___

...you have to blow your nose.

17. There are none so blind as ___

...Stevie Wonder.

18. Children should be seen and not ___

...spanked or grounded.

19. If at first you don't succeed ___

...get new batteries.

20. You get out of something only what you ___

...see in the picture on the box.

21. When the blind leadeth the blind ___

...get out of the way.

22. Better late than ___

...pregnant.

Happy reading!

Uncle N

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