Hey fellow adventurers! I love folktales! Some of the most creative and interesting stories are folktales. My favorite book as a girl was a kids’ version of One Thousand and One Nights (more commonly known as Arabian Nights). My favorite story being one of the lesser known “The Prince and the Tortoise.” However, even though Indian folktales influenced the Arabian Nights, maybe even slipped in to the books, that’s not what we’re talking about today. I’m going to talk about some of the more popular Indian folktales but I’m also going to leave out a lot of stories too. There are a lot of Indian folktales!
Jataka Tales
Originally written in Pali in 300 BCE, the Jataka Tales has since been translated and spread across the world. The stories were written to impart knowledge and morality on the reader. The tales mostly focus on the many births of Gautama Buddha in both human and animal form.
Panchatantra Tales
Originally written in Sanskrit and Pali, the Panchantantra Tales have been translated into multiple languages. These tales were compiled in the 200 BCE. It is believed that the stories were written by Vishnu Sharma and other scholars for the purpose of teaching moral values and governing skills to the young sons of the king. The tales consist of animal stories told in prose and poetry.
Hitopadesha Tales
The Hitopadesha Tales are a compilation of short stories composed by Narayana Pandit. Translated from Sanskrit, the stories are told in prose and poetry. A lot, if not all, of these stories are over 1,000 years old. The Hitopadesha Tales are often compared to the Panchatantra Tales. Unlike the Panchatantra Tales though, the Hitopadesha Tales was written for the common folk.
Ramayana
Translated from Sanskrit, “Ramayana” is an epic poem that narrates the life of Prince Rama. The story follows him as he gets banished from his kingdom, travels across India with his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana, rescues his wife with an army of monkeys after she was kidnapped by Rakshasa the demon king of Lanka, and then eventually returns to his kingdom to be crowned king. Considered by many to be one of the most important literary pieces of ancient India, this piece has been influencing art in Southeast Asia for centuries. This story has been retold in multiple different art forms countless times. Below is the story being told through dance.
Mahabharata
Also translated from Sanskrit, “Mahabharata” is made up of almost 100,000 (ten times longer than the Iliad and the Odyssey combined), making it the longest epic poem known. The story follows the Kurukshetra War, the war between two groups of cousins, the Kauravas and the Pandavas, over the throne of Hastinapur. It was announced earlier this year that Dr. B. R. Shetty invested $150 million (American) to produce “Mahabharata,” making it the biggest Indian motion picture ever. It’s going to be directed by V. A. Shrikumar Menon and will come out in two parts. The first part is planned to be released in 2018 and the second part in 2020.
If you want to read some Indian folktales:
http://www.worldoftales.com/Indian_folktales.html
http://fairytalez.com/region/indian/
If there were any folktales that you believe deserve mention, please tell me in a comment below. I would love to read about it! Until our next adventure!