Two Buddhist Stories To Tell Children

Also, as a society, we detach children from themselves. We tell them there is no reason to cry despite injuries. We tell them not to shout and not play. Unfortunately, we drive our children away from their inner voice and pay attention only to recommendations dictated by the environment. Our awareness of this educational error is growing daily. After all, we want to enable our children to have a healthy growth environment and self-awareness. A fairly workable way to support the idea has been found: stories.

The rise of Buddhism and Eastern wisdom is in line with our goal. This article focuses on two Buddhist stories that you can use to delight your children.

Siddharta and the swan

A long time ago, a king and queen lived in India. One day the queen gave birth to a child. They called this Prince Siddharta. The king and queen were very happy with the child. They called a wise, old man into his kingdom to foretell the happiness of their children.

–  Tell us,  said the queen to the old man, m our dinner will come when we grow up?

– Your son is going to be a special child,  she said, j oku day he will become a great king.

–  Hooray!  exclaimed the king,  he will become a king just like me.

–  But, the  wise man continued, as the child grows, he may give up the palace to help people.

–  He wouldn’t do that!  shouted the king and took the child away from the man,  he will become a mighty king!

The king looked at his son without ceasing. He made sure the boy had everything he needed. He wanted Siddharta to enjoy his life as a prince. He wanted him king. When the prince turned seven, the king asked the boy and said to him:

–  Siddhartha, it is time for you to prepare for the kingdom. There are things you need to learn. We have the best experts in the world to support us. They will teach you everything you need to know. 

–  I’ll do my best, Dad, the  prince replied.

Siddhartha began his lessons. He didn’t learn to read or write, but he learned to ride a horse. He learned how bows, arrows, and swords are used in battles. These were the skills a brave king would need. Siddhartha learned well, just like his peer cousin Devadatta. The king kept an eye on his son.

– The  prince is so strong and wise! And what a fast learner.  He is going to be awesome and famous!

After completing his lesson, Siddhartha played in the palace garden. All kinds of animals lived there: squirrels, rabbits, birds, deer. Siddhartha was interested in them. He could sit and watch them quietly, and the animals experienced no fear as he approached him. Siddhartha liked to play near the lake. Every year a few beautiful swans were washed there. He looked at them from behind the grass. He wanted to know how many eggs were in the nest and to see when the chicks learned to swim.

One afternoon Siddhartha was on the lake. Suddenly he heard a voice from above. He looked up. Three beautiful swans flew over his head. “More swans,” Siddhartha thought. “I hope they nest on our lake”. At that moment, one of the swans fell from a height. “Oh no!” Siddhartha shouted and ran towards the bird.

“What happened?” “There’s an arrow in your wing , ” he said. “Someone has hurt you.” Siddhartha spoke to the bird very softly so that it would not be frightened. He began to rub it gently. Gently he also removed the arrow. He took off his shirt and wrapped it around a swan. “You’ll be fine again soon,” he said. “See you later.”

At that moment, Devadatta arrived on the scene. “That’s my swan,” he shouted. “I grabbed it, give it to me”. “It doesn’t belong to you,” Siddhartha said, “it’s a wild swan” . “I grabbed it with my arrow, so it’s mine. Give it to me now. ” “No,” Siddhartha said,  ” it’s wounded and we need to help it.”

The boys began to argue. “Stop,” Siddhartha urged. “In our kingdom, disputes are settled with the help of the king. So let’s go to him. ” The boys set out in search of the king. “Don’t you see how busy we are? Go play elsewhere. ” “We didn’t come to play, we came to ask for the king’s help,”  Siddhartha said.

“Wait!” exclaimed the king when he heard this. “Don’t turn them away. They have the right to ask for help. ” He was pleased that Siddhartha knew how to act in the situation in the right way. “Let the boys tell their stories. We listen and give them our judgment. ”

First, Devadatta reported his version of what had happened. “I hurt a swan, it belongs to me.” The minister nodded in agreement. After all, it was the law of the kingdom. The animal or bird belonged to the person who manages to harm it. Then Siddhartha told his version. “The swan is not dead.” It’s hurt, but still alive. ”

Ministers were confused. To whom did the swan really belong? “I think I can help you ,” the voice said. The old man came in through the door. “If a swan could talk,” the man said, “it would tell us his desire to fly and swim like other wild swans. No one wants to experience pain and death. The swan feels the same. It would not go on the journey of one who tried to deprive it of its life.  I would start with the one who tried to help it. ”

Devadatta remained silent all the time. He had never thought about the feelings of animals. He was sorry he had hurt the bird. “Devadatta, you can help me take care of the bird if you want,” Siddhartha said.

Siddhartha took care of the swan until it was okay again. One day, when the wing had already healed, he took the swan to the lake. “It’s time for us to resign ,” Siddhartha said. Siddhartha and Devadatta watched the swan swim into the deep waters. At that moment, they heard the sound of the wings above them. “Look,” Devadatta said, “the others have returned to him.” The swan flew to heights and joined his group of friends. Together, they flew over the lake for the last time. “They thank you,” Siddhartha said as the swans disappeared behind the mountains to the north.

The wisdom of the three crows

There will come a time in everyone’s life when our maturity will guide us toward the adult community. Crows are no exception here. One day, three young crows were put to a test where parents measured their maturity to fly with adults. The clan chief asked the first crow:

“What should crows fear most in our world?” 

The young crow thought about the question for a  moment and replied, “The most horrible thing in our world is the arrow, because it can kill with one blow.” The old man was pleased to hear that the answer was quite good. They raised their wings and shouted fiercely, “You’re right, welcome to our community.”

The chief then asked the other young man:

“What do you think we should fear the most?”

“I think Sagittarius is more dangerous than the arrow itself,” said the young crow. “For only he can aim an arrow and shoot with it. Without an archer, an arrow is just a piece of wood. ” The crows said they heard it was the smartest response they had ever heard. The young candidate’s parents shouted happily and were full of pride. “You speak with great intelligence. We are happy to welcome you to our community. ” The leader then addressed his question to another third young man:

“How about you? What do you think we should fear the most? ”

“No one has said that yet , ” the third crow stated. “Most of all, we should be afraid of an amateur shooter.”  That’s just a weird answer! The crows were embarrassed and ashamed of the young bird. Many of them thought the bird was incapable of understanding the question. Until the chief asked him again, “What do you mean?”

“The other candidate was right; without a shooter there is no reason to fear an arrow. But the arrow coming out of the bow of a good shooter knows where to aim. In this case, you only need to fly to the right or left to prevent an attack. However, the arrow of an amateur shooter can fly anywhere. No matter which direction you dodge, the arrow can still hit you. You can’t know if it’s best to move or stay put. ”

The other crows realized that the young man really was wise. He could see further. The crows began to treat the young candidate with respect and admiration. And not long after they asked him to become the new leader of the group.