Folktales are such a charming heritage that we own as a human race. From the archives of folktales from around the world, we can literally find any type of story we want. Funny stories, scary stories, bedtime stories, moral stories—whatever we look for is there in folklore. Among them, the folktales with moral lessons have quite the attraction, as they are usually ideal as bedtime stories for kids as well as just moral stories for kids. Because regardless of the genre of the story, it carries a moral. So, they are ideal folktales for kids too.
Most importantly, the folktale stories with moral lessons are not boring. They don’t try to give us a moral out of nowhere. Instead, they include the morals within the stories smoothly. Here are seven such folktale stories with moral lessons you never heard before!
Folktale Stories with Moral Lesson 1: The Mongoose Son
The story of the mongoose son is from South Asian folklore. The story revolved around a farming family and a mongoose. And the story brings up a moral lesson that is valid for anyone of any age, anywhere in the world, at any time. This story has a tragic ending; therefore, parents are advised to read the story before handing it to their children, especially at bedtime.
“Once upon a time, there was a farming family in a village. The husband was called Gamarala, and his wife was called Gamahamine. They were both married and were expecting a child for quite a while. Gamarala was a hard-working and caring man. He went to his cultivations to work in the fields early in the morning and came back in the evening. Meanwhile, his wife did all the household work, including cooking, collecting firewood, doing laundry by hand, keeping the house neat and clean and feeding the cows. Months passed by like this. Gamahamine finally told Gamarala the good news they’d been waiting for. They were…”
Click here to read the full story of the mongoose son
Folktale Stories with Moral Lesson 2: Raigamaya and Gampolaya
The tale of Raigamaya and Gampolaya is one of the folktale stories with moral lessons in Sinhalese folklore. This story revolved around two cunning men and was suitable for anyone at any time. Though the story is short, it would definitely make a good campfire or bedtime story.
“Once upon a time, in Ceylon, there were two cunning men. We call one of them Raigamaya and the other Gampolaya. Raigamaya was from the Raigama area. Gampolaya was from the Gampola area. One day, Raigamaya and Gampolaya met each other at an Ambalama…”
Click here to read the full story of Raigamaya and Gampolaya
Folktale Stories with Moral Lesson 3: The Foolish Man and the Moringa Tree
One of the funniest folktale stories with moral lessons from South Asian folklore is the story of the foolish man and the moringa tree. This one will do the job as a bedtime story, a funny story, or a moral story.
“Once upon a time, there was a foolish man in a village. He was a very poor man. But he worked hard. He worked at his paddy fields, Chena, and home garden. He cultivated all he could and made a living out of his cultivations. That was how he fed his wife and his son. He was an honest, innocent man. But, unfortunately, he was not that smart…”
Click here to read the full story of the foolish man and the moringa tree
Folktale Stories with Moral Lesson 4: The Woodcutter and the Axe
The story of the wood cutter and his axe is a folktale that comes from South Asia. The story appears to be one of the Jataka stories from Buddhist literature. However, one theory about Jataka stories is that they are folktales and fables adopted into the context to provide a moral lesson according to Buddhism. And apparently, after that, these stories again became folktales. However, this story is for both kids and adults and it gives a valuable lesson for life.
“Once upon a time, there lived a poor man. This man was a wood cutter. He cut down trees for other people. For each tree he cut, he received a small amount of money as compensation. But it was not enough for him to fulfill his needs. The wood cutter had to do something about it. One night after a tiring day…”
Click here to read the full story of the woodcutter and the axe
Folktale Stories with Moral Lesson 5: Non-fragile Pottery
The story of non-fragile pottery is one of the best folktales I found in South Asian folklore. The story brings us a moral lesson, emphasizing one aspect of our lives where our choices and shortsighted thinking lead us to trouble. Although this story is found in the Jataka Stories, it is also told as a folktale. Regardless, if you are looking for bedtime stories with moral lessons for kids or moral stories for you, this is definitely one of the best.
“Once upon a time, there lived a potter. He was an honest man who made a living out of making pottery and selling it to the villagers. The pottery making was his life. He started making pottery when he was seven with his grandfather, who was a master potter in his village. Then, after his grandfather passed away, he worked with his father. And after his father passed away, he became the master potter in his village…”
Click here to read the full story of non-fragile pottery
Folktale Stories with Moral Lesson 6: How a Gamarala (a villager) Went to Heaven
This story is from the folktales of Gamarala, from Sinhalese folklore. The story tells about a villager who lived by farming and accidentally found a way to go to heaven and how he took his fellow people with him. So the story is obviously very funny and gives us vivid imaginations of the incidents. At the end, it gives us a simple but important moral lesson. So, this story has got to be one of the best folktales with moral stories from all the folktales around the world.
“Once upon a time, there was a Gamarala on an island called Lanka. On that island, there were so many villages. They were beautiful villages with a lot of greenery. There were many things that made these villages beautiful. Small reservoirs, paddy fields, forests, grasslands, cows and cattle, water buffaloes, goats, chickens, bull carts, cats and dogs, Chena lands, cannels with water lilies and lotus flowers are only a few of them. Most of the people in these villages were farmers who cultivated paddy, black pea, brinjals, pumpkins, and various kinds of other grains and vegetables. One of them was this Gamarala…”
Click here to read the full story of How a Villager Went to Heaven
Folktale Stories with Moral Lesson 7: How a Fool Attended a Ceremony at the Temple
The story of how a fool observed sil is from Sinhalese folklore. It revolves around a silly man who got into trouble because of his poor thinking. The story tells us to think things through before we do anything or follow instructions. This is one of the idiom stories, and it is suitable for kids as a bedtime story, a moral story, or just as a funny story.
“Once upon a time in ancient Ceylon, there was a man called Abara. He was married to a religious woman. So, she went to the temple, observed Atasil, and returned home. But Abara didn’t go to the temple. He had never gone to a temple to observe Sil. His wife wanted him to go to the temple and observe Sil. “Why don’t you go to the temple and observe Sil, at least on the full moon poya day?” his wife asked…”
Click here to read the full story of How Abara Observed Sil
Summary
Here are only seven folktale stories with moral lessons. The world of folktales has more than enough stories that we cannot finish listening to in one lifetime. Let’s revive the tradition of storytelling instead of story reading. Let’s pass on the good things we had in the world where we grew up to the children in the next generation. Have a quality storytelling time!