The Story of the Crows and the Cobra
Once upon a time, two crows made their home on a wide and leafy banyan tree, beside a calm river.
Rustle-rustle.. went the branches as the soft wind blew.
Caw-Caw! Cawww! sang the mama crow arranging twigs as they carefully built their nest.
Before long, she laid her eggs.
She kept them warm and safe… tap-tap… tuck-tuck… went her beak as she gently adjusted the nest.
Soon, crack… crack… went the eggshells and out came the tiny chicks peep-peep-peep!
The crows were delighted to see their babies and lovingly cared for them.
Everyday, they would fly out flap-flap! whoosh! to bring food for them.
Now, at the bottom of this tree, inside a dark burrow, lived a cunning black cobra…
Hissssss… ssssss…
He saw the crows leave their chicks alone in the nest, while they went to get food.
One day, the sly cobra noticed the crows fly away in search of food.
He thought “ This is my chance — no one is here to protect the chicks.”
The greedy cobra slowly climbed up the tree slither-slither… swishhh…
It reached the nest…gluuulp… gulp… glrrrk…
One by one, the snake swallowed the helpless chicks and slithered back into the tree hollow.
Soon, the crows returned with food in their beaks. They were shocked to find their nest empty.
They realized the evil cobra had eaten their babies… caaawww! caw-caw-caw! they cried in deep sorrow.
Days passed and mama crow laid eggs again, praying they would be safe this time.
But the sneaky cobra came back and gobbled up the little chicks once more.
The sad crows grew thoughtful, they wanted to teach the cobra a lesson and protect their babies.
They decided to seek advice from their clever friend, the jackal.
“Please help us,” the crows said sadly, “we don’t want to lose our babies again.”
The jackal listened to their story and replied, “Don’t worry, I will help you find a way.”
The jackal scratched his head scritch-scratch… hmm… then, ting! an idea sparkled in his mind.
He told the clever plan to the crows.
Next morning, the crows flapped their wings excitedly flap-flap! swhoosh! and flew straight towards the royal palace.
They spotted the princess…splash! splish-splash!…went the water as the princess was swimming and playing in the royal pond.
On the edge of the pond lay her sparkling golden necklace, twinkling and gleaming in the sun.
In a flash, swhoosh! one of the crows dived down and grabbed it.
Flap-Flap! the crow flew swiftly back, towards their nest.
“Hey! Stop!” yelled the guards. Thud-Thud! stomp-stomp! they chased after the crows.
The crow flew up to the tree flap-flap! and dropped the necklace into the cobra’s burrow.
The guards reached the tree. huff… puff…
They looked inside the hole.
Suddenly HISSSSS! Out came the angry cobra!
“Ahhh!” shouted the guards. They started hitting the cobra with sticks.
Whack! Bang! Thump!
Soon…the cobra lay still and everything grew quiet.
The guards took the necklace out of the cobra’s burrow and returned to the palace.
From that day on, the crows lived in peace, as the dangerous cobra was gone.
The story teaches us that where force/strength fails, clever thinking saves. It tells us that in times of trouble, we must seek support and guidance from family and friends. It also reminds us the importance of protecting and caring for our loved ones.
Moral of the story:
Intelligence and wise planning can overcome even the strongest enemy.
If you’re interested in a physical book, take a look at the engaging Panchatantra storybooks listed below.
