This volume of stories from India draws from eight different traditions: Adivasi Animism, Buddhism, Jainism, Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Sufism, and Zoroastrianism. There's also one traditional story that appears across many Indian traditions.
You may recognize it: People on a dark night try to figure out what an elephant is — a wall? a spear? a snake? a tree trunk? a fan? — by feeling different parts of its body. The story reveals that we can be positive that we're right even when we're guessing based on limited information.
That's one of fourteen stories, some originating in a single tradition and some spanning across two or three. From a Jain story about a gentled cobra to an Adivasi and Hindu story of women and children risking their lives to save beloved ancient trees from logging, this trove emphasizes spiritual practices of compassion, hope, kindness, play, and wonder. The focus is always on children, whether through tales of a hero's or divinity's childhood or by mentioning the role children played in a drama's outcome. Each story includes a short concluding section that gives further insight into its cultural context.
The Wisdom Tales series by Bala Kids retells ancient tales from diverse spiritual traditions around the world. Each book in the series involves a collaboration between an artist dedicated to historical accuracy, a passionate storyteller steeped in a culture's oral traditions, and an author who carefully reworks the stories for contemporary kids.
In Wisdom Stories of India, dynamic illustrations by Wen Hsu help unite the varied stories into a unified whole, with a touch of magic. Storyteller Vinita Prachi Murarka — an Ayurvedic doctor, Waldorf educator, transformational guide, and speaker — weaves together ancient wisdom with modern insight. She worked with author Laura Burgess, a dharma teacher in the Soto Zen tradition who has 35 years of experience as a teacher and mentor to other teachers. Together these three have created a book for readers ages six to nine that's beautiful and inspiring.
