This book is a collection of traditional Indian nursery-tales told by Sister Nivedita in her inimitable style. Myths and legends are the vehicle of high philosophy and metaphysics, especially so in India. The heroes and heroines of ancient India presented here are not only noted for their valour or beauty, but for their strength of character and nobility. The characters depicted herein have been the unconscious moulders of the complex Indian social body. Thus this book is not only meant for children but for all those who wish to feel the pulse of the Indian conscience.
The animal has its happiness in the senses, the human beings in their intellect, and the gods in spiritual contemplation. It is only to the soul that has attained to this contemplative state that the world really becomes beautiful.
-Swami Vivekananda