Indian Myth & Legend

No country in the world possesses a richer and more inexhaustible collection of fairy stories than India. So wrote the author, noted folklorist Donald A. MacKenzie (1873-1936) more than ninety years ago when this wonderful collection of twenty-three fairy and folk tales of India was first published. MacKenzie published many books on fairy tales, folklore, myths and legends during his life. Some were more in-depth studies of mythology from a particular society and others, such as this work, were largely collections of tales that he had gathered through his research into the folklore of a country. For this particular collection of fairy tales, the reader will find that a number of stories are, in fact, parables. And wonderful parables they are, containing all sorts of wisdom, such as it is a mistake to make rash proposals, lest one should be taken at one s word or that no true friendship can exist between one who has possessions and one who desires to obtain them. Aside from the parables, the book has many stories that are wonderful tales on their own but also, and as is the case with most such tales, ones that contain important morals or lessons for the reader. Many of the stories include speaking animals (tigers, jackals, camels, and herons) as well as gods, spirits and other mysterious characters. Of course, a number of the fairy tales do include a King (Rajah) and a Queen (Rani). And all will appeal to young and old alike. The text is accompanied by eight black and white illustrations as well as one full-color illustration on the cover all drawn by Maxwell Armfield.