Product Description

Folktales from India is an enchanting collection of one hundred and ten tales translated from twenty-two different languages, by turns harrowing and comic, sardonic and allegorical, mysterious and romantic. Gods disguised as beggars and beasts; animals enacting Machiavellian intrigues: sagacious jesters and magical storytellers; wise counselors and foolish kings -- all of these inhabit a fabular world, yet one firmly grounded in everyday life. Augmented by A. K. Ramanujan's definitive introduction and notes, this is an indispensable guide to India's ageless folklore tradition.

"A truly remarkable collection...from the introduction to the explanatory notes, the entire book outstandingly demonstrates the enduring strength of Indian folklore tradition."

-- Library Journal

"The variety of subjects contributes to the richness of this fascinating book."

-- Washington Times

"A major addition to the corpus of folktales of the world."

-- Edward C. Dimock, JR.,

Chairman, American Institute of Indian Studies

"This collection of Indian folktales is unparalleled-in its scope of sources...a rich and fascinating tapestry of stories...infused with the author's unique sense of humor and sense of beauty."

-- Wendy Doniger,

author of Other People's Myths and Women, Androgynes, and Other Mythical Beasts

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #425618 in Books
• Published on: 1994-01-13
• Released on: 1994-01-13
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

From Publishers Weekly
The 111 tales chosen by translator and poet Ramanujan illustrate the heterogeneity of Indian society and its oral folktale tradition. Ranging in length from a few paragraphs to 10 pages, the short narratives fall into seven basic categories: male-, female- or family-centered; concerning either fate or the supernatural; humorous; animal tales; and metafiction. The stories are arranged in "cycles or sessions"--11 groupings containing at least one example of each of the seven themes. Additionally, the associative nature of the tales within each cycle further reinforces the storyteller illusion. Unlike myths, folktales are profane rather than sacred. Thus there are tales wherein humans outwit either gods or fate itself, and where the poor mock the rich (and the caste system). Two recurring characters are the jesters Tenali Rama and Ghopal Bhar, tricksters akin to the Western harlequin. According to Ramanujan, entertainment rather than education is the primary purpose of the folktale, a goal achieved by these stories even when they are also didactic.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

YA-- This selection of oral tales from 21 Indian languages captures the rich variety of human emotions as revealed in the lives of people in that subcontinent. The charm of these tales is increased by Ramanujan's insightful introduction that enhances readers' understanding of the talking beasts, demons, heroes, strong-minded women, rogues, and gurus who populate these pages. Excellent for storytelling collections.

Copyright 1992 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
For this worthy addition to the Pantheon series, Ramanujan combed through 3000 oral tales, selecting and editing 111 examples from 20 languages that represent most of the regions of India. Rather than being taken from literary texts, these tales are told by actual tellers, mainly nonprofessional householders. Ramanujan divides this truly remarkable collection into 11 sections, each including at least one of the following: male-centered tales; women-centered tales; tales about families; tales about fate, gods, demons; humorous tales; animal tales; and stories about stories. The selections are thus "a metonymy, a part that speaks of and for something larger than itself." In their scope and simplicity, these wondrous tales not only exemplify the folklore of India but of the world. From the informative introduction to the explanatory notes, the entire book outstandingly demonstrates the enduring strength of Indian folklore tradition.
- Glenn O. Carey, Eastern Kentucky Univ., Richmond
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Fun, easy to read folktales
At the center of this book is an uninterrupted treasuremine of oral tradition folktales. If the reader looks through the extensive scholarly introduction, she learns that the tales have been organized around a series of themes (men's quest tales, woman's tales, animal tales...) and the significance of various aspects of the storytelling tradition. This organization allows the reader to approach the book from any level. She can just read the stories, uniterrupted by scholarly comments, or she can learn more about how they fit into a larger context. A nice book for the person interested in a quick and easy read.

these tales have no borders
It doesn't matter what country your from, these tales are classic. Sure there's a lot of cultural lingo in these, but nothing to the point that brings the reader into a state of confusion. Basically it's easy to understand the essence of the tales. A delightful read, you'll laugh, and you'll probably learn something too.

Excellent collection......
This is the book I got my hands onto from a person who is not an Indian origin. Being an Indian, I'd say that this is the very good collection of stories from India from all different states/languages compiled in simple to understand english.