These beautifully illustrated tales capture the mystery, enchantment, and profound spiritual teachings of India. Story-telling has always been the way that India's holy men, the saints and sadhus, taught their students the vital lessons of life. Stories provide a living environment for the lesson of each story, and they can convey sophisticated concepts in simple language. Abounding with powerful genies, scheming gods, and wise mystics, The Monkeys and the Mango Tree can be read as an exotic Aesop's Fables, as a source of classic wisdom, or as a simple and memorable introduction to the stories of the most spiritual civilization on earth. These twenty-five beautifully illustrated tales capture the mystery, the enchantment, and the profound spiritual learning that is India. Drawn from the great Indian epics?the Puranas, the Upanishads, and the Mahabharata?as well as from the author's own remarkable life, these tales put ageless Indian wisdom into the form of stories that are delights for young and old alike.