Chandamama Stories

A Bandit's Courtesy

One night Raghuram the bandit entered the house of Nagverma, the king's treasurer. The bandit lay hiding, waiting for an opportune moment to burgle the house.

Nagverma returned home late, and over dinner he told his wife happily, "Today I've been able to snatch a hundred gold mohurs. Another hundred, and that would be a clean thousand this year!"

Raghuram, who was listening to Nagverma, went closer to his window and coughed.

"Who are you?" asked Nagverma, who was startled.

& quot;I'm Raghuram, the bandit. But let me tell you, I'm leaving your house without burgling!"

"What do you mean?" asked Nagverma, surprised.

"I'm not being discourteous, but does a beggar ever beg of another beggar? Similarly, a bandit does not steal from another bandit's. You're, of course, more than a mere bandit; you're stealing from the royal treasury," replied Raghuram. He scaled the wall and disappeared.

Nagverma could not sleep the whole night. In the morning, he took the gold coins he had stealthily removed and quietly put them back into the treasury.

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A Challenge, But With A Difference

A body-builder came to a village called Ratnapur. He lifted a huge boulder to the great amazement of the village crowd.

"If I am fed well for a year, I too can easily lift, a boulder, as he does," bragged Raju, a village youth.

Some of the other young men made him put down his declaration in writing. Then they ensured that he was fed well for a year.

At the end of the year, he did lift a boulder - but a small one - which could have been lifted by anybody!

"I did not declare that I can lift a boulder like the one the body-builder lifted a year ago. I had only said I too can easily lift a boulder as he did," Raju took pains to explain much to the amusement of the village elders.

A Clever Ruse

One night shopkeeper Shantilal returned home late. A play was being performed in front of his house. His wife stood on one end of their verandah enjoying the play.

Shantilal noticed that a thief, taking advantage of the situation, had stealthily entered his house and was hiding in the loft under the roof. If he were to shout 'Thief!', he might attack him with a dagger - as thieves often did.

His wife came in. Shantilal said aloud: "I heard a gang of thieves has come to our town. Bring your ornament-box. I shall hide it."

His wife went inside and brought the box. The thief, naturally, remained quiet, happily waiting to see where they would hide the box.

Shantilal opened the box and cried out, "Whoa! A snake inside the box! A snake!"

From the crowd outside his house, a number of people rushed in.

"Now that you are here, let us catch of the thief," said Shantilal.

The thief was caught without much difficulty.

A comment made aloud

The old minister was like a teacher to the young prince. One day, the two were enjoying a walk, when the prince said, "Why do you and father discuss almost every issue - small or big - in private?

"Why in private, you ask? Well, I shall try to answer your question in a few days," said the minister.

Two days later, while out on a stroll again, the minister told the prince that two spies of the neighbouring kingdom had been caught. He spoke rather aloud so that the bodyguards would hear.

The same day, later, there was a strong rumour in the town that two spies of the neighbouring kingdom had been caught and hanged. By evening the rumour had been given a new twist that the neighbouring kingdom, in order to avenge the execution of its spies, was sending its army towards the town.

Next morning the rumour was that a battle was raging on the frontier between the two kingdoms! Also that the officials had neglected their duty, traders had enhanced the price of goods, and there was panic everywhere. So much so, a royal announcement had to be made assuring the people that there was no war at all!

"Did you see the effect of a simple comment that I had spoken aloud?" the minister asked the prince.

A matter of calculation

Bipin's son was married to Mohan's daughter. He received ten thousand rupees as dowry from Mohan.

Ten years later Mohan married off his second daughter with a dowry of fifteen thousand rupees.

"In what way was my son inferior that you paid me only ten thousand? I'm no naïve at calculation. You owe me five thousand more," claimed Bipin, when he went and met him.

Mohan did not know what to say. The matter finally went to the village chief. He called Bipin and said, "You had received ten thousand rupees ten years ago. With interest, the sum now amounts to twenty thousand. Granting you the five thousand you demand, you owe Mohan five thousand rupees. Do you appreciate my calculations?"

Bipin had his head hung.

ADVICE ACCEPTED

Prannath, a farmer living in a village near a jungle, was returning home one evening after work in the fields, when he saw a tiger caught between two trees that had grown close to each other. It was groaning in pain. He thought he should kill it before it escaped and pounced on him. The animal, of course, was struggling to let itself free, and Prannath knew he would have to catch hold of the tiger to make it still so that he could aim his sickle at its neck. He managed to catch hold of its hind legs with both hands. It was then that he realised that he had no hand free to pick up the sickle.

Fortunately for him, a Sanyasi came that way. “You see my predicament, O sage! I can’t leave the tiger to pick up my sickle. Please take it and kill the animal for my sake.”

“Oh! No!” the Sanyasi excused himself. “One should not kill any living being. It’s the greatest of all sins!”

“If you feel so,” said Prannath, “you may at least do me this favour. Please catch hold of the tiger’s legs while I pick up the sickle and kill it.”

The Sanyasi caught hold of the animal’s legs, and Prannath picked up his sickle. However, instead of making any attempt to kill it, he started on his way home. “Where are you going? You can’t be leaving without killing the tiger!” shouted the Sanyasi.

Prannath turned round and said, “O sage! I’ve accepted your advice not to kill any living being. Why should I commit a sin by killing this poor animal? Farewell!”

ALL ABOUT A BIRTH MARK

King Krishna Deva had a black spot o n his right hand. He had taken this birth mark as a good sign. Some astrologers in the kingdom came to know of it and they would, under one pretext or another, visit him and impress upon him that he became king because of his birth mark. This made Krishna Deva very happy and he sent them back with gifts and rewards. His minister, Deva Gowda, could see through their game and pitied the king.

One day, an astrologer from a neighbouring kingdom was passing that way and, having heard of Krishna Deva’s unique birth mark, wished to see it and study it. The king received him with due reverence. When he was told of the astrologer’s wish, the king showed him the mark on his right hand. The astrologer studied it for a long while and exclaimed, “Sire, it’s true you owe your position to your birth mark. A bigger mark at the same place would have made you nothing less than an emperor!”

Deva Gowda knew th at the astrologer was trying to flatter the king for favours. He called one of the guards at the door and asked him to show his right hand to the king and the astrologer. He had a bigger black spot.

The astrologer’s face fell in shame. The king had no more blind faith in astrologers.

All in Private

Once a nobleman was aboard a ship. Someone who was jealous of him was also travelling by the same ship.

The fellow hit upon a plan to insult the nobleman in front of the passengers. He placed a hundred mohurs in a green bag and carried it to the n obleman and confidentially requested him to keep it in his safe custody. The nobleman agreed to do so.

The fellow then met the captain of the ship and privately told him that his green bag with a hundred mohurs was missing! "I suspect, one of the passengers has stolen it," he whispered.

Without giving any notice to the passengers, the captain conducted a search of the cabins and baggage. But he spared the nobleman for whom he had great respect.

"Why don't you search him?" the fellow asked the captain again privately.

The nobleman overheard it. He requested the captain to search his cabin. The captain did it reluctantly, but the m issing bag could not be found.

"Where's my bag?" the fellow asked the nobleman at night, once again privately.

"Just as you left it with me privately, and complained to the captain privately, so also I threw it into the sea privately. Now, let me advise you privately: be sensible and keep quiet. Otherwise, everybody might take you for mad," whispered the nobleman.

An Excellent Answer!

There was an ambitious young man called Chandrahas. He had an ambition to found a kingdom which he could rule.

He befriended some retired warriors and learnt from them several tricks of fighting. He inspired a number of young men to join him, promising them good positions if they helped him become a king.

"Your success depends on the quality of the place you choose for your capital," an astrologer told Chandrahas.

Accompanied by his minister-designate, Chandrahas, roamed about in search of an appropriate and auspicious place. On a meadow the two saw a pack of hounds chasing some rabbits. Suddenly, at one point, the rabbits stopped and turned themselves on the hounds. The hounds ran for their lives!

Chandrahas felt sure that the place had some strange quality inherent in it. He built a small fort there and named the settlement Rabbit City.

Wit h hard labour and good planning, Chandrahas built up a strong fortification on a hillock. His officers went about bringing the nearby areas under his rule. By and by it became a nice little town.

When the king heard that a certain young man was claiming himself the king over an area, he sent an army to fight him. Chandrahas had by then enrolled the youths of a local tribe as his soldiers. He told them, "Such is the quality of this place that no enemy can defeat us. Fight on bravely."

His small army had great faith in him. They fought with exemplary courage and crushed the king's army. Thrilled with the success, Chandrahas invaded the king's capital. The king was not prepared for this. He fled. Chandrahas became the king of the whole land. But he continued to rule fro m Rabbit City.

Chandrahas was succeeded to the throne by his son, Padmasen. The young king spent all his time in merrymaking. One day, the descendants of the defeated king suddenly attacked Rabbit City.

"Don't worry, my lord, this place is invincible," said Padmasen's young minister, who was the son of Chandrahas's minister.

Nevertheless, Padmasen and his army were trounced! He and his minister had an hair-breadth escape!

"How on earth could we be defeated?" asked Padmasen.

"I've the answer ready, my lord!" said his young minister. "Such is the quality o f Rabbit City that whoever is weaker wins there! The rabbits were weaker than the hounds; so they won. Your father was weaker than the old king; so, he won. The present invader is weaker than you; so he won! Your defeat only shows how strong you are!"

Padmasen flet flattered. "My wise minister, it is a pity that I have no means to reward you for your excellent answer," he replied.

AN OFFER TURNED DOWN

Anant Kumar heard that a shop in Madang ir had a vacancy of an accounts-keeper. He called on the owner, Lokeshwar, who put him to a test. He spread his fingers on the right hand and asked, “Which finger is the biggest of all?”

“The middle finger,” answered Anant Kumar.

“Wrong!” Lokeshwar remarked. “All fingers have the same age. All right, which is the smallest finger?” he asked, spreading the fingers on the other hand.

“There’s nothing small among them,” answered Anant Kumar.

“You’re wrong once again,” remarked Lokeshwar. “The index finger is the smallest of all. From the way you’ve answered two simple questions, do you expect me to employ you?”

“No, I’m sure I won’t get the job,” said Anant Kumar.

“You’re again wrong. I shall employ you; you may come for work from tomorrow,” said Lokeshwar.

“I’m afraid I can’t accept your offer,” said Anant Kumar. “You don’t have any common sense. If I work for y ou, I shall only go mad!” He then walked out of the shop.

It was auspicious, after all

Hargovind did everything a day late. "One must think twice before doing anything," was his excuse for procrastination.

He received a proposal for his daughter's marriage. "You must go and meet the bridegroom's father tomorrow," his wife told him.

Hargovind's answer was a big yawn. He let two days pass under the pretext of bad weather. Then he consulted the almanac and found that an auspicious time was to come off five days later. "The wise always follow astrology," he said, and waited for the auspicious day.

On that day he started, only to be back in two hours. "What happened?" asked his wife, much surprised.

"I came to know that the bridegroom got married yesterday."

"What then was the use of your waiting for the auspicious moment to go out?" asked his wife, with a sigh of disappointment.

"The cart I was travelling by met with an accident. All the other passengers were injured. But, look at me. Can you see a single scratch?" countered Hargovind. He had a smile on his face.

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Bandits prefer "Two In The Bush"

A priest, who performed some rites in the house of a generous landlord, was returning with a rich gift. It was a gold necklace.

The road was lonely and it was already night. Suddenly, four bandits surrounded him.

The priest realized that hiding the ornament was impossible, and to offer any resistance would mean certain death.

After a moment's thought, he quietly opened the bundle and said with a sigh, "Let the looted thing be looted!& quot;

The bandits looked at the necklace and said, "Is it something that has been looted?"

"Just ten minutes ago, I saw, at the turn of the road behind, a cart full of boxes of precious jewellery being looted by three or four bandits. They gave me this one so that I wont utter a word about their crime," said the priest.

The bandits forgot the necklace with the priest, and ran towards the turning on the road hoping for a better, bigger loot.

The priest hurried to the nearest village and spent the night in a villager's house, with the ornament safe with him.

Both Satisfied

Menaka came to know that her neighbour, Shanti, was going to the market to buy a cow. Jealous by nature, Menaka shouted at her, "What do you know of cows that you're going to buy one? I won't be surprised if you return without any!"

Shanti said nothing. In the evening Menaka saw her returning without a cow.

"Where is your cow?" Menaka asked.

"Could not bring home any!" replied Shanti.

"Didn't I say that you would return empty-handed?" said Menaka with great satisfaction.

Shanti said nothing. But she had been no less satisfied. She had actually bought a healthy cow. On her way, the zamindar saw it and liked it immensely. He gave her a hundred rupees more and bought it off her.

BRAVO!

The kingdom of Magadha was once attacked by the army of Anga. But they were routed. The King of Magadha complimented his soldiers and sent them back with pensions and presents. When they reached their respective places, the people gave them a rousing reception.

Among them was Balaveer. He boasted that he had single–handedly hacked to death a thousand Anga soldiers. The villagers hailed him as a hero. “But you had only cut their limbs; why didn’t you sever their heads?” a villager asked him, to the hearing of others.

Balaveer had a ready answer. Without batting an eyelid, he said: “I didn’t get a chance to cut their heads! Someone had already severed them!”

Buntu and the long beard

The problem with Buntu was, he could never serve one master for any reasonable length of time. How could he? This is what happened at the house of his new employer, Gulab Bakshi, who had a long beard.

Bakshi developed the habit of calling Buntu a fool whenever the boy made the slightest mistake. By and by Bakshi grew so fond of the word that he called Buntu a fool even when the boy had made no mistake.

One winter night, Bakshi relaxed in an armchair and asked Buntu to read out a book to him. Buntu, no doubt, could read a little, but not much. However, he would not show that. He would invent lines and passages himself while looking at the pages as if they were written in them.

While doing so, he pretended to read: "It is a well known fact that anyone possessing a long beard lacks in intelligence. In other words, a man with a long beard is a fool!"

"What? What does the book say? A man with a long beard is a fool?" asked Bakshi, quite agitated.

"Well, Master, that's what the book says - and it also says that it is well-known answered Buntu very politely.

"Hm!"

Before Buntu could continue reading from the book, Bakshi's wife called him for some help in the kitchen. Buntu left. Bakshi wondered how many people must have taken him for a fool over the years because of his long beard, of which he was so foolishly proud. The burning lamp that lit the room put an idea into his brain. He gripped his beard at his middle and put the lower part to the flame.

His soft, highly inflammable beard caught fire instantly and he had to give up his grip. In a few seconds the entire beard was gone and the moustache too - and even his eyebrows. He drew his shawl and wiped his face.

His wife came in and gave a cry of horror looking at his hairless face.

"I only wanted to shorten, for it is written that men with long beards are fools," explained Bakshi.

"Where is this piece of wisdom written?" demanded his wife. Bakshi pointed at the open book. His wife looked through it. There was no such statement.

The angry Bakshi summoned Buntu.

"Where is it written that men with long beards are fools?" he demanded.

"It will be written now, for has it not already been proved by you?" said Buntu in reply - and, of course, he was not expected to be seen in that household any longer!

Concern For The Future

Keshav's father sold his property for the youth's higher education and training. He qualified himself for a lucrative job. He then married the daughter of a wealthy man and settled down in the town.

His parents continued live in the village. They grew old; the father fell ill. But Keshav did not go to their help.

Keshav had a son. The day the boy completed his studies in school, Keshav's wife told him, "Get a small job for our boy."

"Why a small job? He must study further and qualify himself for a high post," said Keshav.

"He would then marry into a rich man's family, lead a luxurious life, and would lose all interest in us. Thinking of our future made me wish that he led a humble life," remarked Keshav's wife.

Keshav contemplated for a long time. Later, he left for his village and brought his old parents with him, and looked after them as best as he could.

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RITERION

Zamindar Kailaspati was a patron of poets and musi cians. He once announced a competition for poets, and promised a title and an award to the winner. The contest started. Several poets recited their poems. There was a jury of eminent littérateurs of the land. They found the poems of 70-year-old Ekanath and 20-year-old Dinanath of a very high order and left the decision to the Zamindar himself. Kailaspati had no difficulty in making a choice. He handed the title and a heavy purse to Ekanath. After everybody had departed, the Zamindar’s dewan went up to him. “Sir, you should have encouraged the younger Dinanath, instead of the ageing Ekanath.” “Dinanath is still young and he’ll have plenty of opportunities to participate in more contests in the years to come,” explained Kailaspati. “But how’re we certain that Ekanath will be alive and participate in another competition? Let him have the satisfacti on and happiness that he won a title and an award when he was alive.

DISCRETION

The King of Sitapur had a minister in charge of t he treasury. He had seen service with the king for several years, but what the king was unaware of was, the man used to quibble with the accounts and take away money for his personal needs. This practice went on unchecked.

One day, the king became suspicious and made discreet enquiries which only confirmed his suspicion. The minister was summoned to the court; everybody expected the king to dismiss him. Much to their surprise, the king only admonished him. “You’ve done something very wrong. If you were to repeat it, take it from me, your services will be terminated!”

The queen, who was present in the court, later asked the king, “Why did you let him off like that? You should have dismissed him straight away.”

“Poor man, he must have been in dire need of money. He has two ugly-looking daughters to be married; he had also started building his house. Now that I’ve warned him, I’m sure he’l l be honest in future. He must also have realized that he wouldn’t get employed anywhere else at this age. Moreover, how are we certain that a new incumbent won’t indulge in a similar habit?’

The queen was happy the way the king argued his point.

WANTED: A CROWD!

Wrestler Baroma had become quite famous af ter he won several bouts. One look at him, and people were awe-struck by his figure and physique. The village chief, who was searching for a watchman for the local temple, chose Baroma for that job.

One night, the temple was burgled of the day’s collection as well as some silver vessels used for the daily pujas.

The village chief was angry with Baroma. “Didn’t you see the thieves entering the temple and taking away the valuables? Why didn’t you catch them? You never fail to defeat your opponents in wrestling bouts. If so, what happened to you last night?”

“Sir, I would have grappled with them,” said Baroma coolly. “But there was none present to cheer me. In wrestling bouts, success comes to me because the crowd always cheers me and then I feel encouraged and enthused.”

The village chief was stumped. “I was a fool to have chosen you for the watchman’s job!” He asked Baroma to l ook for a job elsewhere.

Sudden Change

Ram lived in the town along with his wife and daughter. His younger brother lived in the village. He, too, had a daughter.

One day, Ram received the news that his younger brother's wife had passed away. He went to the village and brought his niece along with him.

After six months he wrote to his brother that he could come and take his daughter back to the village - whenever it was convenient. But he was busy, and came to fetch his daughter only after three months.

"Your daughter is doing fine here. You need not take her away," said Ram.

"Then, why did you ask to me to come and take her away?"

Ram told him in confidence: "You see, my wife did not show any extra affection for your daughter. But, when she learnt that the girl might go away soon, she bestowed all her affection on her - and began loving her! Now she does not want to part with her!"

Thus Was The Well Dug Well!

The landlord of Chitrapur was an arch-miser. He would do nothing for the benefit of others. Whenever he spent any money, it was merely to serve his own interest.

His son, however, was different. He began digging a well in the village, as there was acute scarcity of drinking water. He could find no water even when he dug quite deep. He guessed there would be water if the well was made deeper. But he had no money to proceed further. And he knew that his miserly father would not want to spent more on a well that would only benefit others.

In the darkness of the night, he poured a jugful of oil in the well. Next day, when the landlord heard that the sod in the well was giving the smell of oil, he at once employed twenty more hands for further digging, hopeful of striking an oil-well!

No oil was, of course, found, but pleanty of water gushed out. The problem of the poor villagers was solved!

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Two Wise Ministers!

"Can't we go and conquer the neighbouring kingdom of Jaigarh", asked King Kamdev of Sudhapur of his minister. "I heard he does not have much intelligence".

"That depends, your majesty, on how intelligent the minister of Jaigarh is," replied Kamdev's minister. "Let me find out."

The minister sent an emissary to Jaigarh. The man went and told the King of Jaigarh, "My king requests you to send him a man who lives on death and another who lives on life!"

The King of Jaigarh at once called for his minister and told him of the message from Sudhapur. The minister arranged for an undertaker and a physician to go with the emissary.

On their arrival in Sudhapur, Kamdev's minister observed, "This undertaker's work is to perform the funeral rites for the dead. And the physician makes an earning by ensuring a healthy life for others. The minister of Jaigarh is intelligent. We're not likely to win a battle easily, your majesty!"

King Kamdev gave up the idea of an invasion

Two Lakhiers

Ramgupta and Virgupta were two millionaires of Rajpur.

Haridas was an employee of Ramgupta getting daily wages. After a day's work, Haridas went to him for his wage.

"I've only a 10 rupee note with me. Take it and give me five rupees back," said Ramgupa.

"Sorry, sir, I don't have any money with me," said Haridas. "Let me keep the note. The extra five rupees will be for my work tomorrow."

"You know I don't pay in advance," said Ramgupta.

At that time Virgupta happened to come there. "What's the problem?" he asked.

"Could you give me change for ten rupees? I've to give five rupees to this man," said Ramgupta.

"I've exactly the amount you need. Take the balance afterwards," said Virgupta.

Virgupta pulled out a five rupee note and gave it to Ramgupta.

Later, Virgupta forgot that he owed five rupees to Ramgupta.

Ramgupta, himself a millionaire, found it embarrassing to ask another millionaire for five rupees!

Two Friends

Two friends, Mangal and Kama, went to the king with their dispute. It was about a bet. Kamal complained that Mangal had agreed to pay him four hundred rupees if he lost the bet. About to lose it, Mangal told him he would give only four rupees instead of four hundred.

The king turned to Mangal. He said, "Your majesty, when Kamal said he would give two hundred rupees if he lost the bet, I said I would give four. I never said four hundred."

The king appreciated Mangal's cleverness. He gave Kamal four hundred rupees on behalf of Mangal, and offered Mangal a job in the royal service.

The two friends appeared in the court again the next day. The problem now was, while the two friends were walking, Mangal found some money lying on the road. Since Mangal saw it first, he claimed he ought to have it. But he was compelling Kamal to accept half of the amount - complained Kamal.

The king was now impressed with Kamal. How many people would there be who would insist on refusing money? He gave a job to Kamal, too.

"By the way, what was your bet yesterday?" asked the king.

They confessed: Mangal had said he would find a job not only for himself, but for Kamal, too!

Who's a true son

Gurucharan and his young wife very much wished to have a child. Unfortunately, the girl died prematurely. After he got over the initial sorrow, Gurucharan adopted a child. He was an orphan.

Gurucharan's younger brother, Shyamcharan, who lived in another village, one day came to meet him. "Brother, you ought to have married again. I don't think you did wise in adopting a son. He will never prove as good as one's own son," he observed.

Gurucharan simply kept quiet. Shyamcharan went back to his own village.

Years passed. Somehow, the brothers did not hav e any contact. One evening, Shyamcharan saw his elder brother coming towards him.

"Brother! What a pleasant surprise! How're you? I'm in a bad shape, brother. My son has been very nasty to me. That's why I've come over to this hut, leaving my house to him. If my own son could do this to me, I can very well imagine what your adopted son would be doing to you," said Shyamcharan with a sigh.

"Shyam, you can't imagine what my adopted son has done for me. He nursed me day and night when I took ill. He's now on his way to the holy Ganga to perform my obscquies."

It was Gurucharan's spirit. Before Shyamcharan could react, it disappeared.

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Topping the List

Once a trader from a foreign land met the King of Kosala and offered to sell him a horse. It was an excellent horse. The king was pleased to buy it for a thousand gold coins.

"Your Ma jesty, we should place an order with this trader for more horses of this kind," proposed the minister.

"Do so if that is wise," agreed the king.

The minister placed an order for a hundred horses and gave one lakh gold coins as advance to the trader. The trader promised to return in a year.

A few days later, the king happened to ask his court-jester to make a list of the greatest fools in his kingdom.

The jester submitted the list the next day. Topping the list was the minister. But against his name was written: "To be confirmed in a year".

" What do you mean?" asked the king.

"Your Majesty, the horse-trader will never return. The minister who gave him a lakh of gold coins in advance will be proved a fool," replied the jester.

"And if the trader were to return?" demanded the king.

"In that case, the trader's name will appear on top in place of the minister's name," replied the jester.

REMEMBRANCER

Krishnakumar met Ramkumar on the way. “I heard there was a house break on three days and thieves took away money from your steel trunk. Is it true?” he asked Ramkumar.

“It’s true, my friend,” said Ramkumar, sadly.

“How come? Didn’t you hear them breaking open the trunk?” Krishnakumar asked curiously.

“No, they didn’t break it open,” said Ramkumar. “They managed to get hold of the key from beneath my pillow.”

“Did they take the key all the three times from underneath your pillow? Strange!” said Krishnakumar. He sounded sarcastic. “Why did you keep it in the same place a second time and a third? You should have kept the key somewhere else.

“That’s right. I shifted the key on both days,” explained Ramkumar. “You see, I’ve a failing memory. So, I wrote and kept a chit beneath my pillow – to remind me where the key had been kept.”

Krishnakumar could not control his laughter.

Topping the List

Once a trader from a foreign land met the King of Kosala and offered to sell him a horse. It was an excellent horse. The king was pleased to buy it for a thousand gold coins.

"Your Ma jesty, we should place an order with this trader for more horses of this kind," proposed the minister.

"Do so if that is wise," agreed the king.

The minister placed an order for a hundred horses and gave one lakh gold coins as advance to the trader. The trader promised to return in a year.

A few days later, the king happened to ask his court-jester to make a list of the greatest fools in his kingdom.

The jester submitted the list the next day. Topping the list was the minister. But against his name was written: "To be confirmed in a year".

" What do you mean?" asked the king.

"Your Majesty, the horse-trader will never return. The minister who gave him a lakh of gold coins in advance will be proved a fool," replied the jester.

"And if the trader were to return?" demanded the king.

"In that case, the trader's name will appear on top in place of the minister's name," replied the jester.

The True Brahmin

Centuries ago, in the province of Sindhu lived a pious Brahmin pundit. His son loved a farmer's charming daughter.

"My father will never agree to my marrying a girl from another caste," the pundit's son expressed his fear to one of his friends.

"Why don't you take her to him and say that she is also a Brahmin?" the friend queried.

The suggestion appealed to the young man. He led the girl to the old pundit and said, "Father, here is a poor Brahmin's daughter. Have I your permission to marry her?"

But the girl spoke out instantly, "Oh no, please don't give him a wrong impression. I'm a farmer's daughter!"

The pundit smiled at the girl and said, "My child, whatever be your father's profession, you are a Brahmin. A true Brahmin is one who cannot put up with falsehood." Then, pointing his finger at his son, he said, & quot;Now, the problem is, though a Brahmin's son, this young man is not a true Brahmin. I should feel proud to have you as my daughter-in-law if you have no objection to marrying this non-Brahmin.

THE SWAN FROM MANASAROVAR

A luminous swan, a resident of the great and sacred lake Manasarovar high in the Himalayas, once grew curious about the localities beyond that divine range of hills.

One day, he spread his silver wings and rose above the peaks and flew down towards the villages and hamlets of the plains.

He flew for hours and then, on seeing a pond at the centre of a village, descended there.

As he relaxed touching the muddy water and surveying the environment with curiosity, the storks who were wallowing in the mud scanned him with amazement.

"Who are you, stranger?" one of the older storks asked him.

"I am a swan."

"Swan? We understan d. We have heard of swans. Where do you live?"

"The heavenly Manasarovar is my abode."

"Where is that?"

"In the inner ranges of the god-souled Himalayas, overlooked by Mount Kailash."

"Is that lake different from this our pond in any way?" asked another stork.

"Well, very, very different, I must say!"

"In what way? How much do you know about this wonderful pond of ours? At least a dozen cows and bu ffaloes bathe in this, apart from a dozen or two men, women, and kids. Can your lake break this record?" asked a young stork aggressive.

"No cows, buffaloes, men, women and kids live around our lake. Only nymphs and fairies, gundharvas and kinnaras, apart from gods and goddesses, come to bathe there," replied the swan.

"Do you have such water-creepers as we have - sporting such tiny flowers?"

"No. But we have lotuses radiating a golden hue."

"What do you eat?"

"The lotus-frui t and lotus-nectar."

The storks looked at one another meaningfully.

"Do you mean to say that you live without eating insects, leeches, froglings, worms and fish?"

"What are they?" asked the swan.

"What are they? You ask what are they? That means you have never even tasted them and you still consider your life worth-living?" asked several of the storks in chorus and then all of them burst into a shrill, screechy laughter.

The swan from the Manasarovar took off and spread his wings heading towards his Himalayan abode.

The same advice

Meena was the only sister of her two brothers. They had lost their parents. The brothers were bent upon finding out a very good match for Meena.

And they chose Sudhir. His village was rather far from their village. But he was the only son of his parents, and they had a good deal of property. Moreover Sudhir was known to be intelligent and honest.

The marriage was conducted. Meena went over to her husband's house. She was happy there. However, she found behaviour of her mother-in-law and her husband's widowed sister not quite satisfactory. Not that the two ladies did not love Meena, but Meena could not have her way because of their interference.

Once there was a fair near the village. Meena wished to visit the fair all alone so that she could buy things according to her sweet will. But the two ladies would not let her go alone. They must accompany her. This and many such minor incidents annoyed Meena.

At her brother's house Meena had been pampered. There her wish used to be the law. Could sh e not get back that freedom? - she wondered. Slowly she began to dream. What if she ran an independent household along with her husband? At night she spoke out her dream to Sudhir. He looked pensive. "Let me think about it," he said.

After a month Sudhir had to go to the city on business. Meena knew that he would return through her brothers' village.

"How did you find my brothers?" she queried eagerly on Sudhir's return.

"They're fine, but ...."

Meena could not check her anxiety. "Please be frank with me!" she implored her husband.

"Well, the wives of your two brothe rs are not pulling on together. Your brothers asked me if they should separate," reported Sudhir.

"How sad! And what advice did you give?" asked Meena.

"I said, separate by all means!"

"How on earth could you give such a foolish advice? I cannot imagine my brothers living in two different houses!" cried out Meena.

Sudhir kept quiet.

After a few days, Meena whispered to him one evening, "Did you give a thought to my suggestion?"

"I don't give any thought to foolish suggestions," growled Sudhir.

"What! Do I sound foolish to you?" demanded Meena, about to break down.

"Look here, Meena, if my advice to your brothers was foolish, how can your advice to me on the same line be anything different?" asked Sudhir, giving a tender pat on Meena's back.

Meena was a sensible girl. She smiled and nodded, although tears still drizzled in her eyes.

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THE PRINCESS’S CHOICE

King Atmaveera was looking for a suito r for his daughter Amrita. He thought, the easiest way would be to hold a test. Much to his surprise, two princes, Jaya and Vijaya, succeeded equally in the test. He then suggested that the princess should take a lot.

Somehow Atmaveera had a special liking for Vijaya, while Amrita had really been drawn to Jaya. The king decided to play a trick. He wrote the name of Vijaya in both slips! However, the princess came to know about this.

At the Court the next day, the king shuffled the two slips well, and asked Amrita to pick one, and spell out the name written on it.

The princess picked one of the slips, looked at the name and said, coyly: “Father, I feel shy to mention the name of the one who’s going to become my husband. So, please read the name on the other slip.”

Atmaveera was in a fix, because the second slip, too, carried the name of Vijaya. He could not avoid reading out the name . Vijaya thus got eliminated. The king had to arrange for the wedding of Amrita and

Prince jaya

The Other Way

There was a zamindar - a landlord - who was cruel and arrogant.

Once he visited a village where he owned some farms. He took a poor man to task for failing to pay him his dues.

"I shall pay you when the next season comes," said the man, apologetically.

"Nothing doing. Pay now or be whipped," was the zamindar's decision.

'Is he a landlord or a donkey?' muttered the man to himself.

The zamindar would have beaten up the man, but luckily the king's minister was pass ing by. The zamindar complained to him against the man.

"You can't call a zamindar a donkey!" the minister pulled up the man and ordered him to be put in prison for a week.

While being led away, the man turned to the Minister. "Sir, I can't call a zamindar a donkey, all right. But, is there any restriction to my calling a donkey a zamindar?"

"No, there is no such restriction," the minister assured him.

"Thank you sir. As soon as I am released, I shall re-name my donkey as zamindar".

The Nobleman

On a certain day Vidyadhar, a nobleman, invited all the people of his village to his house to eat at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. All but Ram, the poorest man in the village, responded.

"Why didn't you come for the feast?" Vidyadhar asked Ram the next day.

"Sir, I earn my livelihood by selling firewood. Yesterday nobody bought firewood because there was nothing to be cooked. And so I had to go without food," said Ram.

"But you could have come to my house for food?" asked the nobleman, even more surprised.

"Sir, all the others went in response to your invitation, though they had enough food at their homes. Had I gone, it would have been because I had no food. In other words, I would have gone there as a beggar, not as a guest. That was something I did not like to do," explained Ram.

Afterwards if anybody referred to Vidyadhar as a nobleman, he would correct him, and say, "It is Ram who is the true nobleman!"

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THE MIRACLE YET TO HAPPEN

Jagmohan and Kumardev were friends and were very much interested in matters supernatural. But soon they parted ways - Jagmohan fascinated by Tantrik practices, and Kumardev following a yogi.

They did not meet for many years. One night, Kumardev heard repeated knocks on his door. He came out to the verandah and who should he see but Jagmohan?

"Welcome Jagu, I hear much about the miracles you perform. They are quite wonderful. But what brings you here at this hour of the night?" asked Kumardev, while showing Jagmohan into a room.

"My friend, what you have heard about my performance is correct. I do wonderful things, but I do them with the help of a spirit whom I enslaved through a certain kind of Tantrik practice. But now, instead of my commanding him, he is commanding me. That is to say, I am expected to command him to help me in performing miracles - that is the only field where he can be of any use; he cannot be engaged in any constructive work. But can I go on showing miracles all the time? When he has no work to do, he keeps on pestering me. If I am asleep, he would wake me up and ask me for work. I get annoyed with him, call him names, but he is n o human being to mind all that. The kind of spirit he is, he is quite insensitive to my feelings. What do I do?"

Kumardev thought over his friend's problem for a while.

"Do you have a dog?" he asked.

"Yes, indeed, a very good one," replied Jagmohan.

"Is its tail intact?"

"Yes, it is."

"Good," Kumardev then told Jagmohan what he should do.

Back home, Jagmohan summoned the spirit.

"Here I am, boss, what's the miracle you would like me to perform on your behalf now?" asked the spirit eagerly. He had been quite bored for lack of work.

"Look here, you great imp, you're quite friendly with my dog, aren't you?"

"I am, boss."

"Fine, the greatest miracle will be to straighten his curly tail. You must do it without causing him any discomfort. Go and begin at once!" commanded Jagmohan.

"But that I can do in a trice!" boasted the spirit.

"I wish you success!" was Jagmohan's response. "Now go and do it!"

And the spirit is still trying to do that. He uncurls the dog's tail, and holds it straight, hoping that it will remain straight after he takes away his hands. But that never happens. The tail curls up at once.

The poor imp has never been able to perform this miracle of miracles!

The Goat Who Laughed

Once upon a time, near the city of Varanasi, lived a Brahmin. He had some disciples who received from him lessons in scriptures.

One day, the Brahmin decided to perform a certain rite, which required a sacrifice.

He requested a wealthy man to donate a goat, and he got it - quite a bonny one. He asked two of his disciples to lead it to the river for a bath and then to put a garland around its neck.

The disciples led the goat to the river. At that time, the sky was overcast with dark clouds.

One of the disciples gave the goat a bath and brought it to the shore. In the meanwhile, the other disciple had collected flowers from the plants on the riverbank and had made a garland.

As the two young men garlanded the goat, it laughed wildly.

There was no third person nearby. The two boys got frightened at the goat's weird behaviour. They looked at each other.

The goat stopped laughing as suddenly as it had begun. Then it began shedding tears.

The two friends led it back to their master. "Master!" they whispered, "the ghost seems to be possessed. It laughed and wept like a human being. Will it be wise to use it for a holy sacrifice? Better we find another goat."

"Please, good fellows, use me for the sacrifice, by all means!" spoke out the goat.

The Brahmin and his two disciples had almost swooned! But the goat hurried to say, "There is no need to get scared, fellows, I shall not harm you."

"Isn't it not surprising that you should speak like a human being?" asked the Brahmin, recovering from his daze.

"Not surprising. Once I was a human being, like you - and a Brahmin, too. That was long ago. I was a sinner in many ways. Then, under the delusion that a certain rite would purify me, I too had sacrificed a goat! But I could not have deceived Providence. I have been reborn five hundred times, every time a goat! Four hundred and ninety nine times I have been sacrificed by somebody or the other. I shall lose my head for

the 500th time today and that will free me from my sins. After the bath in the river suddenly the memory of the past flashed in my mind. That's why I laughed," explained the goat.

"But why did you weep?" asked the Brahmin.

"To be frank, when I realized that you're going to do exactly what I had done five hundred births ago - and you, too, would be reborn as a goat and suffer like me - I wept for your foolishness and the sorrow in store for you," said the goat.

The Brahmin stood thinking for a long time. It dawned on him that it was futile to believe that bysacrificing a goat he could be absolved of the fruits of his misdeeds. Rather, this deed would only add to his sins.

He told the goat, "I'm not going to sacrifice you."

"But I'm not afraid of dying! To tell yo u the truth, I'm looking forward to my death!" said the goat.

"Whatever you might wish, I'm not going to kill you," asserted the Brahmin.

"But I'm destined to die today. If you don't kill me, someone else would," said the goat.

"I'll see to it that nobody kills you," said the Brahmin.

They set the goat free and followed it. The goat ambled about and then climbed a hill. Soon a storm broke out. As the Brahmin and his disciples stood below the hill keeping an eye on the goat, a lightning struck it dead.

Bodhisattva, who then stood there as a tree, witnessed the event. He was happy that at least some people had realized that one could not escape the consequences of one's own deeds by blindly performing some rites or rituals.

The Glittering Glass

Ramprasad, the goldsmith, observed that his neighbour, Ravindra, was going to the moneylender's house frequently.

"What's the matter?" he asked Ravindra.< /p>

"Brother, the moneylender had promised to give me a loan. Accordingly, I arranged for my daughter's marriage to take place next week. Now he keeps on refusing me the the loan under some pretext or the other," said Ravindra.

Ramprasad knew the moneylender well enough to understand why he was keeping Ravindra on tender-hooks deliberately. At the last moment, he would charge a high interest. Ravindra would be obliged to agree to it.

Ramprasad handed over four coloured glass pieces to Ravindra and told him what he should do.

Ravindra met the moneylender privately and said, "I found these stones in a pot that had been buried. Maybe, they're precious. Will you keep them with you till my daughter's marriage is over?"

They moneylender accepted them and, at night, went to the goldsmith, and asked him what the pieces could be. "Could be diamonds, I'm not sure. I don't have the proper equipment to examine them just now. Bring them to me a fortnight later", said Ramprasad.

The moneylender was pleased to give the loan to Ravindra the next day at a nominal interest. After the marriage, Ravindra came to take back his property. The moneylender gave him a different set of glass pieces, pleased that he had cheated Ravindra of his diamonds!

A fotnight passed. The moneylender took the glass pieces again to Ramprasad.

"Oh, these are only glass pieces - not worth even one paisa!" said Ramprasad.

THE FROG FACTOR

Sunder Singh borrowed money from a moneylend er, giving him his farm as surety. The moneylender waited for five years. Sunder Singh did not repay the loan, nor did he pay any interest on the loan as had been agreed to upon. So, the moneylender went to the farm and took possession of it. Sunder Singh complained to the village chief against the moneylender. The village chief refused to help him as he was clearly at fault. He then went to the king, who patiently listened to him. “Why didn’t you repay the money for five years?” the king asked him.

“How could I?” said Sunder Singh, apologetically. “For five long years, frogs in our area have not been swimming. In fact, we wonder whether they even know how to swim!”

The minister, who was present at that time, wondered what Sunder Singh was trying to say. He shook his head as if he was stumped.

“You give him enough money to pay the interest on the loan!” said the king, turning to h is minister, who now appeared dumbstruck. “What he wanted to say was, in his area there has been no rain for five years. He was affected by the drought, and that’s why he was unable to clear his debt.”

The minister noticed the sympathetic look on the king’s face.

The Forgotten thousands

For two hundred years, from A.D. 1096 to 1291, the Christian rulers of Europe tried to free Jerusalem, the holy land, from the control of the Muslims. But Jerusalem was holy to the Jews and Muslims too.

The expeditions, which the Christians led to free Jerusalem and to safeguard the Christians pilgrims, were called the Crusades. There were nine major Crusades. At the beginning, the Christians were successful, but their success was short lived. They were defeated again and again. But a strange thing happened. The defeat of the kings and generals saddened some children so much that they decided to take up the cause themselves. In 1212, a shepherd boy called Stephen organized an army of 30,000 boys and girls, between the ages of ten and sixteen. These child crusaders set out from Vendome in France and reached Marseilles. Some clever ship owners offered to take them to their destination. The children trusted them and embarked for Palestine.

Many died at sea. The treacherous ship owners sold the rest to the sl ave traders who, in turn, sold them in Egypt and else where. Almost at the same time, a German boy named Nicolas organized a children's army 20,000 strong, and led it towards Jerusalem. Most of the children perhaps died on their way. Others were kidnapped. Not even one of them is known to have returned home.

Although these children were impractical, their zeal and idealism cannot be questioned. Among them were many who could have become great when grown-up.

The Fourth Bandit

The King of Mayurpur was much worried on account the activities of a gang of bandits. They proved audacious and quite crafty. But he was an unusually courageous man. He began moving about at night in the disguise of a bandit. He spent several nights sitting on the parapet walls of some of the houses in the city. Of course, he did that with the knowledge of the house-owners. At last he spied upon the gang stealthily advancing on a lane. He jumped down and sprang up before them with a bag on his shoulder, which looked like some booty. "Who are you?" asked the bandits, who were taken aback for a moment. "It seems you belong to my fraternity," replied the king. The bandits, who numbered three, were impressed by the fearlessness of the king. They invited him to join them. Together, they went to a lonely place and discussed the nature of their profession. "May I know if you chaps have any special powers, apart from valour and skill?" asked the king. "I can open any lock, however strong, in the twinkle of an eye," said one. "Pressing my ear to the ground, I can say where wealth is stored or buried," said the second. "Once I see a man, I can recognize him later even if he would look quite different," claimed the third bandit. Then all the three bandits asked the king, "What about you? What special power do you have?" The king was placed in an awkward situation. But, he managed to say, "Well, if I press my ring, I can send any man to death. And, by raising a finger, I can save anyone," said the king. The bandits felt happy to have such a man as a member of

their gang. "Let's be guided by you in our adventure tonight," said the three bandits. "I always look to high places for adventure. Let's try our luck in the palace," proposed the king. The three bandits were thrilled. They followed the king. Through a secret passage he guided them to the first floor. The second member of the gang pressed his ear on the roof at several places and pointed out the treasury. They descended to the ground floor and the first bandit opened the lock of the treasury instantly. As soon as the three entered the treasury, the king slipped away and signalled his alert guards who pounced upon the bandits. In the morning, they were produced before the king. The king was no longer in disguise. According to the convention, he pressed his signet-ring on a paper that carried his order for hanging the bandits! The bandits were led to the platform meant for execution. The minister asked them, "What's your last wish?" "We'll like to see the king," said the third bandit who alone had recognized the king! The king came there to fulfill the dying men's last wish. "Your majesty, last night you told us that you had two special powers. We have seen you exercise the first of the two powers when you pressed your ring on the paper. Now, we look forward to see you exercise the other power," said the bandit. The king smiled and raised his finger to stop the execution! The bandits promised to reform themselves and lead a normal life. The king gave them jobs in the palace itself.

THE DIFFERENCE

Chandangram was a prosperous village. Bhimdas and Mohan Rao were two grocers who had their shops facing each other's.

Both the shopkeepers were known to be honest. Neither of them priced their wares unreasonably high or sold anything adulterated.

Both the shops did well. If Bhimdas did not have any item, he would direct the customer to Mohan Rao and vice versa.

When Mohan Rao died, his sons were not interested in running the shop. Bhimdas asked his own nephew, Samardas, to take over the shop and carry on the trade.

Samardas did as advised. At first customers thronged his shop as they used to do during Mohan Rao's time. But by and by their number dwindled.

"Uncle, I'm as honest as Mohan Rao. But why do I have fewer customers?" Samardas asked Bhimdas, one day.

"My son, I was about to tell you the reason myself. I've been watching your method of weighing things. You first put a large quantity into the scale and then go on taking it out till it balances with the weights. I do the opposite. I put less to begin with and then go on adding to the quantity. The customer feels unhappy when he sees his stuff being reduced. He feels happy when he sees it increasing - even though either way the weight is the same!" explained Bhimdas.

Samardas now tried this method. Before long, there was a marked difference in the number of customers who came to his shop.

The Demon's Syndrome

Once upon a time, there was a physician in a village close to a forest. His name was Raghunandan. He knew the secret of beneficent plants and herbs. He collected them from the forest and prepared medicines out of them. He succeeded in curing most of the people who went to him fo r treatment. But he never demanded any fee from his patients.

His wife, Kamini, did not approve of this. She always murmured about his generosity.

"Even if I don't charge any fee, my patients give me whatever amount they can, don't they? It's better this way rather than charging a fixed amount as fee," Raghunandan used to argue. "Besides, I give only medicines. It's god who cures," he would add, modestly.

It was midnight, and both Raghunandan and his wife had retired to bed and gone to sleep when someone knocked on the door.

"There seems to be no respite from your worthless patie nts even at this hour of the night!" grumbled Kamini.

Raghunandan quietly opened the door, but had the shock of his life at the sight of his visitor. It was a demon!

"Don't be afraid. I've come to you as a patient," said the demon.

"Welcome," Raghunandan managed to say. "Tell me, what's your ailment?"

"I feel drained of all energy and feel sleepy. But sleep never comes to me! I'm always panting, sweating, and feeling thirsty," complained the demon.

"I understand. The disease is called the demon's syndrome. I think I can cure you, even though you have come to me rather late," said Raghunandan, feeling the demon's pulse.

He then prepared some powder and made the demon gulp it with a spoonful of honey.

"You'll get relief in an hour. If you take this regularly for a fortnight, you'll get back a demon's strength," said Raghunandan.

"I feel so happy. I'll be here again tomorrow, at this hour," said the demon as he left them.

Kamini took her husband to task as soon as the demon left, for not charging him a heavy fee. "You can be liberal towards your fe llow human beings, but why towards a demon? He's not going to be of any service to you in the future!" she said.

Raghunandan only shrugged his shoulders, and said nothing.

The demon showed up every night and looked happier and happier. One night, while Raghunandan was preparing the medicine, Kamini lowered her voice and told the demon, "You know, uncle demon, my husband is too shy to tell you about this, but he spends a lot of money on the medicine which he prepares for you."

"Is that so? Well, how much do you think I should pay him?" asked the demon.

Kamini hemmed and hawed and said, "How about ten gold coins!"

"Ten gold coins!" laughed the demon.

After the demon had left. Kamini told her husband, "Your midnight patient is a miser." Raghunandan, as usual, only shrugged.

Next day Kamini told her husband that she was going to her parent's home for a day or two. However, after leaving the house, she sat hiding behind a bush. The demon, as usual, came there at night and the physician handed him the medicine. When the demon left for his dwelling, Kamini followed him.

After an hour she found out the demon's cave. Instead of returning home, she took shelter in another cave. Next night, when the demon left the cave for the physician's house, she entered his cave and saw two sacks full of gold coins and ornaments.

She goggled her eyes in disbelief. She then took both the sacks in her arms and hurried home. Midway she saw the demon returning. She hid behind a tree and then, after a while, reached home and buried the sacks in the cowshed.

It was already dawn.

"What was the urgency in leaving your parents' home at night to reach here so early?" asked Raghunandan.

She gave no answer, but she began panting and seating and said: "I feel b reathless.

"Lie down in peace. Let me see what the matter is with you," said Raghunandan.

"I feel awfully thirsty," said Kamini.

The physician felt her pulse and said: "This seems to be the human version of the demon's syndrome! However, you'll get much relief with the very first dose of medicine."

He gave her the medicine. But, to his surprise, he sw no improvement in her condition till the evening. He felt anxious.

The demon reported to him at midnight.

"Sir! I feel as healthy and energetic as I was ten years ago. I hope my treatment is over," he said.

"Yes, its over. You need not worry on that count any longer," answered Raghunandan.

"Over the past years I had collected lots of gold, in the form of coins as well as ornaments. I had arranged them in two sacks to give them to you as a token of my gratitude. Unfortunately, someone stole them from my cave last night. Since my dwelling has become known, I should go over to another cave in another forest. Some day in future, I'll pay back my debt to you," said the demon.

"Oh no, you need not. Please take your we alth back," cried out Kamini from the next room. Both Raghunandan and the demon were taken aback.

Kamini toddled in and narrated what she had done because of her awful greed. Sobbing she said, "The gold you had collected through force brought me your disease along with it. Please take it back and save my life. I know no medicine will work unless I'm relieved of my guilt."

The demon nodded and said: "Let's forget whatever has happened. Spend the wealth for some good cause. "That'll bring happiness to you as well as to me."

He then left.

Raghunandan understood why his me dicine had failed to work on his wife. However, the moment they decided to spend the wealth for putting up a large hospital for the poor, Kamini began to recover. She became normal in a week. By then the work on the hospital also began.

What an example can do

King Vikramsingh of Vijaypuri was a ruler who was prudent and just. His administration was clean and he was never tired of looking into the grievances of his subjects.

One day, while passing through a remote village of the kingdom, the king's eyes fell on an old temple of Lord Shiva. A century ago the temple was very famous. Unfortunately, it had fallen into a dilapidated condition and pilgrims rarely visited the shrine.

The king felt very sad to see the condition of the temple. He decided to repair it and to do everything necessary to restore it to its old glory.

When he expressed his wish before his chief minister, the later said, "My lord! Your intention is noble. But it involves a huge expenditure. When the temple is repaired, pilgrims would flow into the village. For them ponds and wells must be dug and rest-houses erected. Till the temple comes to earn enough from the devotees, you have to arrange for its maintenance. I am afr aid, we cannot afford to spend so much money at the moment."

"But I cannot let this great temple decay till it was leveled to the ground! If our treasury does not have enough money to do the needful, let us collect a special tax on this account. Mind you, I don't want the new tax to be imposed on the common people, but only on the wealthy landowners and the rich traders."

The chief minister and other ministers appreciated this idea. Accordingly the new tax was announced.

The king was in the habit of donning a disguise and roaming among his people from time to time, particularly after he had introduced any new law. This time too he dressed as a common man and went out to assess the effect of his new policy.

He had not gone far when he heard a young man and a shopkeeper exchanging heated words. He listened carefully and understood that the young man was an employee in the household of a landlord. As soon as the new tax had been announced, the landlord had announced a reduction in the young man's salary! The young man, who was disgusted at this, was further disgusted to see that the traders had increased the prices of commodities essential to him. The young man, who had come to buy several small things for his own family, could hardly buy anything.

It was a revelation to the king. He understood that although his motive had been to tax only the rich, the rich had easily shifted the burden of the tax to the common people.

The king announced his ministers as soon as he was back in the palace and said, "Announce immediately that the new tax has been scrapped. If any trader would enhance the price of any commodity, he would be severely punished."

"If you abolish the tax, my lord, we have to give up the scheme of restoring the Shiva temple!" said the chief minister.

"Never!" declared the king, "I will take it upon myself to bear the entire cost of the restoration work. As you know, we spend a lot of money on unnecessary customs and amusements. From today, till the temple of Lord Shiva is restored, there will be no feast in the palace, no hunting expedition, no illumination. The money thus saved should go to the temple fund."

"My lord! Yours is a noble decision. I too promise to curtail al my expenses and to contribute to the temple fund to the best of my mite," declared the chief minister. All other ministers too promised to do the same.

This decision of the king and his ministers very soon became public. People set up several centers for collecting contributions for the temple and the result was highly encouraging.

When the rich landowners and traders realized the situation, they felt guilty and they came out with heavy contributions. In a few months so much money was collected that not only the old temple was restored to its glory, but also a number of charitable institutions could be opened with the fund!

The day the sun did not rise!

King Gobuchand ordered the river's course to be blocked. It was because the river flowed eastward. Gobuchand had enmity with the king who ruled the land in the east. "Why should we be fools to allow the enemy to irrigate his lands with our river?" he asked. His flatterers said, the king had proved his wisdom by stopping the flow.

Came the monsoon. The water-level of the river rose higher and higher as it could not flow down. The capital was threatened with a flood.

The palace had drummers and flutists who played their instruments at the time of sunrise, to wake up the king. The minister secretly advised them to play the instruments two hours before the sunrise.

The king woke up and summoned the minister and asked, "Why is the sun not seen?"

"My lord! As we have stopped the river from flowing into our neighbouring kingdom, the enemy has stopped the sun from rising. Because they are in the east, it is possibl e for them to do so," explained the minister.

"In that case, release the water!" ordered the king.

The correct signature

There was a forest between Suryapuri and Chandrapuri. A notorious bandit, named Narsingh, had the rule of the forest.

Once the King of Chandrapuri requested the King of Suryapuri for a loan of a lakh of gold mohurs. It was so arranged that the prime minister of Chandrapuri would go to receive the amount.

Narsingh had his spies in both royal courts. He was duly informed about the transaction. The bandit was illiterate. At midnight, he entered a pundit's house and asked him to teach him how to sign the prime minister's name. When the pundit showed reluctance, Narsingh brandished a dagger. The pundit taught him how to sign the prime minister's name.

Next day, the prime minister, along with his bodyguards, was on his way to Suryapuri. Narasingh's gang captured the party. The bandit himself donned the minister's clothes and made some of his lieutenants look like the bodyguards. He also snatched the royal seal and the letter of authority from the king and detained the party in the forest. He then proceeded to Suryapuri and greeted the king and received the amount. But as soon as he signed the receipt, the king put him under arrest.

The pundit had clearly taught the illiterate bandit to sign as "Narsingh the Bandit!"

The compassionate traveller

Centuries ago there was in China a poor scholar named San. He heard that the emperor had decided to appoint some teachers in the royal academy. Also that the candidates were to reach the capital on a certain day.

As someone who devoted years for studies, San was confident that he would be selected. He started for the capital.

It was a long way. As he passed through a desolate meadow, he saw a young man lying under a tree. A horse stood a little away.

At a glance San understood that the young man was ill. When he went closer, the young man murmured a few words. He was asking for water.

San climbed a mount and saw a pool at a distance. He ran up there and fetched water.

The young man drank the water and looked at San gratefully. But soon he breathed his last.

San was now in a dilemma. It was getting dark. Unless he kept going, he would not be able to reach the capital on time. But how could he leave the young man's body there to be eaten up by insects and animals?

While his ambition goaded him to go ahead, his conscience pulled him towards the tree and the body lying beneath.

'How unfortunate that I don't know his name or address,' murmured San to himself. He opened a bag that was lying there. It contained several coins, but there was n othing to tell him who he was.

San hid the bag in a hole on a tree and ran to the nearest village. He bought a coffin and returned to the spot. He placed the body in the coffin, dug a grave, and buried it along with the bag. He then prayed near the grave. It was already midnight. He started walking again.

On reaching his destination he learnt that he was late for the interview.

Disappointed, he began his journey back home. When he reached the meadow, he saw a horse following him. It was the same horse he had seen the previous day. He tried to evade the animal, but it continued to follow him. He rode it and let it go as it liked.

By evening the horse stopped in front of a decent mansion. When the servants saw him, they looked puzzled. One of them ran inside and returned with an old man.

"How did you get my son's horse? Where is he?" he asked.

San told him all that had happened on his way to the city and while returning.

The old man broke into tears. "The young man must be my son," he said.

They went back to the meadow and dug the grave. The old man recognized the body as that of his son. San gave him the money bag. When he counted the coins, he found the money intact. The old man was very much moved.

He adopted San as h is son. San soon became famous as a scholar.

The Christmas tree

Heap on the more wood - the wind is chill;

But let it whistle as it will, We'll keep our Christmas merry still;

Thus sang the famous novelist and poet Si r Walter Scott. And who does not know that the Christmas tree is one of those things, which helps us keep our Christmas merry? But do you know how the fir tree became the Christmas tree?

We have to cross twelve hundred years backward. That was the time when the early Christian missionaries braved into distant lands carrying the message of Christ. The Pope, the supreme leader of Christianity, inspired an Englishman named Boniface, to take the message into the heart of Europe.

In those days the only means of traveling fast was the horse. And no doubt, to travel was to court great risks. Sailing by boat for many days and then riding a horse, Boniface arrived in a remote part of Germany. He tried to preach Christianity to the people, but with hardly any success.

The different communities of people in Europe had their different religious practices. On the outskirts of the village where Boniface camped stood a very old and huge oak tree. The villagers believed that Thor, the god of thunder, resided in that tree. To please the god, they sacrificed a little boy to the tree from time to time.

The winder night had been preceded by a day of festival in honour of Thor. Now the crowd was ready to witness the last rite of the festival, sacrifice of the little boy. The boy was bound to the tree and the priest raised his axe to chop off his head.

The eerie silence of the forest was suddenly shattered by a piercing cry, "Stop!" The priest was taken aback. The crowd looked bewildere d. Then through darkness was seen rushing to the spot Boniface, the stranger.

Boniface snatched away the axe from the priest's hands. He knew what a great risk he took. The angry crowd might have torn him to pieces. But he looked bright with the zeal of his ideal. He took the daring step to put an end to the age-old superstition of the people.

"Let us see what Thor can do!" he shouted and brought his axe down on the trunk of the tree. While the people looked on stunned, expecting the god of thunder to strike the stranger with a swift lightning, Boniface went on with his fierce blows against the tree.

The tree fell down with a fearful sound, but no thunderbolt came down to punish Boniface. With the tree falling, the crowd's awe for Boniface must be a very powerful man to do such a thing.

"My love for this child as well as for you all is more powerful than your fear of Thor," said Boniface. So long he had not been able to draw any audience to himself. But now his action impelled the crowd to listen to him.

But Boniface did not stop there. He saw a fir plant close to the stump of the fallen tree. He announced, "Behold this little fir, as tender as the little boy you were about to kill. From tonight let us accept the fir as the symbol of love and innocence - the message of Christ.

Thus associated with Christianity by Boniface, the fir became the Christmas tree. Martin Luther p ut candles on the Christmas tree to remind us of the stars that were seen over Bethlehem on the night of Christ's birth. The German prince, Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, introduced the Christmas tree in England only a century ago. Christmas tree is Germany's gift to the world.

SURE, NO DOUBT!

Paramasivan of Panayur once went to the mar ket to buy a bird, as his children were keen to keep a pet. In one of the shops, he found a lovely parrot in a cage. He asked the shopkeeper its price, and he said he would sell it for a hundred rupees.

“You want a hundred rupees for this bird?” asked Paramasivan, unbelievingly.

“If you’ve any doubt, you may ask the parrot itself,” said the shopkeeper casually.

Paramasivan turned to the parrot. “Is your price one hundred rupees?”

“Why doubt?” responded the parrot.

Paramasivan was satisfied. He paid the money and took the parrot home.

At home, to whatever questions he put to the parrot, it only replied, “Why doubt?” Paramasivan then realized that the parrot had been taught only that much, and nothing else. “Look at that! And I paid a hundred rupees for you. I must be a fool!” he cursed himself.

“Why doubt?” was the parrot’s reaction, as usual.

On hearing this, Paramasivan’s wife and children could not control their laughter.

“SO I HEARD!”

Whenever anyone went to the Zamindar of Sirohi in search of a job, he would insist on their answering his questions correctly. Only then would he engage them for work. One day, Sahadev approached him for a job. The Zamindar was not aware that the man was deaf.

“What can be earned again even if you were to lose it once?” the Zamindar posed the first question. Sahadev had a ready answer, “Money”. “What’s it that you can’t retrieve if you were to lose it once?” Was the second question. “Day and night,” replied Sahadev. “How long will one remain obliged to someone who has helped him?” asked the Zamindar a third time. “As long as one is alive,” said Sahadev in answer.

The Zamindar was quite satisfied with Sahadev’s replies and employed him. The very next day he realised that the man was deaf! He called him and asked, “How did you manage to answer all my questions so correctly?”

“I did hear all your questions properly. You asked me, “Wha t do you want?” and I replied ‘money’. Then you asked me, “When will you work?” and I said, ‘Day and night’. Your next question was, ‘How long will you work for me?’ And I said, ‘Till I’m alive”.

The Zamindar cursed himself. “You’re really terrible! Don’t tell me you heard me like that!” But he said that with a smile on his lips.

First Thing First

The king went about in disguise observing the condition of his subjects. But his mind was beset with a serious problem. The walls around his fort-city had crumbled. They required immediate and extensive repairs. A gang of bandits was harassing the citizens. He wanted to capture them.

He was not sure which of the two needed his attention first.

He saw a farmer erecting a fence around his field. But it had much weeds along with the crop.

"Brother, why don't you remove the weeds first?" he asked the farmer.

"I can do that any time. But what if cattle were to stray into my field? I must protect it first!" replied the farmer.

The doubt in the king's mind was now cleared. He decided to devote his attention to strengthening the walls first.

The signboard and t he sign

A physician newly moved in at Rudrapur. He hung a signboard, in front of the house he had taken on rent. He also distributed a hand-bill inviting the residents to consult him when anyone fell ill.

He arranged some medicine bottles in the front room and stood on the verandah waiting for patients.

Late in the afternoon he saw a villager coming towards his house. But, to his surprise, the man took a turn and began walking away.

"Sir, why are you going back?" asked the physician.

"I doubt if there is any physician here!&q uot; said the man.

"Why do you doubt? Can't you see the signboard?" asked the physician, still more surprised.

"The signboard is all right. But look at the doorway - those flower-plants in the pots? They are dying because they have not been watered for days. How can anyone who does not care for his own plants care for his patients?" observed the man.

The physician realised his mistake. From then on, he never neglected his plants

Sighs of Relief

Mangal bought a pair of young bullocks from the fair. He named them Ram and Bhim.

Both the animals looked healthy and handsome. Mangal took great care of them.

Time came when Mangal had to put them to work. Ram proved tame and active. But Bhim was his opposite. He refused to plough. Often he would snap the rope and strayed into other's fields and munched at their vegetables.

Mangal's best efforts failed to make Bhim behave. He regretted buying him.

One day Suresh, a neighbour and an oil-monger came to borrow a bullock for crushing oil.

Mangal happily handed over Bhim to Suresh. He put Bhim under yoke and began whipping him. Bhim had to go round and round the crushing mill. If he slowed down, Suresh did not forget to whip him at once. It was an awful experience for Bhim.

He had to work for two days and that seemed to him like two long ages.

Bhim was taken back to his master after two days; later he was loaned out to the owner of a cart for a week.

The experience was not any better. The carter wished to make as many trips as possible between two markets. He, too, spare the bull from whipping. Bhim had to run and run. He now longed to see his own master, Mangal.

The next to borrow Bhim was a farmer who employed him to draw water from a well. Bhim was tied to a rod. He would be made to take a few steps forward so that the water-pot came out of the well; but what was wo rse, he must go backward so that the water-pot could sink in the well.

There could have been nothing worse. Bhim felt like going mad.

When he returned to his master, he heaved a sigh of relief. When Mangal led him to his field for ploughing, he behaved fine. Mangal, too, heaved a sigh of relief.

SALESMANSHIP

Vijendra's footwear shop had a good location—fa cing a crossroads – which none would miss; naturally, he expected some good business. It was so in the beginning, but gradually it waned. He wondered why many people did not step into his shop or if ever they did, why they went away without buying. The shoes or sandals were either too small or too big for their feet. No wonder they went away disappointed. If this went on for some days, Vijendra feared, he might have to close down his business. He thought of devising ways to improve the situation.

One day, he received a customer. He selected two pairs of sandals and wished to try them. Somehow he felt that they were too tight and was about to go. Vijendra stopped him. “Sir, these are leather sandals, and so they may take a few days to loosen. I feel you should take them.” The man was struck by Vijendra’s argument. “All right, I shall take one pair.” He paid for the pair, took the packet, and wen t away.

A little later, another person came with his little son. “I want to buy a pair for him.” Vijendra showed them a couple of pairs and the boy tried them out. “Father, they’re loose. They don’t stay on my feet.”

The man was about to go away with his little son. Vijendra suggested, “Sir they may be loose now. But in a few days, your son will find them comfortable. After all, he’s growing day by day, isn’t he?”

The man appeared convinced by Vijendra’s argument. “All right, I shall buy one pair.”As father and son left his shop, Vijendra wondered whether he had not already learnt salesmanship.

REWARD FOR COURAGE

The villagers of Karunagiri could not be lieve their ears. Sunder had come back after spending a whole day and night in the jungle at the outskirts of the village. They praised his courage, and the zamindar of the village even thought of rewarding him in public. He sent for Sunder.

When the servant reached Sunder’s house, only his wife was present. The servant told her why the zamindar wished to meet him. “A reward?” She was evidently surprised. “It should go to me, really. He lost all his earnings in gambling and came back penniless. So I drove him away, asking him not to come here with an empty pocket. That’s how he went and hid in the jungle. I think he has now gone in search of work. Maybe he’ll be back at night. Go and tell the zamindar, it is I who deserve the reward, and not my husband.”

The servant conveyed to his master what Sunder’s wife had told him. He laughed aloud. “She’s right. She had enough courage to send him to the ju ngle.”

Appetite Rest ored

Bhojandev, who lived with his brother-in-law Manish Gupta, never felt satisfied after a meal. He would think he had not eaten enough. He helped Gupta in his shop, but often went out in search of good food. He was always complaining of hunger. As a result, the work at the shop suffered.

Gupta called on a hermit who was on a visit to the town and told him about Bhojandev. The hermit gave him a magic powder. Anyone taking the powder never felt any pangs of hunger.

Gupta gave the powder to Bhojandev. To his own great surprise, he stopped complaining of hunger!

Gupta was happy. However, his brother-in-law, Bhojandev was not seen at the shop. Si nce he had no need for food, there was no need for him to work either!

Gupta ran to back to the hermit, now requesting him to restore Bhojandev's appetite!

PHILOSOPHY

In the province of Wachu, in old China, lived a m an who was a great philosopher. He owned a horse, and one morning found the stable door open and the horse missing.

The neighbours came to console the man, but he merely shrugged his shoulders and said, “My loss may be for some good.”

As if to prove the man correct, the horse returned a few days later, accompanied by another horse. When the good news spread around the village, everyone wanted to congratulate the man on his good fortune. But the man just shook his head. “Who knows,” he said, “my gain may turn out to be my loss!”

On the following day, his son attempted to ride the new horse, which shied at a fence and the son came an awful cropper and broke his leg. Along came the neighbours with words of sympathy, but as usual the man merely smiled and said, “The accident may turn out to be my son’s gain. Who can say?”

Within days, all the able-bodied young men in the village had to go and fight a band of marauders who were pillaging the countryside. The invaders proved to be too strong, and not one young man lived to return to the village. Only the philosopher’s son, limping on his crutches, could understand the depth of his father’s philosophy

Permission granted

Two thieves were passing by a village. One of them entered a hermit's hut and came out with a plate.

"Isn't it a great sin to steal a hermit's property?" asked the second thief.

The first one thought for a while and then said, "Let me go and take the hermit's permission."

The thief found the hermit seated under a tree. He bowed low and said, "Sir, I wish to confess that I've stolen a plate."

"Return it to its owner. That'll free you from your sin," said the hermit.

"May I give it to you, sir?" said the thief.

"No, I won't take it. Give it back to its owner," said the hermit.

"What if the owner does not accept it?" asked the thief.

"In that case, you can keep it," answered the hermit.

"Sir, may I keep it even if it belongs to you?" asked the thief.

"You may. I'm a hermit and I don't own any property," said the hermit.

"Thank you, O holy man!" said the thief, and he went back to his friend.

NO INSTANT REMEDY

Baidyanath was a well-known physician. He was very popular because his diagnosis were correct and his medicines effective. He used to engage youngsters as his assistants. They would watch him deal with his patients and followed the treatment he gave them. They learnt many things from him.

Jagdish was one of them. He kept notes of his instructions and prescriptions. “Certain ailments have no known medicines,” Baidyanath one day told Jagdish. “For instance, hiccup. There’s no remedy, except perhaps a good blow on the cheek. The hiccup will stop because of the shock.”

A day or two afterwards, a horse-cart arrived in front of the physician’s house. A stout gentleman rushed inside. “Hiccup! Non-stop! Have you any medicine?”

Baidyanath was busy preparing some medicine. Jagdish was at hand. Without waiting for any instruction from the physician, Jagdish aimed a blow on the man’s cheek. “The hiccup will stop in no time,” he added by w ay of explanation.

“Ah! I am not the one with hiccups. My brother in the cart has, and he needs immediate attention!” cried the man, massaging his cheek.

After Baidyanath had attended on the patient himself, he cautioned Jagdish, “No treatment should be done in a hurry.”

Empty drums

Two friends, while traveling across a foreign land, took shelter in the house of a drummer one night.

Villagers pressed around them, eager to hear the story of their land. One of the two friends was a notorious yarn spinner. He was never tired of exaggerating.

The host, being a drummer, asked him, "What about the drums in your great country? Are they just like ours?"

"Oh no! Our drums are much bigger - as big as the banyan tree yonder!

"Good gracious!" exclaimed the drummer.

"And what about the cows in your country?" queried a cowherd.

This time the other guest hurried to answer, "Well, they are just huge, you know, as huge as that bridge over the river!"

Next morning when the two friends were again on the road, the first one challenged the second, "You irresponsible fellow! How could you speak such a big lie about our cows?"

"You fool, don't you realize that it was for your sake?" retorted his friend, "If we did not have cows as huge as the bridge, from where could you get the hide to make the drums as big as the banyan tree?"

Guru's test

The King of Devpuri sought his guru's advice on every vital matter.

Once an important position in the court lay vacant. There were two candidates for the post, Rama Mishra and Hari Mishra.

The king sent both of them to his guru. He talked to them for a while. He gave one of them a sieve and the other a winnowing fan, and sent them back to the king.

"What does the guru mean by this?" the king consulted his minister.

He said he would think about it and let the king know his interpretation the next day.

The minister, who remained thoughtful, went back home where he saw his wife sifting corn in a winnowing fan. Some time later he saw her sifting flour in a sieve.

Next day he told the king, "My lord, one who brought the winnowing fan would retain the useful things and reject the useless. One who brought the sieve would retain the useless things and reject the useful."

The king employed the candidate who had come with the winnowing fan.

No Haunted House for me

Mohandas met Hiralal, the moneylender. "I've to perform my daughter's marriage. Will you please lend me ten thousand rupees? I shall repay it in five instalments," he said.

Hiralal could always measure the urgency of one's need. He varied his rate of interest accordingly. The interest he quoted for Mohandas was very high.

"No, my brother, I can't pay such a high interest. I'd better dispose of our old mansion lying useless," said Mohandas.

Mohandas's ancestors were landlords. They had a beautiful mansion, unfortunately it was in ruins.

Hiralal was annoyed with Mohandas for refusing to take a loan. He decided to do everything to foil Mohandas's plan to sell the mansion. He floated a rumour that it was a haunted house.

The rumour spread in no time. Some people even claimed to have heard strange sounds and shrieks emanating from the building! More and more versions were a dded to the rumour!

There were only three or four persons in the locality who could afford to buy that mansion. But they shied away because of its ill reputation as a haunted house.

One day, a millionaire from the city came on a visit to the place. He knew Hiralal well. He was planning to establish a factory in that area.

He saw Mohandas's old mansion and was fascinated by it.

Being a wealthy man, who had always lived in the city, he was accustomed to evaluate a property according to their value in the city.

"Who builds such excellent houses nowadays? If I can have it for a lakh of rupees or so, I would be happy to buy it," he told Hiralal.

"But what do you propose to do with an old dilapidated mansion?" asked Hiralal.

"If I establish a factory here, I've to visit this place from time to time. I would repair the mansion and use it as my residence," answered the millionare.

An exciting idea now flashed in Hiralal's mind. After the millionaire went away, he met Mohandas. "If you propose to sell your mansion, I'm willing to buy it for ten thousand rupees," he said.

Mohandas guessed that there must be some very special reason for Hiralal wanting to buy it. He said firmly, "I don't intend selling it for anything less than fifty thousand rupees! I don't mind if it lies unsold!"

Even then Hiralal showed his readiness to buy it. Mohandas was as surprised as he was happy; for the building in ruins could not have fetched him more than twenty thousand rupees. After the transaction was completed, Hiralal wrote to the millionaire: "You can now have the mansion for a lakh of rupees."

Came the reply: "I'm sorry, on my way back, I heard that it is a haunted house. I've no intention of living with ghosts. Thanks!"

Must bear with them!

There were two friends - Samir and Keshav. They had two servants, Bhola and Babu.

"I'm yet to see a greater fool than Bhola," remarked Samir.

"My servant Babu will go a not ch further, I bet," said Keshav. "I can prove it," he added.

The two friends summoned Bhola and Babu.

"Go to the market and buy a diamond ring for me," Samir told Bhola, giving him one rupee.

"At once master," said Bhola. He took the rupee and went out.

"Will you go to the garden and check whether I am there or not?" Keshav asked Babu.

"I shall go immediately," said Babu, going out.

As the two friends were laughing over their servants' naivety, a passer-by over heard Bhola and Babu talking on the road.

"My master is a fool. He does not remember that today is a Sunday. How can I buy a diamond ring for him?" observed Bhola.

"My master is not a lesser fool! He's sitting right there and he wants me to find out whether he's in the garden!" observed Babu.

"Well, well, we have to bear with them!," both Bhola and Babu commented at last.

Luck In The Wood

In a certain town lived a young man. He was ambitious. He had several schemes in his mind. But he could not start any one of them he had no means to do so.

'Only if I could meet the ki ng once and put forth my ideas to him, he would certainly help me to work them out,' he thought. He proceeded to the capital and met one of the officers of the court.

"Meet the king, eh? If he has the time to waste on strangers like you, do you think he'd remain a king? No, he'd be reduced to a fellow like you," observed the officer.

"In that case, what's your advice, sir,?" asked the young man. The officer felt flattered. "It's wise of you to ask me for advice. Now, my advice is, forget meeting the king," said the officer.

"But, sir, I had come with so much hope!" murmured the young man.

"Isn't it enough that you saw me and obtained a free advice?" asked the officer.

The young man left the capital disappointed. Whenever he remembered his humiliation before the officer it brought tears to his eyes. In order to hide them from his near ones, he began spending most of his time in the forest near his village.

By and by, the forest exercised a spell over him. He explored new areas of the forest and was thrilled. One day, he saw two tombs lying neglected. Beside them there was a dry pond. Since he had nothing else to do, he devoted his time to clear the tombs of shrubs and creepers. He also dug the pond deeper and channelised the flow of a brook into it. Around the tombs he planted a number of trees that yielded bright flowers and usefu l fruits. He made a hut for himself and began living there. In a few months the place became beautiful.

The road that passed through the forest was not far from the spot. The young man cut the bushes and made a byroad to the spot. One day, a group of merchants took that road and reached the spot. The young man served them with cool water and a sackful of fruits.

The merchants were very pleased with him. "Who lie buried here?" they asked.

"A great soul and his wife," said the young man. "I guard their tombs."

"You're a dutiful youth. Here's our contribution towards the upkeep of the tombs,&q uot; said the merchants as they handed out some money to him.

Soon the spot become an attraction for all the travelers who passed that way. What was once a byroad became the main route to cross the forest. All those who stopped near the

tombs paid the young man some money. Soon a strange rumour spread: whoever prayed near the tomb with a certain wish wuld find his or her wish fulfilled!

Thereafter not only did the travelers make it a point to stop at the spot and pay their respect to the tombs, but the folks from around the forest began making regular trips to the spot. The young man soon opened an inn and two shops to cater to the needs of the visitors. He employed some of his friends to manage them.

The news of the tombs reached the king. He sent a delegation of courtiers to look into the matter. They drew the picture of the tombs and also carried a slab of stone found near the tombs. The slab bore a symbol.

The king was taken aback at the stone. It bore the insignia of the founder of his dynasty. The founder and his wife, along with a handful of trusted people, had escaped into the forest, narrowly escaping the enemy's sword. The royal couple died in the forest. Their faithful companions raised tombs over their bodies, but all of them were soon killed in an encounter with the enemy. In course of time, the location of the tombs was forgotten.

The king was immensely pleased at the discovery of the forgotten tombs. He summoned the young man and asked him, "Can you prove that if one prayed near the tombs with a wish in his heart, the wish would be fulfilled?"

"Yes, my lord, I had an intense wish to see you. Unfortunately I failed to see you however much I tried. Now you called for me on your part - thanks to my prayers near the tombs!" said the young man.

The king gave the young man a handsome reward. The area around the tombs was further developed into a magnificent park. The young man himself was appointed the keeper of the garden.

Good Luck!

Once upon a time there were two old men in a certain village in Japan. Of the two Kujo was a good-natured fellow while the other, Kawa, was mischievous. The two old men met on a new year's day and exchanged greetings. Kujo said, "I dreamt last night that go od luck poured on me from the heaven!" "Is that so? I dreamt that good luck surged up to me from the earth!" said Kawa just to ridicule the innocent Kujo. "I see!" observed Kujo, "Well, brother, let us wait and see and help each other if necessary!" A few days passed. One day Kujo went to work in his field with a spade. While uprooting a bush, he hit something hard. He removed the earth and to his great astonishment found a jar full of gold coins. "This is no doubt good luck. But this cannot be mine. My good luck was to come from above. Since this comes from the earth, this must by Kawa's. I must go and inform him about this, for we had decided to help each other if occasion so demanded," thought Kujo. Accordingly he hurried to Kawa and said, "Brother! Your good luck has surged up from my field, in the form of a jar. Go and collect it soon. I have left it untouched." Kujo then returned home and informed his wife what he had done. She too agreed with him that to inform Kawa was the right thing. Kawa went to Kujo's field out of curiosity. He found the jar all right, but looking into it, he could not see the gold coins as a snake had crept into the jar and slept on the coins, coiling. Seeing the snake Kawa turned red with fury. "Kujo wanted to give me a shock, did he? Well, well, I will return the shock to him when he would expect it least," mumbled Kawa and putting the lid back on the jar, he carried it home. At midnight Kawa climbed to the roof of Kujo's home by the help of a ladder, carrying the jar along with him. Through the chimney he found Kujo fast asleep. He removed the lid of the jar and at once poured its con tent down into Kujo's room. In the darkness he could not see that the snake escaped, crawling over the roof, into the nearby jungle. Kujo and his wife woke up at the sound of gold coins pouring in. "look, how my dream comes true! Had I not dreamt that my good luck would pour from heaven? Commented the jubilant Kujo. "Indeed!" said his equally jubilant wife!

The Honest One

A whole year had gone without any rain and the villagers were worried.

A hermit came on a visit to the village. The villagers sought his help.

"I can perform a Yajna that will bring down rain, if all the honest men contribute to a fund necessary for the ritual," said the hermit.

The villagers did not know that he was a fraud. All the villagers made donations to the fund. The Yajna was performed; however, not even a speck of cloud was seen anywhere in the sky.

The villagers approached him again.

"I asked for contributions from honest men. Evidently you fellows are not honest. What can I do? I'm going away, as I do not wish to live among such people!" said the hermit.

Soon afterwards he left, carrying with him a greater part of the fund that had remained unspent!

IMPLICIT OBEDIENCE

Veerendrakumar led his dog to the weekly shandy in Titpur. “This dog will obey all commands! However hard be the task you give him, he’ll carry it out just as you order him! Any takers?” he shouted at the top of his voice.

Soon a crowd collected around him. He repeated the commendations about his dog. Someone from the crowd inched forward. “If he’s so good and obedient, why do you want to sell him away?” the man queried.

“What shall I say to that!” Veerendrakumar responded, though not very enthusiastically. “Last night, thieves entered my house. He obeyed all their orders. They asked him not to bark. They asked him to fetch a rope to tie me and my wife. And they gave him a lantern, which he held by his mouth and showed them round the place. I’ve lost everything except this dog. That’s why I want to dispose him off!” None in the in the crowd could control a hearty laugh.

ENTRANCE FREE, EXIT FEE

Premnath was in charge of a drama troupe. Somehow, their dramas were not popular and so did not attract a crowd. As a consequence, Premnath suffered a huge loss. He had to borrow money from his friend, Mohan, to pay salaries to the troupe.

Mohan was not sure whether he would get back his money at all or when. He thought of a strategy. He sent his men all over the place to announce: “Premnath’s troupe will stage SATYAVAN SAVITRY tonight! Admission Free!!”

That evening there was a good crowd and the hall was full. When the drama was over, the audience came out – only to find that the exit gates had been closed and they could go out only if they paid one rupee each to the volunteers posted at the gates.

“What’s this?” they protested. “You had announced that admission would be free. Then why this fee?”

The volunteers explained: “It’s true we had announced that entry was free. We never said exit would also be free!”< /p>

In short, everyone had to pay a rupee each to go out of the hall.

Thus Was The Well Dug Well!

The landlord of Chitrapur was an arch-miser. He would do nothing for the benefit of others. Whenever he spent any money, it was merely to serve his own interest.

His son, however, was different. He began digging a well in the village, as there was acute scarcity of drinking water. He could find no water even when he dug quite deep. He guessed there would be water if the well were made deeper. But he had no money to proceed further. And he knew that his miserly father would not want to spend more on a well that would only benefit others.

In the darkness of the night, he poured a jugful of oil in the well. Next day, when the landlord heard that the sod in the well was giving the smell of oil, he at once employed twenty more hands for further digging, hopeful of striking an oil well!

No oil was, of course, found, but pleanty of water gushed out. The problem of the poor villagers was solved!

WITHOUT A LIE

In days gone by there was a king who convened a conference of all the pundits of his kingdom once a year. He distributed handsome rewards to each one of them. One year, for certain reasons, his treasury was almost empty. The time for the conference was nearing. H e was much worried. But his minister told him, "My lord, let the pundits come. I know how to send them back!"

"You will reveal to them that our treasury is empty, eh?" asked the king.

"No, my lord," replied the minister.

"Then you will tell them some lies, will you?" asked the king.

"No, my lord, I will speak the truth and yet send them away," assured the minister.

Finally, the pundits arrived. Among them were a large number of new-comers. The minister arranged for the new-comers and the regular visitors to lodge separately. First he went to the new-comers and said, "The king is worried over a certain issue. He will not be able to see the new-comers. You may go." Then he met the old ones and said, "The king is worried over a certain issue. He will not be able to meet the regular visitors at this time. You may go."

Wonder In The Well

Mangal was an excellent swimmer and driver. He would plung into the river at one spot and emerge at another spot far away. The king, pleased with his feat, had presented him with the figure of a mermaid made of brass.

One day the headman of the village chanced to see the figure. He took a fancy for it and desired to decorate his own sitting room with it.

"Will you please sell it to me?" he asked Mangal. I am expecting some important guests. They would feel impressed at seeing this."

"Oh no! This is a gift from the king. As such, it is far more valuable to me than its actual value. However, since you like it for a week and return it to me after your guests depart," said Mangal.

As soon as he got the statue, he commissioned a sculptor to build an earthen replica of it. The sculptor executed the work well. It was coloured to look like one made of brass.

When Mangal came to take back his property, he was given the earthen figure. It was only when he was back at home and he placed the figure on hi stable that he found out the deception, from the nature of the sound it made. He rushed to the headman's house and demanded the original figure.

"Mangal, how can you think that I might have changed your brass into earth? Of course, I had got it cleansed in the water of the village well. If, because of some unknown element in the water, the brass changed into earth, that is a different matter," said the headman.

Mangal quietly went back. A month later, while drawing water, the headman's wife dropped her large brass vessel in the well. It was a deep well and Mangal alone could dive and recover things lost in it.

The headman, after much hesitation, requested Mangal to try recover his lost vessel. "I shall try in the morning," said the Mangal. At night he made a dive and recovered the brass vessel and sunk an earthern vessel. He carried the brass vessel home.

In the morning the headman called on him and requested him to do the needful. He went down and came up with the earthen vessel. "Mangal, this one must be someone else's. Mine, as you know, is of brass. Please try again."

Mangal went down again but climbing up, said, "No, sir, there is no other pot under the water. Surely, your brass vessel has changed into the ea rthen one. After all, you know well the wonder the water of this well can work."

Mangal left for his home. The headman made three or four men dive into the well. That was the only well in the village and the villagers got annoyed with the headman for muddling the water.

The headman passed the day in remorse. He had never known such defeat in life. At night he met Mangal at the latter's house and quietly returned the brass figure. Mangal too quietly returned the brass vessel.

WHY HE WORKED HARD

A poor man sat on the pavement repairing umbrellas brought by the passers-by. He did his work thoroughly, with great devotion.

Another man, who was relaxing leaning against a wall and watching him, asked him, “Why don’t you work faster?”

“If I work faster, the work would not be as good as it ought to be,” calmly replied the umbrella-mender.

“What difference would that make?” asked the other man again. “Would the umbrella-owners find out immediately if the work is defective?”

“No, they won’t detect it until perhaps the next monsoon.”

“Then? Why do you bother?”

“I don’t bother for myself. In fact, I won’t be here for long. But if my work proves bad, then the next umbrella-mender, who would sit here, may not be trusted; he may not get many customers,” explained the umbrella-mender.