151 Stories of Tenali Raman

Krishnadeva Raya loved hunting and used to escape to go hunting even from his studies. One day, when Krishnadeva Raya went hunting, he and some of his courtiers went so fast that they left the others behind. As the evening fell, they found that they had lost their way and now did not know where […]

One morning when Tenali’s wife looked out of the window, she saw three fat men coming towards her house and guessed at once they were coming to her house for lunch at her husband’s invitation. When they entered the house they were puzzled by a strange sight – a mortar and pestle made ready for

Tenali Raman once took up a job as a coachman. One day, he had to drive his employer to a disreputable part of the town. “Keep your eyes open,” his employer advised him, as he alighted from the coach at his destination, “This place is infested with thieves.” Sometime later, the man thought of checking

One day, a beggar knocked at the door of Tenali Raman’s house. When Tenali Raman’s wife opened the door, the beggar asked her for alms. “I’ve nothing to give you,” said Raman’s wife, “Please go!” When Tenali heard her refusing alms to the beggar, he became furious. “Who are you to refuse alms to this

Hari Prasad was the most sought-after man in the marketplace. He was a palmist who was roumored to be the best in the village. All he had to do was staring at the faint little criss-crossing lines on someone’s palm for a little while. The client would listen astounded, as the palmist laid his life

Tenali Raman was once brought before a judge by a man to whom he owed some money. The creditor said to the judge, “This man owes me 500 dinars which is long overdue. I request your excellency to order him to pay me immediately, without further delay.” “I do owe him money,” said Raman, “and

The Sultan’s elephant had wandered into Tenali Raman’s village and was causing havoc in the fields.The villagers finally decided to go in a delegation to the Sultan and request him to take the elephant away. As Tenali Raman was known to the ruler, they asked him to lead the delegation. When they arrived at the

Once at a crossroad, Tenali Raman saw a portly nobleman riding towards him.“I say, Raman,” said the man, “Which is the way to the palace?” “How did you know I was Raman?” asked Tenali Raman. The nobleman had a habit of addressing every scholarly-looking man as “Raman,” which was a title given to learned men

Once the king dreamt of a beautiful palace. He made a public announcement: “If someone can make such a palace for me, I will give him a hundred thousand gold coins!” But no one had the courage to say so. A few days later, a very old man tottered into the king’s court. “I’ve been

A rich man showed Tenali Raman the coffin he had got made for himself. He wanted Tenali Raman to admire the quality of the wood. “What do you think of the carvings on the sides?” he asked Tenali Raman, “Don’t you think they are superb?” Tenali Raman nodded his head in appreciation. “I insisted that

A farmer had grown a huge watermelon in his garden. It was the biggest watermelon anybody had ever seen and the farmer was very proud of it. One day the king was touring the village in disguise, arrived there and was fascinated by the watermelon. “Will you give it to me?” he asked the farmer.

The neighbour of Tenali Raman was the cart driver of king Krishnadeva Raya and he was very proud. One day, the king happened to drive through the street where the driver lived. Some neighbours and Tenali saw him drive the king and were excited.When the driver returned home that evening, and went to meet Tenali

A wandering youth Keshav once met Bholu, an illiterate villager, who knew how to perform a miracle. Every day Bholu would go into the forest, stand under a mango tree and utter a charm. The tree would immediately become heavy with fruit. Keshav the youth fell at Bholu’s feet, and begged him to teach him

Tenali Raman had a dream. A man knocked at his door and asked if he could spend the night in his house. He said he would pay 10 gold coins for the privilege. Tenali Raman agreed and showed him to his room. The next morning, the man thanked Tenali Raman and began taking out gold

Tenali Raman took his donkey to the market place and sold it for 30 dinars. The man who bought it immediately put it up for auction. “Look at this fine animal!” he shouted to passers-by, “Have you ever seen a better specimen of a donkey? See how clean and strong it is!”And he went on