Baital started telling King Vikramaditya another story as he carried him—“King Gunwant of the Avanti kingdom was a very strong ruler. He had a parrot named Churaman. He was very wise and well versed in Sanskrit. The parrot had travelled to a number of kingdoms and was well informed about people and places. One day, […]
Soon, Basant was arrested by the King’s soldiers. He was taken to the King’s court. Basant told the King everything. The King heard everything. Then he gave his judgement.” At this point, Baital finished the story. He asked King Vikramaditya, “Vikram, tell me what judgement the King gave. If you fail to answer my question,
Therefore, one day, Basant married the maiden. To Basant’s surprise, the maiden looked beautiful. So, Basant asked her, “How do you look so beautiful?” The maiden laughed and said, “I am actually beautiful. I wanted to test you; that is why I put on false make-up. I wanted to find out who loved me for
The maiden replied, “No. Here take a look at me without my make-up. I am so ugly.” Saying so, she removed the make-up from her face. But Basant was a grounded man. Looks did not matter much to him. So he replied, “I am not swayed by looks. Beauty is a temporary thing. But you
Akbar held Birbal’s opinion above everyone else’s. When in a leisurely mood, he would chat with Birbal. Once, he asked Birbal, “If you had to choose between justice and money, which would you prefer?” Birbal replied, “Your Majesty, without a thought, I would go for the money.” Akbar was taken aback. He said, “Take your
Sant reached the garden excitedly. The maiden was already strolling there. Sant went up to her and said, “You are very beautiful. I have seen many girls but you are the first one I have liked. Will you marry me?” The maiden asked, “Do you really wish to marry me?” Sant said, “Yes, of course!
In the meantime, the young maiden strolled around a bit and then left the garden. The brothers saw her going to a house close by. An old woman was sitting outside the house. Sant went to the old woman. He wanted to find out about the maiden. Sant said to the woman, “Mother! Please tell
King Vikramaditya as usual pulled the corpse down from the tree and put it on his shoulder. He started walking towards his kingdom. Baital could not keep silent and said to him, “While you are walking, let me tell you an interesting story. King Vikramaditya did not say anything. Baital smiled and started off with
Akbar loved to play pranks on his courtiers. One day, it was Birbal’s turn. Before Birbal reached the court, Akbar gave an egg to each courtier and said, “Hide it in the royal courtyard until I ask you for it.” When Birbal arrived, Akbar told him, “Those who bring me eggs from the royal courtyard
The King got the hair examined by experts. They found that the hair had been smeared with deadly poison.” Here Baital ended his story. He asked King Vikramaditya, “Vikram, tell me which of the two Brahmin brothers was the wiser. If you do not answer my question knowingly, I will break your head into pieces.”
The brothers continued, “Do not rely on him blindly. This offer of friendship may turn out to be a passing phase.” The King was disturbed to hear this but kept quiet. The next day, the King received a gift from the enemy King. The gift was a beautiful throne-like cushioned chair with precious stones. The
Some courtiers, who were jealous of Birbal, decided to get rid of him with the royal barber’s help. They promised the barber a lot of money. The wicked barber agreed. He told Akbar, “Your Majesty, a magician is in town. He can perform a ritual to help you know about the well-being of your ancestors.”
The man continued, “But, in reality, we had come here to test the skill of the Brahmin brothers. And we are happy to say that they have passed our test. Please forgive us.” The King was very happy. He rewarded the Brahmin brothers with many precious gifts. Days passed by. One day, the King got
They were quarrelling non-stop. They wanted to settle a dispute. They were fighting over a necklace. One said, “This necklace is mine.” The other said, “Do not lie. This necklace is mine.” They continued arguing. The King got angry over this and told them to be quiet. Both said they had proof that the necklace
Birbal was the favourite not only of Akbar, but also of his subjects, because he would solve their problems quickly. Once, a merchant came to him. A theft had taken place and he thought one of his five servants must be the thief. “Let’s go to your house,” said Birbal. On the way, he broke