One day, king Krishnadeva Raya stepped out of the gates of his palace and found a man standing there. The man had a rabbit in his hands. On seeing the king he bowed respectfully and said, “I gambled in your name and won this rabbit. It belongs to you. Please accept it.”
“Give it to my poultry keeper,” said the king.
A few days later, the king saw the man standing outside the gates again. This time he had a cow with him. “I won this cow in your name, Maharaj,” he said after saluting the king, “It belongs to you.” The king was pleased, “Give it to my cowkeeper.” Some weeks later, the man was at the palace gates once again. “I lost 500 rupees while playing in your name, Maharaj,” said the man, “I have no money to pay.” The king realized he had made a mistake in accepting the man’s gifts on the previous occasions. Now he could not refuse to help him. He paid off his dues and warned the gambler never to play in his name again.
