Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Flowers For Akbar

One day Akbar was taking a walk in his Royal gardens with several courtiers. Many flowers were flowering at that time of season. A poet pointed out towards a beautiful flower and said, "Look Jahaanpanaah, how beautiful flower that is? No man can produce such a beautiful thing as this." Birbal was also there. He said, "I don't agree with this, sometimes man can make more beautiful things than this." Akbar said, "Oh no Birbal, you are talking nonsense. This flower is really very beautiful."
After a few days, Birbal presented Akbar a very skilled craftsman from Agra. He presented a beautiful carved marble bouquet of flowers. The Emperor was very happy to see it, and gave him one thousand gold coins.
Just then a boy came and presented the Emperor a beautiful bouquet of real flowers. The Emperor was very happy to see it too, so he gave a silver coin to the boy. Birbal said, "So the carving was more beautiful than the real thing."
Akbar understood that he had fallen in the hands of his witty minister once again.

Covering Head To Toe

Several courtiers were vying to be the Royal Advisor of Emperor Akbar. So one day, when they came to the court, they said to the Emperor, "We want to be your Royal Advisor." Akbar said, "No problem, but you will have to pass the test before you could be my Royal Advisor. And whoever would pass the test will be appointed my Advisor." They agreed.
The King unfastened his waist cloth and lay down on the floor, and asked the candidates to cover him with that cloth from head to toe. Now everybody tried to cover him, but in vain. If one wanted to cover the head, then feet remained uncovered, or if the feet were covered, then his head remained open.
Just then Birbal entered the court, the king asked Birbal also, if he could cover him with that cloth from head to toe. Birbal paused a moment, then asked the Emperor politely, "Huzoor, Could you pull up your knees a little bit?" The King did so, and Birbal could cover him from head to toe with that cloth.
Realizing that they failed the test, the courtiers left the court quietly and then they never thought about being the King's Advisor.

Birbal Visits Heaven

One day the court barber, who was very jealous with Birbal, plotted a plan against him. So when the King called him again to trim his beard, he went and started trimming his beard. He said, "Sir, last night I dreamed about your father." The King got interested, so he asked, "What did he say to you?"
"Sir, he said to me, that everything is good in paradise, but he feels a great absence of a good humorous man who can amuse him." The King thought and thought, but nobody else he could think of except Birbal who could perform this kind of duty very well. And, naturally, the only way to go to heaven was through death. For a moment, Akbar was very sad to lose such a good man, but thinking of his father, he made up his mind.
He summoned Birbal and said, "I think Birbal you love me very much and you can sacrifice anything for me." Birbal tried to understand his point but couldn't guess. He said, "You know Majesty, I do." "Then Birbal, please go to heaven to give company to my dear father." Birbal understood that this was a wicked plan of somebody to kill him. He said to Emperor politely, "I will do so, but I need a few days to prepare myself to go to heaven." The King said, "Certainly. You are giving me such a great favor, I allow you one week to prepare yourself."
Now Birbal was worried. He thought, somebody has planned very well and he could not escape from this plan. He thought and thought. And then he found a way. He dug a ditch near his house which would serve as his grave, and dug a tunnel too which would open in a room of his house. After doing this, he returned to the Imperial Court. He said, " I am ready, His Majesty, but there two conditions." Akbar was so happy to hear this that he forgot that Birbal could put some odd conditions to him. He asked, "What are those conditions? Tell me soon. I will try to fulfill them so that you can go to heaven to be with my dear father."
Birbal said, "His majesty, I wish to be buried near my house. And I want to be buried alive so that I can reach heaven alive to amuse your dear father." The King found this logical and agreed up on them immediately.
So Birbal was buried alive near his house. Of course he made his way to his house where he lived in confinement for six months. After six months, he came out of hiding with grown beard and shabby hair and asked the permission to appear in the Royal Court.
Looking at him Akbar cried, "Where have you been Birbal?" Birbal said, "Your Majesty, I was in Heaven with your dear father. I had a very good time there with your father. He was so happy with my services that he gave me special permission to return to Earth." Akbar was very anxious to know about his father, he asked, "Did he send any message for me?" Birbal said, "Yes Your Majesty, he said that very few barber can make it to go to Heaven, you can make out this from my grown beard and shabby hair, so he has asked to send your own barber to him immediately.

The Chinese Silk And Tailor

Once the Empress got a rare silk cloth piece as a gift from her Chinese counterparts. She called the Birbal and expressed her desire to get a beautiful dress stitched from the cloth. The Empress said, “Birbal, I’ve heard that tailors always steal some cloth from the cloth piece given to them for stitching. I’m not worried that a part of my cloth piece would be stolen. However, I don’t want that anyone other than me should wear the dress made from this cloth. I want you to make some arrangements so that the tailor can not steal from the cloth.”
Hearing this, Birbal said, “Begum Sahiba, my experience says that irrespective of whatever you do, the tailor will mange to steal a part of the cloth piece.” The Empress replied, “No, no! I don’t believe it. You call the royal tailor here and ask him to stitch my dress in the palace itself. Depute guards around his work place and then see how he manages to steal a sloth piece. I bet, he’ll not be able to do it.”
Birbal smiled and said,”Begum Sahiba, the tailors are very smart. Whatever you do, they are bound to steal a part of your cloth piece.” The Empress did not agree with him and took it as a challenge. The royal tailor was called and was ordered to work in the palace. He was told not to leave the palace until the work was finished.
The tailor came with all his essentials to stay in the palace premises. His work place was tightly observed by the royal guards. The tailor was not allowed to go out, not even to his house. Like this, ten days passed. The whole day, the tailor works on the extraordinary dress of the Empress.
One day, the tailor’s daughter came to see him. She said, “Father, please visit home today. Mother is remembering you a lot.” As the girl was not allowed inside, she remained standing out of the guarded room.
The tailor expressed his inability to visit home. But the daughter remained adamant. She kept insisting her father. Irritated be her repeated insistence, the angry tailor lifted his shoe and flung it towards her. He said, “Silly Girl! So many times, I have told you that I can’t come. Why don’t you listen?”
Seeing her father so much irritated, the little girl giggled out of amusement. She picked up the shoe, which was flung at her and ran away from there. Finally, the dress was ready after fifteen days. The empress was very happy to see it. She gave good reward to the tailor. Before leaving the palace, the tailor was thoroughly checked by the guards.
The empress was elated that her dress would be rare in the whole kingdom. One day, the empress was passing through the market with her royal cavalcade. Suddenly she noticed a woman wearing a blouse, which was made of the cloth similar to her rare dress.
Astonished to see this, the Empress immediately asked her guards to call the woman to her palace. When the woman came, the Empress asked her who she was. After enquiry it was found out that she was the wife of the royal tailor.
The Empress was angry as well as surprised. She called the tailor. The tailor was very much frightened. He went to Birbal and requested him to come along with him. Birbal felt pity and agreed to accompany him.
The empress was very angry, but Birbal cooled her down. He said, “Begum Sahiba, it’s not the fault of the tailor. The tailors are like this only. Please forgive him.” The Empress thought for a while and then said to the tailor. “I’ll forgive you if you reveal how did you manage to take the piece of the cloth out from the palace.
The tailor said, “Huzoor, when my daughter came to call me, I pretended to be very angry and threw my shoe towards her. I had suffered a small piece of cloth in the shoe. Before coming here, I had already briefed my daughter about it. So, when I flung the shoe towards her, she picked it and ran away from there. This way, the piece of cloth was brought out the palace.”
The tailor’s head bent down. As per her promise, the Empress forgave him and sent him back. She then turned towards Birbal and said, “Birbal, you were absolutely right. It’s impossible to prevent this lot from stealing the cloth.” Birbal smiled and went away from there.

The Pot Of Wisdom

Once the Empress pressurized the Emperor to appoint her brother Gulam Sheikh, as the ‘Wasir’. Succumbed to her pressure, the Emperor removed Birbal from the ‘Wasir’s’ post and appointed Gulam Sheikh in his place.
The king of Iran always envied the great Emperor Akbar, whose court was studded with wonderful gems. The king of Iran knew it very well that Birbal was unparallel to his brilliance. When the Iranish Emperor received the news of Birbal’s removal from the ‘Wasir’s’ post, he at once sent a messenger with a message. The messager was also carrying a few pots with him.
The messenger came to the court off Akbar and read the message, “I’ve heard a lot about your wise courtiers. I need few pots of wisdom for my own use. Please send the pots filled with wisdom. In case, it’s not there then you please send the empty pots to me”
The Emperor assigned the responsibility of solving the puzzle to Gulam Sheikh. Gulam Sheikh was totally perplexed with the message. He spend many sleepless nights but could not understand what he should do?
At last, Gulam Sheikh went to his sister, the Empress and said. “I’m tried of the Wasir’s responsibility. I don’t want this anymore.”
Gulam Sheikh accepted in front of his sister that he was unable to solve the puzzle, which went sent by the Iranish Emperor. The worried Empress asked herself, “What will happen, if the solution is not sent?”

Finally the Empress called Birbal and sought his help. After listening to the whole episode, Birbal took all the pots in his possession. He then called the royal gardener and asked him to sow few seeds of pumpkin in the garden. When the plants grew and small fruits came on the plants, Birbal gave the pots to the gardener and asked him to place a small fruit in each pot without plucking it from the plant. Birbal instructed the gardener to allow the pumpkin to grow inside the pots.
After a few months, the pumpkin grew into full size and ultimately filled the entire space of empty pots. Birbal then plucked the pumpkins from their plants. He called the royal messenger and asked him to take back the pots to the Iranian Emperor. He also sent a message with the pots, “As per your wish, we are sending a small amount of wisdom. Its filled in the pots. Please take it out with breaking the pots.”
The messenger reached Iran with the pots. He presented the pots to the Emperor and read the message. After listening to the message and looking at the pots, the Emperor murmured. “It seems, Birbal is reappointed as ‘Wazir’. It can’t be Gulam Sheikh’s wisdom.”
The messenger returned to the court of Akbar. He narrated the whole episode. When the Empress came to know about it, she at once told the Emperor to reappoint Birbal at ‘Wazir’s’ post.

The List of Fools

The Emperor was very fond of tall, handsome and agile horses. Once a merchant from Arabia came to sell his horses. He displayed a few very impressive horses to the king. The Emperor liked those horses and ordered for a good number of similar horses. He gave two lakh gold coins as an advance to the merchant.
The man was a fraud. He disappeared with the money and did not return for a long time. Time passed. One day a unique whim struck Akbar’s psyche. He said to Birbal affirmed and promised to bring the list after sometime.
After a week, Birbal called on the Emperor with a long list of fools and presented the paper to the Emperor. Akbar was happy that Birbal had accomplished his job in a very little time. However, when he gazed on the paper, he was raged to read his own name on the top of it. “What’s this Birbal?” the Emperor roared. “How dare you put my name in this category?”
“I beg your pardon. Huzoor! You’re a justice loving person. Please judge your act regarding giving the advance to a stranger and then tell me, shouldn’t I keep you in this list?” asked Birbal with folded hands. The Emperor calmed down little and argued, “Birbal, assume that the man comes with the horses. Then what will you do?”
“I will immediately remove your name and put his name at your place.” promptly replied Birbal, the wittiest of all!

The Richman's Portrait

One day Birbal saw the court’s artist quite worried. Birbal personally knew the artist. He was a humble gentleman. Birbal enquired with the artist. “You are looking gloomy. What’s the cause?”
The artist said, “Sir, I’m really worried. One big businessman is after ruining my reputation, which I have earned till now.” “What has happened?” enquired Birbal.
“Huzoor, one day I met the businessman in some party. There he was challenging that no artist could portray him perfectly. Hearing this, I accepted his challenge and fixed up the time with him for drawing his portrait. A few days latter when I finished the portrait, I visited the rich man’s house and showed the portrait to him. But seeing the portrait, he screamed – You have portrayed me in beard! I tried to convince him that at the time of portrait making, he was possessing beard. But he did not listen to me at all.”
The artist was in tears. Birbal consoled him and enquired further. The artist said, “Sir, then I humbly asked him to give me one more chance to prove my deftness. He agreed. After a few days I visited his house with a new portrait, I was quiet confident this time. But when I saw him he was cleaned shaved man. As I feared, he shouted – “this can’t be my picture. This picture is showing moustache, whereas I don’t possess it. It I tried to convince him that it was not my fault. However, he declared that I failed to fulfil my challenge. I asked for one more chance but he tricked me the next time too. Only after portraying him for five times, I could understand that his motive was evil and wanted to let me down.
The artist then showed Birbal all the five portraits. All the portraits were indeed nice ones. Birbal was kind hearted man, he decided to help the artist. He briefed the artist and accompanied him up to the rich man’s house. Birbal remained outside the house, whereas the artist entered inside.
As soon as the rich man saw the artist, he said mockingly, “O great artist! You are here again! It seems, you have come again with some of your rubbish item.” The artist humbly replied, “Sir, I’m sure, what I’ve brought today will surely match with your face.”
Saying so, he passed on a framed piece to him. The rich man held it in his hand and looked at it. But it was just a mirror.
He screamed angrily, “What a silly joke it is? You’ve brought just a mirror!” Then entered Birbal, who was standing outside and was listening to their conversation.
Birbal said, “Are you not happy with the mirror which is shoeing your exact picture? I think only mirror can depict your present face. You don’t need a portrait but a mirror, my friend.”
The rich man was very much ashamed to see and hear Birbal. He begged his pardon for his folly and paid the artist well.

Empress Tricked

The Empress was very fond of her dear brother. She wanted the prestigious post of Wazir for her brother. However, the Wazir’s post was occupied by Birbal. The Empress was well aware that Birbal was a brilliant courtier and was apple of Akbar’s eye. Nevertheless, she decided to plead with the Emperor for her brother. In the evening, when Akbar returned to the palace, the empress said, “Jahanpanah my brother is an able person. Besides this, he is your relative. He must get prestigious post of Wazir.”

The Emperor exclaimed, “Begum, Wazir’s post requires extraordinary intelligence and vast administrative experience. Your brother is novice in this field. Besides this there in no negative reason to remove Birbal.” The Empress was adamant. She sternely replied, “Jahanpanah, if there is no reason, then get some excuse for his removal. Give him some work which he could not do.”
The puzzled Emperor asked, “Cite me some job for him which he probably could not do.”

Hmm! “Begum thought for some time and then said, “Jahanpanah, tomorrow evening while walking in the palace garden, you ask Birbal to call me from my palace. He will never succeed in his task. And then there will be at least one reason for his removal.”

The Emperor agreed. The Empress was very much sure that Birbal would certainly fail this time, as he could not force her to appear in the palace garden.

On the next day when Akbar was strolling in the garden, Birbal accompanied him as per the practice. The Emperor pretended to be disturbed. Birbal asked Akbar the reason for his worry. Akbar said, “Birbal, the Empress has displeased with me and refuses to talk. You know how much I love her here.”

Birbal agreed and left from there. He at once approached Begum in the palace. Begum was waiting for his arrival. Birbal said, “Begum Sahiba, the Emperor is in the palace garden. He wanted you there –!“ Hardly has he completed his sentence a messenger entered the chamber and whispered something in the ear of Birbal. A few whispering words fell in the ears of begum, “……..very beautiful………No ………no! no need to come……..!” the messenger then left. Birbal then turned towards begum and said. “Begum Sahiba, sorry for the trouble, now you are no more required there.”

Birbal was gone but the whispering sound was still resounding in the ear of Begum. “about whom the messenger was saying - -, it seems a beautiful maiden - - but what she is doing in the garden? It seems because of her Emperor stopped me from coming there ----- !” thought the Empress who was badly disturbed and suspicious. She kept on thinking for a long time. At last unable to bear her distress and envy, she rushed towards the garden. When she reached there, she found Akbar alone. Seeing her there, the Emperor asked, “Begum, you had vowed to force Birbal fail this time. But it seems the whole thing turned in the favour of Birbal.”

The Empress was ashamed, “ I have been fooled by Birbal. Once again Birbal succeeded. However, I accept his wisdom and take back my words. I will never pressurize you to remove Birbal from his post as he is the most suitable person for it.”

The Emperor smiled and praised for Birbal in his heart.

The Thief And Growing Stick

Birbal was one of the nine gems in the court of emperor Akbar. He was respected by everyone for his intelligence and wit. Whenever Akbar was in difficulty, he called Birbal for help.
Akbar was very fond of jewellery. He had many rings of gold, pearls and diamonds. His favourite ring was the one with a large diamond at the centre and pearls around.
At the emperor’s palace, there were eight servants who looked after his clothes and jewellery. They also helped him get ready to go to the court. No one else was allowed to enter his room.
One day, the Emperor wanted to wear his favourite ring. But it was missing. Akbar ordered a search for the ring. But no one could find it.
Akbar then asked his men to call Birbal. When Birbal came, he told him about the robbery and asked for help. Birbal called all the eight servants who were in charge of the Emperor’s room.
He gave each of them a stick of the same size and asked them to come back with it the next day. He told them that the stick of the person who had stolen the ring would become longer by one inch that night.
The next morning, the eight servants stood in a line with their sticks. Birbal caught hold of one of them and took him to Akbar.
The man fell at Akbar’s feet and admitted that he had stolen the ring.
The king was surprised. He asked Birbal how he found out the culprit. Birbal said the thief had cut his stick by an inch fearing that it would grow

Birbal And The Astrologer

As usual a lot of people were present in Akbar's durbar.
A famous astrologer had come from a far away country.
He was talking about the Solar System and the Earth's shape.
At one point Akbar said, "If the earth is round, and if one travel strait towards one direction, he will come back to the same spot from where he has started the journey."
"Theoretically it is correct", said the astrologer.
"Why not in real life?", asked the king.
"One has to cross oceans, mountains and forests to keep the path straight." the astrologer said.
"Sail through the oceans, make tunnels in the mountains and use elephants to cross the forests." Akbar found the solution.
"Still it is impossible" said the astrologer.
"Why?" Asked Akbar.
"It may take years to complete the whole journey" said the astrologer
"Years? How many?" asked Akbar.
"I don't know. May be a hundred years or more" said the astrologer
"Don't worry I will ask my ministers. They have an answer for everything" Akbar looked at the ministers.
"Impossible to calculate"
"Around 25 years"
"Fifty years or less"
"80 days"
"Why Birbal, you haven't uttered a word" the king showed his surprise at Birbal's silence.
"I was just calculating the time required to go round the earth" explained Birbal.
"And did you get the answer?" asked the king.
"Sure." Said Birbal "It will take just one day."
"Just one day! Birbal it is Impossible! Even it will take more than one day to cross our country." Said Akbar.
"It is possible. Provided you travel at the speed of the Sun" said Birbal with a smile.

The Wicked Barber

As we all know, Birbal was not only Emperor Akbar's favourite minister but also a minister dearly loved by most of the commoners, because of his ready wit and wisdom. People used to come to him from far and wide for advise on personal matters too.
However, there was a group of ministers that were jealous of his growing popularity and disliked him intensely.  They outwardly showered him with praise and compliments, but on the inside they began to hatch a plot to kill him.
 
One day they approached the king's barber with a plan. As the barber was extremely close to the king, they asked him to help them get rid of Birbal permanently. And of course, they promised him a huge sum of money in return. The wicked barber readily agreed.
The next time the king required his services, the barber started a conversation about the emperor's father who he also used to serve. He sang praises of his fine, silky-smooth hair. And then as an afterthought he asked the king that as he was enjoying such great prosperity, had he made an attempt to do anything for the welfare of his ancestors?
The king was furious at such impertinent stupidity and told the barber that it was not possible to do anything because they were already dead. The barber mentioned that he knew of a magician who could come of help. The magician could send a person up to heaven to enquire about his father's welfare. But of course this person would have to be chosen carefully; he would have to be intelligent enough to follow the magicians instructions as well as make on-the-spot decisions. He must be wise, intelligent and responsible. The barber then suggested the best person for the job - the wisest of all ministers, Birbal.  
The king was very excited about hearing from his dead father and asked the barber to go ahead and make the arrangements immediately. He asked him what was needed to be done. The barber explained that they would take Birbal in a procession to the burial grounds and light a pyre. The magician would then chant some 'mantras' as Birbal would ascend to the heavens through the smoke. The chantings would help protect Birbal from the fire.
The king happily informed Birbal of this plan. Birbal said that he thought it a brilliant idea and wanted to know the brain behind it. When learning that it was the barber's idea, he agreed to go to heaven on condition that he be given a large some of money for the long journey as well as one month's time to settle his family so that they had no trouble while he was gone. The king agreed to both conditions.
In the duration of this month, he got a few trustworthy men to build a tunnel from the funeral grounds to his house. And on the day of the ascension, after the pyre had been lit, Birbal escaped through the concealed door of the tunnel. He disappeared in to his house where he hid for a few months while his hair and beard grew long and unruly.
In the meantime his enemies were rejoicing as they thought that they had seen the last of Birbal.
Then one day after many, many months Birbal arrived at the palace with news of the king's father. The king was extremely pleased to see him and ready with a barrage of questions. Birbal told the king that his father was in the best of spirits and had been provided with all the comforts except one.
The king wanted to know what was lacking because now he thought he had found a way to send things and people to heaven. Birbal answered that there were no barbers in heaven, which is why even he was forced to grow his own beard. He said that his father had asked for a good barber. 
So the king decided to send his own barber to serve his father in heaven. He called both the barber and the magician to prepare to send him to heaven. The barber could say absolutely nothing in his own defence as he was caught in his own trap. And once the pyre was lit he died on the spot.
Nobody dared to conspire against Birbal again.

The Miser And Poet

In the town of Agra there lived a rich businessman. But he was also quite a miser. Various people used to flock outside his house everyday hoping for some kind of generosity, but they always had to return home disappointed. He used to ward them off with false promises and then never live up to his word.
Then one day, a poet named Raidas arrived at his house and said that he wanted to read out his poems to the rich man. As the rich man was very fond of poetry, he welcomed him in with open arms. Raidas started to recite all his poems one by one. The rich man was very pleased and especially so when he heard the poem that Raidas had written on him, because he had been compared with 'Kubera', the god of wealth. In those days it was a custom for rich men and kings to show their appreciation through a reward or a gift, as that was the only means of earning that a poor poet possessed. So the rich man promised Raidas some gifts and asked him to come and collect them the next day. Raidas was pleased. 
The next morning when he arrived at the house, the rich man pretended that he had never laid eyes on him before. When Raidas reminded him of his promise, he said that although Raidas was a good poet he understood very little of human nature. And that if rich businessman truly wanted to reward him, he would have done so the very same night.  Raidas had been offered a reward not because he was really pleased or impressed, but to simply encourage him.
Raidas was extremely upset, but as there was nothing that he could do, he quietly left the house. On his way home he saw Birbal riding a horse. So he stopped him and asked for his help after narrating the whole incident. Birbal took him to his own house in order to come up with a plan. After giving it some thought he asked Raidas to go to a friend's house with five gold coins and request the friend to plan a dinner on the coming full moon night, where the rich man would also be invited. Birbal then asked Raidas to relax and leave the rest to him.
Raidas had one trustworthy friend whose name was Mayadas. So he went up to him and told him the plan.. The next day, Mayadas went to the rich man's house and invited him for dinner.  The dinner has been planned for the coming full moon night. He said that he intended to serve his guests in vessels of gold, which the guests would get to take home after the meal. The rich man was thrilled to hear this and jumped at the offer.
After sunset on the full moon night, the rich man arrived at Mayadas' house and was surprised to see no other guests there but Raidas. Anyhow, they welcomed him in and started a polite conversation. The rich man had come on an empty stomach and so was getting hungrier by the minute. Raidas and Mayadas were quite full as they had eaten just before the rich man's arrival.
Finally at midnight the rich man could bear his hunger no longer and asked Mayadas to serve the food. Mayadas sounded extremely surprised when he asked him what food was he talking about. The rich man tried to remind him that he had been invited for dinner. At this point Raidas asked him for proof of the invitation. The rich man had no answer. Then Mayadas told him that he had just invited him to please him and had not really meant it. He then went on to say that even though they did not do anything good for other people they also would never try to hurt another human being. He asked the rich man not to feel bad. 
At that point Birbal walked into the room and reminded the rich man of the same treatment that he had himself meted out to Raidas. The rich man realised his mistake and begged for forgiveness. He said that Raidas was a good poet and had not asked him for any reward. He himself had promised to give him some gifts and then cheated him out of them. To make up for his mistake he took out the necklace that he was wearing and gifted it to Raidas. Then they all sat down to eat a happy meal.
Raidas was all praise for Birbal and thanked him profusely. Emperor Akbar also invited him to his court and honoured him, all thanks to Birbal.

The Courtier's Challenge

King Akbar was very fond of Birbal. This made a certain courtier very jealous. Now this courtier always wanted to be chief minister, but this was not possible as Birbal filled that position.
One day Akbar praised Birbal in front of the courtier. This made the courtier very angry and he said that the king praised Birbal unjustly and if Birbal could answer three of his questions, he would accept the fact that Birbal was intelligent. Akbar always wanting to test Birbals wit readily agreed. 
The three questions were 1. How many stars are there in the sky 2. Where is the centre of the Earth and 3. How many men and how many women are there in the world.
Immediately Akbar asked Birbal the three questions and informed him that if he could not answer them, he would have to resign as chief minister.
To answer the first question, Birbal brought a hairy sheep and said "There are as many stars in the sky as there is hair on the sheep's body. My friend the courtier is welcome to count them if he likes."
To answer the second question, Birbal drew a couple of lines on the floor and bore an iron rod in it and said "This is the centre of the Earth, the courtier may measure it himself if he has any doubts."
In answer to the third question, Birbal said "Counting the exact number of men and women in the world would be a problem as there are some specimens like our courtier friend here who cannot easily be classified as either. Therefore if all people like him are killed, then and only then can one count the exact number."

Panditji

One day a Brahmin by the name of Sevaram asked Birbal for help. He said that his forefathers were great Sanskrit scholars and that people used to respectfully refer to them as Panditji. He said that he had no money nor need for wealth, he was content living a simple life.  But he had just one wish. He wished people would refer to him as Panditji too. He asked Birbal how he could achieve this.
Birbal said that the task was fairly simple. If the Brahmin followed his advice word for word, this task could be achieved. Birbal advised the Brahmin to shout at anyone who would call him Panditji from now on.
Now the children who lived on the same street as the Brahmin did not like him since he scolded them often. They were just waiting for an opportunity to get back at him. Birbal told the children that the Brahmin would get really irritated if they would start calling him Panditji. The children started calling him Panditji and the Brahmin as advised by Birbal started shouting at them. The children spread the word to all the other children in the neighborhood that Sevaram hated being called Panditji, so they in turn all started calling him Panditji. After a while, Sevaram got tired of scolding them but everyone already was used to calling him Panditji. Hence the game was over but the name stuck.

Number Of Crows

One day Emperor Akbar and Birbal were taking a walk in the palace gardens.  It was a nice summer morning and there were plenty of crows happily playing around the pond.  While watching the crows, a question came into Akbar's head.  He wondered how many crows were there in his kingdom
Since Birbal was accompanying him, he asked Birbal this question.  After a moment's thought, Birbal replied, "There are ninety-five thousand four hundred and sixty-three crows in the Kingdom". 
Amazed by his quick response, Akbar tried to test him again, "What if there are more crows than you answered?"  Without hesitating Birbal replied, "If there are more crows than my answer, then some crows are visiting from other neighboring kingdoms".   "And what if there are less crows", Akbar asked.  "Then some crows from our kingdom have gone on holidays to other places".

Explaining The Dream

One night, Emperor Akbar dreamt that he had lost all his teeth, except one. The next morning he invited all the astrologers of his kingdom to interpret this dream.
After a long discussion, the astrologers prophesized that all his relatives would die before him.
Akbar was very upset by this interpretation and so sent away all the astrologers without any reward.
Later that day, Birbal  entered the court. Akbar related his dream and asked him to interpret it. After thinking for a while Birbal replied that the Emperor would live a longer & more fulfilled life than any of his relatives.
Akbar was pleased with Birbal's explanation and rewarded him handsomely.

The Cock And Hen

Since Birbal always outwitted Akbar, Akbar thought of a plan to make Birbal look like a fool. He gave one egg to each of his ministers before Birbal reached the court one morning.
So when Birbal arrived, the king narrated a dream he had had the previous night saying that he would be able to judge the honesty of his ministers if they were able to bring back an egg from the royal garden pond.
So, Akbar asked all his courtiers to go to the pond, one at a time and return with an egg. So, one by one, all his ministers went to the pond and returned with the egg which he had previously given them.
Then it was Birbal's turn. He jumped into the pond and could find no eggs. He finally realized that the King was trying to play a trick on him. So he entered the court crowing like a cock.
The Emperor asked him to stop making that irritating noise and then asked him for the egg.
Birbal smiled and replied that only hens lay eggs, and as he was a cock, he could not produce an egg.
Everyone laughed loudly and the King realized that Birbal could never be easily fooled

Three Questions

Emperor Akbar's court was famous for its witty question and answer sessions.
On one of these occasions, the Emperor asked Birbal if there was anything that the sun and the moon could not see. Birbal's reply was 'darkness'. Akbar was pleased.
Next, he asked what was the difference between a truth and a lie. To which Birbal replied that it was the distance between the ears and the eyes because what you see with your eyes is true, but what you hear with your ears is generally false. Akbar was satisfied.
Lastly, Emperor Akbar drew a line on the floor and asked Birbal to shorten it without wiping out the ends.
Birbal drew a longer line below the line drawn by Akbar and remarked that though he had not rubbed off the original line he had definitely succeeded in making it shorter.

The Donkey's Clothes

Once Akbar went to the river with his two sons and wise Minister Birbal. On the bank of the river, Akbar and his two sons took off their clothes and asked Birbal to take care of them while they took bath in the river.
Birbal was waiting for them to come out of the river. All the clothes were on his shoulder. Looking at Birbal standing like this, Akbar felt like teasing him, so he said to him, "Birbal, you look like as if you are carrying a washerman's donkey load."
Birbal quickly retorted, "Sir, Washerman's donkey carries only one donkey's load, I am carrying three donkey's load." Akbar was speechless.

The Saint In Disguise

One day, when Akbar and Birbal were in discussions, Birbal happened to pass a harmless comment about Akbar's sense of humour.  But Emperor Akbar was in a foul mood and took great offense to this remark. He asked Birbal, his court-jester, friend and confidant, to not only leave the palace but also to leave the walls of the city of Agra.  Birbal was terribly hurt at being banished. 
A couple of days later, Akbar began to miss his best friend.  He regretted his earlier decision of banishing him from the courts. He just could not do without Birbal and so sent out a search party to look for him. But Birbal had left town without letting anybody know of his destination.  The soldiers searched high and low but were unable to find him anywhere. 
Then one day a wise saint came to visit the palace accompanied by two of his disciples.  The disciples claimed that their teacher was the wisest man to walk the earth.  Since Akbar was missing Birbal terribly he thought it would be a good idea to have a wise man that could keep him company. But he decided that he would first test the holy man's wisdom.
The saint had bright sparkling eyes, a thick beard and long hair. The next day, when they came to visit the court Akbar informed the holy man that since he was the wisest man on earth, he would like to test him. All his ministers would put forward a question and if his answers were satisfactory he would be made a minister. But if he could not, then he would be beheaded. The saint answered that he had never claimed to be the wisest man on earth, even though other people seemed to think so. Nor was he eager to display his cleverness but as he enjoyed answering questions, he was ready for the test.
One of the ministers, Raja Todarmal, began the round of questioning. He asked "Who is a man's best friend on earth?"  To which the wise saint replied, "His own good sense". Next Faizi asked which was the most superior thing on earth? "Knowledge", answered the saint. "Which is the deepest trench in the world?", asked Abdul Fazal. And the saint's answer was "a woman's heart". "What is that which cannot be regained after it is lost?" questioned another courtier and the reply he received was 'life'. "What is undying in music" asked the court musician Tansen. The wise saint replied that it was the "notes". And then he asked "which is the sweetest and most melodious voice at night -time? And the answer he received was "the voice that prays to God." 
Maharaj Mansingh of Jaipur, who was a guest at the palace asked, "what travels more speedily than the wind?" the saint replied that it was "man's thought". He then asked, "which was the sweetest thing on earth?" and the saint said that it was "a baby's smile". 
Emperor Akbar and all his courtiers were very impressed with his answers, but wanted to test the saint himself. Firstly he asked what were the necessary requirements to rule over a kingdom, for which he was answered 'cleverness'. Then he asked what was the gravest enemy of a king. The saint replied that it was 'selfishness'.  The emperor was pleased and offered the saint a seat of honour and asked him whether he could perform any miracles. The saint said that he could manifest any person the king wished to meet. Akbar was thrilled and immediately asked to meet his minister and best friend Birbal. 
The saint simply pulled off his artificial beard and hair much to the surprise of the other courtiers. Akbar was stunned and could not believe his eyes. He stepped down to embrace the saint because he was none other than Birbal.
Akbar had tears in his eyes as he told Birbal that he had suspected it to be him and had therefore asked him whether he could perform miracles. He showered Birbal with many valuable gifts to show him how happy he was at his return.
 

Camel's Neck

One fine morning when Akbar was especially pleased with Birbal, as a gesture of appreciation, he promised to reward him with many valuable and beautiful gifts.
However, many days passed, and still there was no sign of even one gift. Birbal was quite disappointed with the king. Then one day, when Akbar was strolling down the banks of River Yamuna with his ever faithful Birbal at his side, he happened to notice a camel passing by. He asked Birbal why the neck of the camel was crooked. Birbal thought for a second and promptly replied that it might be because the camel may have forgotten to honour a promise. The holy books mention that those who break their word get punished with a crooked neck; perhaps that was the reason for the camel's crooked neck.
Akbar soon realised his folly of making a promise to Birbal for gifts and not honouring it.  He was ashamed of himself. As soon as they returned to the palace he immediately gave Birbal his justly deserved reward. As you can see, Birbal always managed to get what he wanted without directly asking for it.

The Drop Of Perfume

Once, the Emperor received the gift of a rare perfume. As he opened the bottle, a drop of perfume fell to the floor. Akbar instinctively moved to retrieve it by wiping the floor with his finger. As he looked up he noticed a bemused look on Birbal’s face… his eyes seemed to mock the Emperor for being scrounging.
To change Birbal’s perception, Akbar summoned him the next morning to his bath. He asked his attendants to fill up the bathtub with the best of perfumes. Akbar sought to show Birbal that as Emperor he could afford to waste as much perfume, as he wanted. Birbal when asked to react said : "An entire tub full cannot retrieve what the drop took way!"
Birbal sought to tell the Emperor that his earlier instinctive action (that exhibited miserliness) could not be undone by an intentional action (aimed at big-heartedness). Our character is determined by our reactions, not by forced posturing. It is better to be transparent then wear favourable masks. In fact every little action and reaction, every spoken word and emerging thought reflects our true self!

The Original King

The King of Iran had heard that Birbal was one of the wisest men in the East and desirous of meeting him sent him an invitation to visit his country. In due course, Birbal arrived in Iran.
When he entered the palace he was flabbergasted to find not one but six kings seated there.
All looked alike. All were dressed in kingly robes. Who was the real king?
The very next moment he got his answer. Confidently, he approached the king and bowed to him.
"But how did you identify me?" the king asked, puzzled.
Birbal smiled and explained: "The false kings were all looking at you, while you yourself looked straight ahead. Even in regal robes, the common people will always look to their king for support."
Overjoyed, the king embraced Birbal and showered him with gifts.

The Spear Challenge

A man who made spears and shields once came to Akbar's court.
"Your Majesty, nobody can make shields and spears to equal mine," he said. "My shields are so strong that nothing can pierce them and my spears are so sharp that there's nothing they cannot pierce."
"I can prove you wrong on one count certainly," said Birbal suddenly.
"Impossible!" declared the man.
"Hold up one of your shields and I will pierce it with one of your spears," said Birbal with a smile.

The Sadhu

Akbar came to the throne when he was only thirteen years old. In the years that followed, he built on of the greatest empires of his time. He lived in unimaginable splendor. He was surrounded by courtiers who agreed with every word he said, who flattered him and treated him as if he were a god. Perhaps it was not surprising that Emperor Akbar was sometimes arrogant and behaved as if the whole world belonged to him.
One day, Birbal decided to make the great emperor stop and think about life.
That evening as the emperor was going towards his palace, he noticed a Sadhu lying in the centre of his garden. He could not believe his eyes. A strange Sadhu, in ragged clothes, right in the middle of the palace garden? The guards would have to be punished for this, thought the emperor furiously as he walked over to that Sadhu and prodded him with the tip of his embroidered slipper.
"Here, fellow!" he cried. "What are you doing here? Get up and go away at once!"
That Sadhu opened his eyes. Then he sat up slowly. "Huzoor," he said in a sleepy voice. "Is this your garden, then?"
"Yes!" cried the Emperor. "This garden those rose bushes, the fountain beyond that, the courtyard, the palace, this fort, this empire, it all belongs to me!"
Slowly that Sadhu stood up. "And the river, Huzoor? And the city? And this country?"
"Yes, yes, it's all mine", said the emperor. "Now get out!"
"Ah", said the Sadhu. "And before you, Huzoor. Who did the garden and fort and city belong to then?"
"My father, of course", said the emperor. In spite of his irritation, he was beginning to get interested in the Sadhu's questions. He loved philosophical discussions and he could tell, from his manner of speaking, that the Sadhu was a learned man.
"And who was here before him?" the Sadhu asked quietly.
"His father, my father's father, as you know."
"Ah", said the Sadhu. So this garden, those rose bushes, the palace and the fort all this has only belonged to you for your lifetime. Before that they belonged to your father, am I right? And after yours time they will belong to your son, and then to his son?
"Yes", said the Emperor Akbar wonderingly.
"So each one stays here for a time and then goes on his ways?"
"Yes."
"Like a dharmashala?" the Sadhu asked. "No one owns a dharmashala. Or the shade of a tree on the side of a road. We stop and rest for a while and then go on. And someone has always been there before us and someone will always come after we have gone. Is that not so?"
"It is", Emperor Akbar quietly.
"So your garden, your palace, your fort, your empire... these are only places you will stay in for a time, for the span of your lifetime. When you die, they will no longer belong to you. You will go, leaving them in the possession of someone else, just as your father did and his father before him."
Emperor Akbar nodded. "The whole world is a dharmashala", he said slowly, thinking very hard. "In which we mortals rest awhile. That's what you are telling me, isn't it? Nothing on this earth can ever belong to a single person, because each person is only passing through the earth and must die one day?"
The Sadhu nodded solemnly. Then, bowing to the ground, he removed his white beard and saffron turban and his voice changed. "Jahanpanah, forgive me!" he said, in his normal voice. "It was my way of asking you to think about..."
"Birbal, oh, Birbal!" the emperor exclaimed. "You are wiser than any philosopher. Come, come at once to the royal chamber and let us discuss this further. Even emperors are but wayfarers on the path of life, it is clear!"

The Musical Genius

Famous musicians once gathered at Akbar's court for a competition.
The one who could capture a bull's interest was to be declared the winner.

One by one, they played the most heavenly music but the bull paid no attention.

Then Birbal took the stage. His music sounded like the droning of mosquitoes and the mooing of cows.
 
ThBut to everyone's amazement the bull suddenly became alert and began to move in a lively manner.
Akbar declared Birbal the winner

The Loyal Gardener

One day the Emperor Akbar stumbled on a rock in his garden. He was in a foul mood that day and the accident made him so angry that he ordered the gardener’s arrest and execution.
The next day when the gardener was asked what his last wish was before he was hanged, he requested an audience with the emperor.
This wish was granted, but when the man neared the throne he loudly cleared his throat and spat at the emperor’s feet.
The emperor was taken aback and demanded to know why he had done such a thing. The gardener had acted on Birbal’s advice and now Birbal stepped forward in the man’s defence.
"Your Majesty," he said, "there could be no person more loyal to you than this unfortunate man. Fearing that people would say you hanged him for a trifle, he has gone out of his way to give you a genuine reason for hanging him."
The emperor, realizing that he had been about to do a great injustice, set the man free.

The Marriage Pocession

One day Emperor Akbar was inspecting the law and order situation in the kingdom. One of his ministers, who was jealous of Raja Birbal, complained that the Emperor gave importance only to Birbal's suggestions and all the other ministers were ignored.
Akbar wanted the minister to know how wise Birbal was.
There was a marriage procession going on.
The Emperor ordered the minister to enquire whose marriage it was. The minister found out and walked towards the Emperor wearing a proud expression on his face.
Then the king called Birbal and asked him too to enquire whose marriage was going on. When Birbal returned, Akbar asked the minister "Where are the couple going?" The minister said that the king had only asked him to enquire whose marriage was going on.
Then Akbar asked Birbal the same question. "O My Majesty! They are going to the city of Allahabad," replied Raja Birbal. Now the King turned towards the minister and said, "Now do you understand why Birbal is more important to me? It is not enough if you complete a task. You have to use your intelligence to do a little more work.’ The minister’s face fell. He had learnt the importance of being Birbal, the hard way.

Justice Or Gold Coin?

One day Emperor Akbar asked Birbal what he would choose if he were given a choice between justice and a gold coin.
“The gold coin,” said Birbal.
Akbar was taken aback.
“You would prefer a gold coin to justice?” he asked, incredulously.
“Yes,” said Birbal.
The other courtiers were amazed by Birbal’s display of idiocy.
For years they had been trying to discredit Birbal in the emperor’s eyes but without success and now the man had gone and done it himself! They could not believe their good fortune.
“I would have been dismayed if even the lowliest of my servants had said this,” continued the emperor. “But coming from you it’s . . . it’s shocking - and sad. I did not know you were so debased!”

“One asks for what one does not have, Your Majesty!” said Birbal, quietly. “You have seen to it that in our country justice is available to everybody. So as justice is already available to me and as I’m always short of money I said I would choose the gold coin.”
The emperor was so pleased with Birbal’s reply that he gave him not one but a thousand gold coins.

The Blind Saint

There lived a blind saint in an ashram in the kingdom of Emperor Akbar.
He was believed to prophecy the future correctly.
Once he had a visitor who had come to treat their niece. The child's parents were killed in front of the girl's eyes. Once she saw the saint, she started to scream loudly saying that that saint was the culprit.
Angered by the girl's words, the saint demanded the couple to get away with their child.
The whole day the girl cried which made the couple to realize that the girl was not lying.
Therefore, they decided to seek the help of Birbal.
Birbal consoled them and asked them to wait at the Emperor's assembly. Birbal had invited the saint to Akbar's court too.
Then in front of all the ministers he drew a sword and neared the saint to kill him. The saint in bewilderment immediately drew another sword and began to fight. Thus by this act of the saint it was proved that he wasn’t blind.
Therefore, Akbar demanded to hang the culprit and rewarded the girl for her bravery for telling the truth even at the critical situation.

Number of Bangles

One day Akbar said to Birbal: "Can you tell me how many bangles your wife wears?"
Birbal said he could not.
"You cannot?" exclaimed Akbar. "You see her hands every day while she serves you food. Yet you do not know how many bangles she has on her hands? How is that?"
"Let us go down to the garden, Your Majesty," said Birbal, "and I'll tell you."
They went down the small staircase that led to the garden. Then Birbal turned to the emperor: "Your Majesty," he said, "You go up and down this staircase every day. Can you tell me how many steps there are in the staircase?"
The emperor grinned sheepishly and quickly changed the subject.

Birbal - The Painter

Once Akbar told Birbal 'Birbal, make me a painting. Use imagination in it.
To which the reply was 'But hoozoor, I am a minister, how can I possibly paint?’
The king was angry and said 'If I don’t get a good painting by one week then you shall be hanged!’
The clever Birbal had an idea.
After one week, he went to the court and with him he carried a covered frame.
Akbar was happy to see that Birbal had obeyed him, until he opened the cover. The courtiers rushed to see what was wrong. What they saw made them feel very happy.
At last, they would not see Birbal in court! The painting was nothing but ground and sky. There were a few specs of green on the ground.
The Emperor, angrily, told Birbal 'what is this?' To which the reply was 'A cow eating grass hoozoor!’
Akbar said 'where is the cow and grass?' and Birbal told 'I used my imagination. The cow ate the grass and returned to its shed!'

Noble Beggar

Emperor Akbar asked Birbal if it was possible for a man to be the lowest and the noblest t the same time.
"It is possible," said Birbal.
"Then bring me such a person," said the emperor.
Birbal went out and returned with a beggar.
"He is the lowest among your subjects," he said, presenting him to Akbar.
"That might be true," said Akbar. "But I don't see how he can be the noblest."
"He has been given the honor of an audience with the emperor," said Birbal. "That makes him the noblest among beggars."

List Of Blind People

Once King Akbar questioned Birbal if he knows the number of blind citizens of their kingdom.
Raja Birbal had requested Akbar to give him a week’s time.
The next day Raja Birbal was found to be mending shoes in the town market. People were astonished to see Birbal doing such work. Many of them started to question "Birbal!! What are you doing?"
Once when he was asked this question by someone he started writing something. It continued for a week when on the 7th day King Akbar himself asked Birbal the same question.
Giving him no answer, Birbal reported at the court the next day and handed over a note to King Akbar. Akbar read the note when he found that it was the big list of people who were blind.
Emperor Akbar was stunned when he found his own name in the list. Angered by this, Akbar asked Birbal the reason for writing his name in the list.
Birbal said "O! My majesty! Like all other people you also saw me mending the slippers but you still asked me what I was doing. Therefore I had to include your name too."
Akbar started laughing at this and everyone enjoyed Birbal's sense of humor.

Just One Question

One Day a scholar came to the court of Emperor Akbar and challenged Birbal to answer his questions and thus prove that he was as clever as people said he was.
He asked Birbal: "Would you prefer to answer a hundred easy questions or just a single difficult one?"
Both the emperor and Birbal had had a difficult day and were impatient to leave.
"Ask me one difficult question," sad Birbal.
"Well, then, tell me," said the man, "which came first into the world, the chicken or the egg?"
"The chicken," replied Birbal.
"How do you know?" asked the scholar, a note of triumph in his voice.
"We had agreed you would ask only one question and you have already asked it" said Birbal and he and the emperor walked away leaving the scholar gaping.

The Lunch Joke

Birbal had been invited to lunch by a rich man.
Birbal went to the man's house and found him in a hall full of people. His host greeted him warmly.
"I did not know there would be so many guests," said Birbal who hated large gatherings.
"They are not guests," said the man. "They are my employees, all except one man. He is the only other guest here beside you."
Then a crafty look came on the man's face.
"Can you tell me which of them is the guest?" he asked.
"Maybe I could," said Birbal. "Talk to them as I observe them. Tell them a joke or something."
The man told a joke that Birbal thought was perhaps the worst he had heard in a long time. When he finished everyone laughed uproariously.
"Well," said the rich man. "I've told my joke. Now tell me who my other guest is."
Birbal pointed out the man to him.
"How did you know?" asked his host, amazed.
"Employees tend to laugh at any joke told by their employers," explained Birbal. "When I saw that this man was the only one not laughing at your joke, and in fact, looked positively bored, I at once knew he was your other guest.

Half The Reward

Mahesh Das was a citizen in the kingdom of Akbar. He was an intelligent young man.
Once when Akbar went hunting in the jungle, he lost his way. Mahesh Das who lived in the outskirts helped
the king reach the palace. The emperor rewarded him with his ring.
The Emperor also promised to give him a responsible posting at his court. After a few days Mahesh Das went to the court.
The guard did not allow him to enter.
Mahesh Das showed the guard the ring which the king had given him. Now the guard thought that the young man was sure to get more rewards by the king. The greedy guard agreed to allow him inside the court on one condition. It was that Mahesh Das had to pay him half the reward he would get from the Emperor. Mahesh Das accepted the condition.

He then entered the court and showed the ring to the King.

The King who recognized Mahesh asked him "Oh young man! What do you expect as a reward from the King of Hindustan?" "Majesty! I expect 50 lashes from you as a reward." replied Mahesh Das. The courtiers were stunned. They thought that he was mad. Akbar pondered over his request and asked him the reason.
Mahesh Das said he would tell him the reason after receiving his reward. Then the king’s men whipped him as per his wish. After the 25th lash Mahesh Das requested the King to call the guard who was at the gate.
The guard appeared before the King. He was happy at the thought that he was called to be rewarded. But to his surprise, Mahesh Das told the King ,"Jahampana! This greedy guard let me inside on condition that I pay him half the reward I receive from you. I wanted to teach him a lesson. Please give the remaining 25 lashes to this guard so that I can keep my
promise to him."
The King then ordered that the guard be given 25 lashes along with 5 years of imprisonment. The King was very happy with Mahesh Das. He named him
BIRBAL and made him his minister.

Birbal's Khichdi

It was winter. The ponds were all frozen.
At the court, Akbar asked Birbal, "Tell me Birbal! Will a man do anything for money?" Birbal replied, 'Yes'.
The emperor ordered him to prove it.
The next day Birbal came to the court along with a poor Brahmin who merely had a penny left with him. His family was starving.
Birbal told the king that the Brahmin was ready to do anything for the sake of money.
The king ordered the Brahmin to be inside the frozen pond all through the night without any attire if he needed money.
The poor Brahmin had no choice. The whole night he was inside the pond, shivering. He returned to the durbar the next day to receive his reward.
The king asked "Tell me Oh poor Brahmin! How could you withstand the extreme temperature all through the night?"
The innocent Brahmin replied "I could see a faintly glowing light a kilometer away and I withstood with that ray of light."
Akbar refused to pay the Brahmin his reward saying that he had got warmth from the light and withstood the cold and that was cheating.
The poor Brahmin could not argue with him and so returned disappointed and bare-handed.
Birbal tried to explain to the king but the king was in no mood to listen to him.
Thereafter, Birbal stopped coming to the durbar and sent a messenger to the king saying that he would come to the court only after cooking his khichdi.
As Birbal did not turn up even after 5 days, the king himself went to Birbal's house to see what he was doing. Birbal had lit the fire and kept the pot of uncooked khichdi one meter away from it.
Akbar questioned him "How will the khichdi get cooked with the fire one meter away? What is wrong with you Birbal?"
Birbal, cooking the khichdi, replied "Oh my great King of Hindustan! When it was possible for a person to receive warmth from a light that was a kilometer away, then it is possible for this khichdi, which is just a meter away from the source of heat, to get cooked."
Akbar understood his mistake. He called the poor Brahmin and rewarded him 2000 gold coins.

Akbar's Dream

Emperor Akbar was narrating a dream.
The dream began with Akbar and Birbal walking towards each other on a moonless night. It was so dark that they could not see each other and they collided and fell.
"Fortunately for me," said the Emperor. "I fell into a pool of halwa. But guess what Birbal fell into?"
"What, your Majesty?" asked the courtiers.
"A gutter!"
The court resounded with laughter. The emperor was thrilled that for once he had been able to score over Birbal.
But Birbal was unperturbed.
"Your Majesty," he said when the laughter had died down. "Strangely, I too had the same dream. But unlike you I slept on till the end. When you climbed out of that pool of delicious payasam and I, out of that stinking gutter we found that there was no water with which to clean ourselves and so guess what we did?”
"What?" asked the emperor, warily.
"We licked each other clean!"
The emperor became red with embarrassment and resolved never to try to get the better of Birbal again.

Dispute Over Mango Tree

Ram and Sham both claimed ownership of the same mango tree.
One day they approached Birbal and asked him to settle the dispute.
Birbal said to them: "There is only one way to settle the matter. Pluck all the fruits on the tree and divide them equally between the two of you. Then cut down the tree and divide the wood".
Ram thought it was a fair judgment and said so.
But Sham was horrified.
"Your Honor" he said to Birbal "I've tended that tree for seven years. I'd rather let Ram have it than see it cut down."
"Your concern for the tree has told me all I wanted to know" said Birbal, and declared Sham the true owner of the tree.

The Cabbage Saga

One day Akbar and Birbal were riding through the countryside and they happened to pass by a cabbage patch.
"Cabbages are such delightful vegetables!" said Akbar. "I just love cabbage."
"The cabbage is king of vegetables!" said Birbal.
A few weeks later they were riding past the cabbage patch again.
This time however, the emperor made a face when he saw the vegetables. "I used to love cabbage but now I have no taste for it." said Akbar.
"The cabbage is a tasteless vegetable" agreed Birbal.
The emperor was astonished.
"But the last time you said it was the king of vegetables!" he said.
"I did," admitted Birbal. "But I am your servant Your Majesty, not the cabbage's."

The Cow's Milk

Birbal arrived late for a function and the emperor was displeased.
"My child was crying and I had to placate him," explained the courtier.
"Does it take so long to calm down a child?" asked the emperor. "It appears you know nothing about child rearing. Now you pretend to be a child and I shall act as your father and I will show you how you should have dealt with your child. Go on. Ask me for whatever he asked of you."
"I want a cow," said Birbal.
Akbar ordered a cow to be brought to the palace.
"I want its milk. I want its milk," said Birbal, imitating the voice of a small child.
"Milk the cow and give to him," said Akbar to his servants.
The cow was milked and the milk was offered to Birbal. He drank a little and then handed the bowl back to Akbar.
"Now put the rest of it back into the cow, put it back, put in back, put it back..." wailed Birbal.
The emperor was flabbergasted and quietly left the room.

Pulling The Whiskers

One day the Emperor Akbar startled his courtiers with a strange question.
"If somebody pulled my whiskers what sort of punishment should be given to him?" he asked.
"He should be flogged!" said one courtier.
"He should be hanged!" said another.
"He should be beheaded!" said a third.
"And what about you, Birbal?" asked the emperor. "What do you think would be the right thing to do if somebody pulled my whiskers?"
"He should be given sweets," said Birbal.
"Sweets?" gasped the other couriers.
"Yes”, said Birbal. “Sweets, because the only one who would dare pull His Majesty's whiskers is his grandson."
So pleased was the emperor with the answer that he pulled off his ring and gave it to Birbal as a reward.

Shortening The Road

The Emperor Akbar was traveling to a distant place along with some of his courtiers. It was a hot day and the emperor was tiring of the journey.
“Can’t anybody shorten this road for me?” he asked, querulously.
“I can,” said Birbal.
The other courtiers looked at one another, perplexed. All of them knew there was no other path through the hilly terrain.
The road they were traveling on was the only one that could take them to their destination.
“You can shorten the road?” said the emperor. “Well, do it.”
“I will,” said Birbal. “Listen first to this story I have to tell.”
And riding beside the emperor’s palanquin, he launched upon a long and intriguing tale that held Akbar and all those listening, spellbound. Before they knew it, they had reached the end of their journey.
“We’ve reached?” exclaimed Akbar. “So soon!”
“Well,” grinned Birbal, “you did say you wanted the road to be shortened.”

Full Moon And Quarter Moon

Birbal was in Persia at the invitation of the king of that country.
Parties were given in his honor and rich presents were heaped on him.
On the eve of his departure for home, a nobleman asked him how he would compare the king of Persia to his own king.
“Your king is a full moon,” said Birbal. “Whereas mine could be likened to the quarter moon.”
The Persians were very happy. But when Birbal got home he found that Emperor Akbar was furious with him.
“How could you belittle your own king!” demanded Akbar. “You are a traitor!”
“No, Your Majesty,” said Birbal. “I did not belittle you. The full moon diminishes and disappears whereas the quarter moon grows from strength to strength. What I, in fact, proclaimed to the world is that your power is growing from day to day whereas that of the king of Persia is about to go into decline.”
Akbar grunted in satisfaction and welcomed Birbal back with a warm embrace.

The Well And Water Dispute

A farmer and his neighbor once went to Emperor Akbar's court with a complaint.
"Your Majesty, I bought a well from him," said the farmer pointing to his neighbor," and now he wants me to pay for the water."
"That's right, your Majesty," said the neighbor. "I sold him the well but not the water!"
The Emperor asked Birbal to settle the dispute.
"Didn't you say that you sold your well to this farmer?" Birbal asked the neighbor. "So, the well belongs to him now, but you have kept your water in his well. Is that right? Well, in that case you will have to pay him a rent or take your water out at once."
The neighbor realized that he was outwitted. He quickly apologized and gave up his claim.

Difference Between Truth And Flasehood

One day Akbar asked his courtiers if they could tell him the difference between truth and falsehood in three words or less.
The courtiers looked at one another in bewilderment.
"What about you, Birbal?" asked the emperor. "I'm surprised that you too are silent."
"I'm silent because I want to give others a chance to speak," said Birbal.
"Nobody else has the answer," said the emperor. "So go ahead and tell me what the difference between truth and falsehood is — in three words or less."
"Four fingers" said Birbal
"Four fingers?" asked the emperor, perplexed.
"That's the difference between truth and falsehood, your Majesty," said Birbal. "That which you see with your own eyes is the truth. That which you have only heard about might not be true. More often than not, it's likely to be false."
"That is right," said Akbar. "But what did you mean by saying the difference is four fingers?'
"The distance between one's eyes and one's ears is the width of four fingers, Your Majesty," said Birbal, grinning.

The Thief And Donkey's Tail

One fine morning, a minister from Emperor Akbar's court had gathered in the assembly hall.
He informed the Emperor that all his valuables had been stolen by a thief the previous night.
Akbar was shocked to hear this because the place where that minister lived was the safest place in the kingdom.
He invited Birbal to solve the mystery. Akbar said "It is definitely not possible for an outsider to enter into the minister's house and steal the valuables. This blunder is definitely committed only by another minister of that court." Saying so, he arranged for a donkey to be tied to a pillar. He ordered all the courtiers to lift the donkey's tail and say "I have not stolen."
Birbal added "Only then we can judge the culprit." After everyone had finished, he asked the courtiers to show their palm to him. All the courtiers except Alim Khan had a black patch of paint on their palm. Birbal had actually painted the donkey's tail with a black coat of paint. In the fright, the guilty minister did not touch the donkey's tail at all. Thus Birbal once again proved his intelligence and was rewarded by the king with 1000 gold coins.