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Articles: Short Stories | Birbal stories
- 4uFriends 4ufriends
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A FOREST WITHOUT BEASTS
Emperor Akbar was fond of hunting and invariably, he took Birbal with him, though heart of hearts, he did not approve of the emperor's pastime.
On one such hunting expedition, Birbal halted his horse under a tree. The emperor waited for him for sometime and asked him what was he doing. Birbal said he was merely looking at the two birds perched on a tree and listening to their conversation.
'Don't tell me you know the language of the birds!'exclaimed the emperor unbelievingly. 'Tell me what they were talking.'
'My lord! One bird was demanding as dowry an animal-free forest for his son's marriage with the other's daughter.'
'Can there be a forest without animals?' asked the emperor.
'That's what you feel, my lord! But do you know what the other bird said?' Birbal paused for a moment. 'The other bird said in whispers that he would be able to give this forest as dowry, because very soon it would have no animals, as the emperor was bent on killing all the animals.'
The emperor understood the significance of Birbal's words. He stopped his hunting expeditions altogether.
THE PERTINENT ANSWER
Birbal was the most popular courtier of the Mughal Court. Naturally there were some people jealous of him. One day, when Birbal was away, the other courtiers requested Emperor Akbar to give them a chance to demonstrate their talents.
'Very well' said the emperor, 'find out the number of crows in our city of Agra and report to me by noon before Birbal comes.'
The courtiers took their task seriously. But they could not make a count of all the crows by noon. They returned and requested the emperor to give them more time. Birbal came to the court at that juncture. Akbar asked Birbal, 'Can you tell me how many crows are there in Agra?'
Birbal replied immediately. 'Seven thousand two hundred and thirty-five.'
But the courtiers refuted 'How can Birbal say this with such certainty and confidence? Suppose we prove him wrong after counting all the crows?'
Birbal said, 'If you find the number more, it may probably be because of the arrival of their relatives from Delhi; if however you find the number less, it means some of the crows are away on a visit to Delhi.'
The emperor was pleased with the clever reply of Birbal. He turned to the couriers and said, 'I expected only this type of reply from you for my question, not a factual one. Now, do you realise why I value Birbal so much?'
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