Birbal’s Loyalty | Akbar Birbal
Birbal was very popular for his wit and intelligence in lands far and beyond. Kings often invited him and Akbar to their countries.
Once, Akbar and Birbal were invited to the country of Persia. Since there were no airplanes or fast cars for traveling in the olden days, everyone had to walk, go by palanquins, or ride on horses and camels. So, one day, Akbar and Birbal started their journey to the land of Persia on a palanquin with some more courtiers. A palanquin is a wooden platform with cushioned seating and is covered on the top for protection against the sun and rain. Men carry it.
They traveled through beautiful forests, lands, and rivers. They passed through a hilly area, and the sun shone brightly. Akbar and his courtiers had traveled many miles.
After some time, Emperor Akbar became restless and tired of the journey. He said, “Can somebody shorten this long, tiresome road?” All the tired courtiers looked at each other in surprise. One of them thought, ‘It will take years and years to make this road shorter. Then Birbal came forward and said, “Your Majesty! I can shorten this road for you.” Akbar’s face shone with a smile, “Can you do that for me, Birbal?” Birbal then added, “Yes! Your Majesty, but you must listen to my story first.”
Birbal began narrating an interesting story as they traveled. Akbar keenly listened to the story. In no time, they all reached their destination. Akbar was surprised at how short the journey had become. Akbar said, “Birbal, well done! You have displayed how we can never get bored if we have interesting things to do.”
When they reached the King of Persia’s palace, he warmly welcomed them all. Emperor Akbar and Birbal attended the royal feast. They were treated with the utmost respect and were given many gifts. One of the Persian ministers invited Birbal for lunch at his mansion the next day.
Birbal was shocked to see so many people at the minister’s mansion. He felt lost and said to the minister, “You have invited too many people for lunch. It looks like a crowded marketplace!” The minister replied, “All these people are my workers. There is only one more guest beside you.” Birbal was surprised. The minister thought, ‘I have heard so much about Birbal. Let me test his intelligence.’
He said aloud, “Birbal, can you tell me who that one guest is?” Birbal said, “Yes, I can! All I want is that you tell a joke to everybody.”
The minister cracked a joke. The joke was a boring one. Birbal looked around at everyone. On hearing the joke, there was a loud sound of laughter. Birbal pointed to a man in the crowd and said, “This man is the other guest.”
The minister said, “That is right, but how did you know?” Birbal said, “When you cracked a boring joke, everybody but this man laughed. Your workers will always like your jokes, even if they are not good ones. But the guest was bored. So, he did not laugh.”
Birbal showed that by noticing people, we could understand them very well. Soon, the news about Emperor Akbar and Birbal visiting Persia reached the neighboring kingdoms. Birbal’s fame spread not only in the Persian Kingdom but also in the neighboring kingdoms. And many wanted to prove that they were wiser than Birbal.
The King of Iran was keen on Emperor Akbar and his famous courtier Birbal visiting Iran. He, too, had heard many stories about Birbal’s presence of mind and was curious to meet him. The Iranian King wanted to test Birbal’s skills for himself.
A letter of invitation was soon sent to Akbar and Birbal to visit the Iranian Kingdom. They accepted the invitation and proceeded to Iran. The people of Iran welcomed the Emperor and his courtiers with a grand ceremony and led them warmly to the Iranian court.
On entering the court, Akbar and Birbal were amazed to see six identical kings instead of one. All were dressed in royal robes. Akbar looked towards Birbal with a puzzled expression. Birbal waited for a while, then approached the true King and paid him his due respect.
The Iranian King was impressed! He asked Birbal. “Dear Birbal, please enlighten me. How did you recognize me among the others?” Birbal smiled and said, “Your Majesty! Even in disguise, all the people were looking toward you for directions, whereas you were looking straight ahead.
Only a king can look straight confidently, but his entire kingdom will always look up to him irrespective of their form.” The Iranian King was highly pleased to hear Birbal’s reply. He showered him with gifts and gold and threw a feast in his honor later in the evening.
The Iranian King said to Akbar, “Emperor Akbar! Birbal is so wise and witty. You are indeed fortunate to have him in your court.” Akbar replied, “I agree. Birbal is so wise that I never take any decision without discussing it with him.” This made a lot of courtiers and scholars jealous of Birbal’s wisdom.
During the feast, a proud scholar in the Iranian court challenged Birbal to answer his question. He thought, “This is the right opportunity to put Birbal down in front of the King of Iran and Emperor Akbar.’ He asked Birbal, “Will you answer a hundred easy questions or one difficult question?” Birbal answered, “I will answer one difficult question.”
The scholar asked, “What came first into the world, the chicken or the egg?” In a split second, without thinking, Birbal replied, “A chicken came first.” The scholar smiled, “Prove it.”
He was sure that Birbal would not be able to answer this question. The scholar thought that he had defeated Birbal! However, Birbal was more intelligent than the scholar. He replied, “As you told me, you would ask me only one difficult question, not two. I have already answered one question.”
The scholar was taken aback at Birbal’s answer. He was speechless and quietly walked out of the palace. Akbar felt very proud to have Birbal as his courtier.
It was time for Akbar and Birbal to leave for their homeland. They thanked the King of Iran for his hospitality and generosity. Just then, a minister asked, “Birbal! Before leaving for your homeland, please answer one question. How would you compare King Akbar to our King of Iran?”
Birbal smiled and thought for a while. Then he proudly said, “The King of Iran is like a full moon. King Akbar is like the crescent-shaped quarter moon.” The King of Iran and his ministers were pleased with Birbal’s answer. But Emperor Akbar was angry with Birbal’s answer. When they returned home, he kept quiet and decided to question Birbal about his answer. Akbar and Birbal started their journey back home.
In the court, after their return from Iran, Emperor Akbar declared, “Birbal, you are not loyal to me because you insulted me with your answer in Iran.”
Birbal replied, “No, Your Majesty! Let me explain the hidden meaning of my answer. The full moon becomes smaller and smaller in size with each passing day. The quarter moon grows bigger and bigger. Your power is growing with each day. I will always be loyal to you and my country.”
Emperor Akbar was overjoyed with Birbal’s clever answer and hugged Birbal for his loyalty.
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