Akbar Birbal Stories

Birbal and His Guest

Birbal and His Guest Birbal was said to be the wisest man alive in his time. He sometimes tricked people into getting his work done. One day, Birbal went to the market to buy some groceries his wife had asked for. ‘Women are troublesome, sometimes!’ thought Birbal as he walked on. ‘I have so many things to do, but my wife won’t listen to me!’ Suddenly, a milkman called out to Birbal, “Sire, please can you help me? I am not well. Every morning I wake up feeling drunk!” Birbal asked, “What do you drink before sleeping?” The milkman replied, “Milk, Sir. I don’t enjoy it, but my wife insists I drink one large glassful.” Birbal guessed, “Aha! That is causing you problems! You drink milk; then you lie in bed and toss in your sleep. The milk gets churned into butter. The butter turns into fat and soon, there

Birbal and His Animal Friends

Birbal and His Animal Friends Emperor Akbar was very proud of his courtier, Birbal. He believed him to be almost perfect, except for one of Birbal’s vices. Birbal had a bad habit of chewing tobacco. Akbar had warned Birbal of the bad effects of chewing tobacco, but Birbal was addicted to it. Birbal knew that Akbar did not like this habit of his. So, he always hid and ate tobacco. However, Akbar knew about it and disliked it. One day, Emperor Akbar and Birbal decided to go for a walk. They left the palace gardens and were soon passing a green field. Next to this field was a tobacco field. Akbar and Birbal’s attention was drawn to a donkey approaching the tobacco field. The donkey was looking for some foliage to eat. But as soon as the donkey sniffed the tobacco plants, it turned away disgustingly. Akbar noticed this and

Birbal Teaches Akbar | Akbar Birbal

Birbal Teaches Akbar | Akbar Birbal Every year on his birthday, Emperor Akbar would sit on one side of the scale. On the other hand, food equal to a hundred times his weight would be distributed to fakirs and sages. Birbal believed these people to be false. One year, Akbar asked him, “Birbal, do you think the miracles these learned men perform are due to their power, or is it the faith of the devotees?” Birbal replied, “I think our faith makes these men powerful.” Akbar said, “All right, I’ll give you a month to prove it!” Birbal hired workers to build a monument. His servants spread the word that it was Yakin Shah’s monument. Yakin means belief in Urdu. Stories spread about the miracles that were performed there. Emperor Akbar and his courtiers also visited the monument. Akbar bowed in reverence, as did all the courtiers except Birbal. Akbar

Akbar and His Anger | Akbar Birbal

Akbar and His Anger | Akbar Birbal Emperor Akbar took over as ruler of Delhi when he was only 13 years old. In time, he built a huge empire and filled it with the most intelligent people he could find. But as his popularity grew, so did his pride, and because of his pride, Akbar would sometimes mistreat his people. Birbal didn’t like how proud Akbar was, even though Akbar was a good person in other ways. Birbal was known for having a quick and intelligent mind. He chose to show Akbar that being proud could hurt him. Birbal once dressed up as a saint and went to sleep in the royal courtyards. When Akbar saw the saint, he got angry and, not knowing who he was, said, “How dare you enter my garden, you ungrateful man? You will die for what you did.” The saint got down on his

The Learned Man and the Foolish Man | Akbar Birbal

The Learned Man and the Foolish Man | Akbar Birbal Birbal had to leave home for a few days once. So, Emperor Akbar put his brother-in-law Hassan in place of Birbal as a courtier until Birbal could return. The new courtier felt very important and said, “I will do my job well!” Akbar thought, “He’s proud of what he has.” Let me test his pride to see if it matches it. The next day, Emperor Akbar went to the market and saw a big elephant footprint. He showed it to Hassan and told him, “Take good care of this valuable elephant foot.” Hassan sat there without eating for three days. On the fourth day, he was so hungry that he collapsed. He told Akbar, “Sire, the elephant’s footprint is safe, but I am starving to death.” Akbar gave Birbal the same job when he came back. He placed an iron

Birbal and His Limitations | Akbar Birbal

Birbal and His Limitations | Akbar Birbal Abdul Karim was a courtier in Emperor Akbar’s court. He was blind in one eye. Since Birbal was Akbar’s favorite courtier, Karim was jealous of him. He was always looking for ways to make Birbal appear inadequate before the Emperor. One day, Karim saw Birbal chewing tobacco and spitting on the palace wall. ‘Ah! Now I can teach him a lesson,’ he cheerfully thought. So, he went to Akbar and complained about Birbal. Akbar was annoyed when he came to know that Birbal had dirtied the wall. He scolded Birbal and told him that next time he should spit in a place that is of no use and is empty. Birbal apologized and agreed to do as he was told. The next day, while chewing tobacco in court, Birbal spat into Karim’s blind eye! Karim cried out and ran to Akbar. Akbar asked

Art of Fortune Telling | Akbar Birbal

Art of Fortune Telling | Akbar Birbal Once, Birbal cracked a joke about Emperor Akbar. However, that day, Akbar was in a foul mood and ordered Birbal to leave the capital city. Birbal was hurt and left the city without telling anyone. Akbar soon started missing Birbal. One day, a wise saint visited the palace with his two disciples. The saint had sparkling eyes, a thick white beard and long hair. The disciples believed that the saint was the wisest person on earth. Akbar wanted to test the saint. He asked all his courtiers to ask him questions. The saint answered all the questions wisely. Impressed with the saint’s wisdom, Akbar asked him to perform a miracle. The saint replied, “I can bring anyone you want to meet to the court.” Akbar wished to meet Birbal. At once, the saint took off his beard. It was Birbal! Akbar told all

The Master of Many Arts | Akbar Birbal

The Master of Many Arts | Akbar Birbal Akbar was a great lover of art and music. So, one day, he decided to hold a music competition in his court. He invited the best musicians from all over the country to participate. On the day of the competition, all the musicians had gathered in the court. Emperor Akbar announced the criteria for winning the competition. He said, “Dear participants, before you all commence your performance, I would like to mention the criteria for winning the performance.” Akbar paused and continued, “In this competition, you should try and impress the bull instead of pleasing me. Whosoever can play the music that the bull shows interest in will be declared as the winner.” All the competitors were shocked to hear the criteria and wondered at each other. However, all of them played the best tunes they could, but none successfully attracted the

Birbal’s Honesty | Akbar Birbal

Birbal’s Honesty | Akbar Birbal Emperor Akbar enjoyed the frequent witty question and answer sessions with Birbal. He would ask Birbal questions on any subject. Or he would give him the trickiest task to do. These sessions gave Akbar the chance to test Birbal’s wisdom. One day, Emperor Akbar asked Birbal, “If you had to choose between a gold coin and justice, what would you choose?” Birbal paused for a moment before responding, “Greetings, Your Majesty! I will choose a gold coin.” Akbar was upset to hear Birbal’s answer. He said to Birbal, “I did not expect this answer from you. Do you want to reconsider your answer?” Birbal, however, insisted that he would still choose a gold coin. Akbar said, “Birbal, I like to be just to my subjects. Even then, you chose money over justice! You are my wisest and most favorite courtier. It disappoints me to think

The Wise Courtier | Akbar Birbal

The Wise Courtier | Akbar Birbal Emperor Akbar was a considerate ruler. He took a lot of interest in the welfare of the people in his Kingdom. Akbar and Birbal often went around the Kingdom to see if all was well among the people. One day, Akbar decided to go around the villages of his Kingdom. He took Birbal along with him. They both rode on horses and passed through many villages. The villages were charming. The air was cool and clean as green trees and fields surrounding. While riding through a village, they came across a cabbage farm. Akbar was happy to see the cabbages. He said, “Oh! Look at the green patch! I love cabbage! It is the best vegetable!” “Your Majesty, I agree with you! Cabbage is the king of all vegetables,” said Birbal. A few months passed by. Akbar and Birbal again went on a tour.

Birbal’s Loyalty | Akbar Birbal

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

The Smartest of All | Akbar Birbal

The Smartest of All | Akbar Birbal Once, Emperor Akbar and Birbal fought. Birbal was angry and left the palace. While walking on the city streets, a man came running to him. The man stopped near Birbal and asked, “Are you the famous Courtier Birbal?” Birbal smiled and said, “I am Birbal.” What can I do for you? ” The man said, “I have travelled many miles to meet you. All along the way, people said that you are the most generous. You fulfil the wishes and demands of all who come to you. I am honoured to meet you!” Birbal at once understood that the man wanted money from him. He did not want to hurt the man. He thought of an intelligent answer. Birbal said, “The pleasure is mine. Would you be going back to your town by the same route?” The man was surprised by the question