Once upon a time, in the court of Emperor Akbar, important matters were being discussed, and Birbal expressed his opinion, “I believe that most men are slaves to their wives and live in fear of them.” This statement did not sit well with Emperor Akbar, and he opposed it.
Birbal, determined to prove his point, suggested a decree to be issued among the people. The decree stated that any man who admitted to being afraid of his wife would have to bring a hen to the court as a penalty. The emperor agreed to this proposal.
The next day, the decree was circulated among the people, and soon, a large number of hens were gathered in the court gardens. When the number of hens continued to increase, and the situation became overwhelming, Emperor Akbar realized the cleverness behind Birbal’s plan.
Birbal approached the emperor and said, “Your Majesty, there are so many hens now that we can open a poultry farm. Therefore, you may consider withdrawing this order.” Despite the growing number of hens in the court, Emperor Akbar, not taking it seriously, slowly withdrew the order.
However, when the emperor still did not agree with Birbal’s perspective on men’s fear of their wives, Birbal devised a new plan. One day, Birbal went to the emperor and said, “Your Majesty, I have heard that there is a beautiful princess in a neighboring kingdom. If you wish, I can finalize a proposal for you.”
Surprised, the emperor replied, “Birbal, what kind of talk is this? There are already two queens in the palace. If they get wind of this, I will be in trouble.”
Hearing this, Birbal promptly responded, “Alright, then why don’t you also contribute two hens to the ones already gathered in the court?”
Emperor Akbar, realizing the wit and wisdom in Birbal’s response, was both embarrassed and amused. He withdrew the order immediately.
The moral of the story is that cleverness and understanding can make seemingly difficult tasks quite manageable.
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