E-Book

TENALI RAMA
AND
STORIES

By

TAMARAPU SAMPATH KUMARAN

About the Author:
Mr T Sampath Kumaran is a freelance writer. He regularly
contributes articles on Management, Business, Ancient Temples,
and Temple Architecture to many leading Dailies and Magazines.
His articles are, popular in The Young World section of THE
HINDU
His e-books and articles on nature, and different cultures of people
around the world are educative and of special interest to the young.
He was associated in the production of two Documentary films on
Nava Tirupathi Temples, and Tirukkurungudi Temple in
Tamilnadu.

Acknowledgement to:
Google for the inputs and photos, and Scribd.com for hosting my e-
books.
- Tamarapu Sampath Kumaran
Tenali Ramakrishna, who was known as Vikatakavi (jester poet),
a Telugu poet hailed from the present-day Andhra Pradesh region,
was generally known for his wit and humour. He was one of
the Astadiggajas or the eight poets at the court of Krishnadevaraya,
the Vijayanagara emperor.
Tenali Ramakrishna composed works on Hinduism. Ramalinga, as he
was originally called, is said to have been a Shaivite by birth but he
eventually converted to Vaishnavism and changed his name to
Ramakrishna.
His father died when Ramakrishna was very young. His mother
Lakshmamma returned to her native place Tenali to live with her
brother. Ramakrishna grew up in his uncles town and so came to be
known as Tenali Ramakrishna.
Tenali Ramakrishna did not receive any formal education during his
childhood, but became a great scholar, due to his thirst for knowledge.
As per a well-known tale, the Vaishnava scholars rejected to accept
him as a disciple, as he was a Shaiva. Later while roaming aimlessly,
he met a sage, who advised him to worship goddess Kali.
On the night of the new moon, Raman visited the temple of Kali to
pray.

Suddenly the goddess appeared before

him, waving her eight arms, bowing all 108 of her heads. When
Raman saw this, he burst out laughing.
"Why do you laugh?" the goddess asked angrily.
Raman could see that she was furious, and so he thought fast.
"Goddess, I was just thinking of the day I had a cold and my nose was
running, and I had so much trouble with just one nose and two hands,
I thought how funny it must be for you."
Kali could not help herself; she laughed at the thought. And so, she
forgave the boy for insulting her, and then she held out two bowls.
"In this bowl, there is the sweet milk of wealth," Kali told Raman.
"And in this other hand is the silver bowl with the sour curds of
knowledge and learning. Which bowl do you wish to drink?"
Raman leaned toward the bowls, pretending to smell each one, and
then he swallowed the contents of both.
"What have you done?" the goddess cried.
"What is the use of being a scholar without wealth?" Raman asked.
"And what would be the purpose of having riches without
intelligence? I beg your forgiveness if I have made a mistake."
Kali was pleased with Raman's honesty and wisdom, and she blessed
him. "You will face many problems," she said, "but you will also
receive many gifts offered to you."
One day the Rajguru of the city of Vijaynagar visited Tenali to go to
the temple of Kali. When Raman saw the Rajguru, he bowed before
him. "Please sir, I would like to meet the Emperor one day. Would
you introduce me?"
The Rajguru was not paying much attention to the little boy. "Of
course," he said absent mindedly.
Soon after this, Raman moved to Vijaynagar and went to see the
Rajguru. "I'm here," he said, "and wish to meet the emperor, Krishna
Deva Raya, just as you promised."
Rajguru shook his head and said, "I have never seen you before. Go
away."

But Raman was determined, and the next

morning he went to the river where Rajguru took his morning bath,
and when the Rajguru stepped out of the water, Raman jumped upon
his back and said, "Carry me."
The Rajguru was furious, but no matter how he tried, he could not
shake the young man loose; he had no choice but to walk with the
young man on his back, and when people saw this amazing sight, they
quickly reported the news to the emperor.
The emperor flew into a royal rage and immediately climbed into his
chariot and rode toward the river. "I'll punish this bold fellow," he
cried, but when Raman saw the royal carriage coming near, he leapt
back to the ground, and he lifted the priest onto his own shoulders.
The emperor approached, and when he saw the priest riding on
Raman's shoulders, he was impressed with the young man's strength
and generosity. He turned to his servants and said, "Invite this young
man to the palace to receive my thanks."
So, began the days of Tenali Raman's life in the palace.
When Tenala rama shared his life story with Krishnadevaraya, the
king granted him the post of the comic poet in the court, completing
the Astadiggjas (The eight scholars) group. Ramakrishna attained
fame as a great jester poet. The records also state that Ramakrishna
was instrumental in protecting the King Rayalu, many a times coming
to his rescue in critical situations.
Tenali Rama was noted for his brilliance and wit. Tenali
Ramakrishna's great work Panduranga Mahatmyam is a Kavya of
high merit, remarkable for its sonorous dignity of phrasing, and is
counted as one of the Pacha Mahaa Kaaviyas (the Five Great
Kavyaas) of Telugu literature.

It contains a legendary account of a shrine of Vishnu as Panduranga,

at Pandharpur consecrated and administrated by Saint Pandarika.
A brahmin named Nigama Sharma, who wasted his life in dissipation
and debauchery, breathed his last in Pandharpur. A controversy
ensured between servants of Yama and servants of Vishnu. The
former was anxious to carry him to hell as he lived a wicked life and
the latter claimed him for heaven, as he died in that sacred place.
Indeed, the verdict is in favour of the servants of Vishnu. Tenali took
the theme for Panduranga Mahatmyam from the Shanda Purana and
enhanced it with many stories about the devotees of Panduranga. An
imaginary character named 'Naima Sarema akka' was created by
Tenali Ramakrishna and he built a story around her without giving her
a name. He also composed many extempore poems called 'Chatuvu'.
Tenali Ramakrishna attained the status of a folk hero when he was the
court poet of Krishnadevaraya, but at the same time he composed
serious works on religion. Three of his narrative poems are available
today. His first poem, Udbhataradhya Charita about
the Shaiva teacher Udbhata which is based on Palakuriki
Somanatha's Basava Puranam. Udbhataradhya Charitamu also deals
with the sanctity of Varanasi. Because of Tenali Ramakrishna's
affinity towards Shaivite religion, he was also known as Tenali
Ramalinga Kavi. However, he had great devotion for Vaishnavism as
well which is reflected in his work Panduranga Mahatmas.
Tenali was was also titled "Kumara Bharathi", for his works. The
famous Mahishasura Mardini Stotram, the Sanskrit poem of
Adoration of the Mother Goddess is attributed to Ramakrishna Kavi..

Stories of Tenali Rama:

Stories, about Tenali Rama and his practical jokes on everyone
around him including distinguished fellow poets and the emperor
himself, are popular in south India.

In those days, the emperor regularly

visited the jails. One day two of the prisoners begged him to set them
free. "Our theft was artful, one of the 64 arts," they argued, "but we
will give up our ways and find a new profession if you set us free."
"I will test your skills," the emperor said, "and then I shall make my
decision. Go to Raman's house and steal his jewels. If you are
successful, I will set you free, but make sure you harm no one."
That evening as Raman was tending his garden, the two thieves
climbed the compound wall and hid in the bushes where they
carefully studied their surroundings.
Raman spotted the men, and he knew just what to do. He pretended he
did not know they were there, and he called to his wife: "My dear,
come fast and hear the news. Two convicts have escaped from jail.
We should protect our valuables. Let us put them at the bottom of the
well."
Raman's wife knew her husband was wise, and so she immediately
agreed.
Behind the bushes, the thieves looked with delight at each other. Who
would have thought their plan would be this easy? They watched as
Raman and his wife lowered a chest to the bottom of the well, and
then they waited until they were certain the two had gone to sleep.
Then the thieves hastened to the well, and while one stood guard, the
other slipped inside. "There's too much water," he said, "We have to
empty the well."
They began to draw water, bucket after bucket, and the yard filled so
that Raman's plants were watered.
When the well was empty, the thieves climbed in together and carried
out the chest Raman had dropped inside. Alas, inside they discovered
only logs.
Raman was only pretending to sleep, so he called out, "Thieves,
please draw another bucket of water; two more plants need tending,
and it is close to dawn."
The horrified thieves began to run, but they did not get far.
Thus, the emperor understood that the thieves were no artists at all,
and once again Tenali Raman proved his wisdom
Sri Krishna Devaraya had some special kind of brinjal plants in his
garden. The brinjal was a very rare kind and curry made from it was
very tasty which was loved by the emperor. As it was a rare kind,
the garden was well guarded and no one could view the plants without
the emperors permission.
Once the emperor had arranged dinner for his advisors and the brinjal
curry was served. Tenali Rama enjoyed the brinjal curry very much
and went home. He told his wife about the taste of the curry. As Tenali
Ramas wife also liked brinjal curry, she asked Tenali Rama to bring
few brinjals so that she can prepare a curry. But Tenali Rama knew
that the emperor was taking extreme care about the Brinjal plants and
he can easily detect a missing one from his garden and the emperor will
punish the one if caught stealing a brinjal from his garden.
But Tenalis wife pleaded him to bring a brinjal from the garden
without telling anybody. Tenali Rama had no choice other than
stealing a brinjal from the emperors garden. One night he went to the
garden, jumped the wall and plucked few brinjals from the garden. By
Gods grace, no one had seen him. His wife cooked the brinjals and
the curry was very tasty. Like all the mothers, she too loved her son
very much and wanted to serve a brinjal curry to him. But Tenali Rama
asked her not to do such thing because if their son reveals to anybody
that he had a rare brinjal curry, then they may get caught and get
punished for stealing a brinjal from the palace garden.
But his wife did not agree. She wanted to serve the curry to her
son. She was unable to eat the curry alone without serving her little
kid. who was at that time sleeping on the roof of their house after doing
his homework. She asked Tenali Rama to find a way so that their son
can also taste the brinjal curry. Tenali Rama also loved his son, so he
thought of an idea and with a lot of hesitation went on to the roof to
wake up his child with a bucket of water and poured the water on the
child. When the child woke up he said It is raining. Lets go inside
the house and have a dinner. After going inside the room, he changed
the clothes of his son and gave him the rice and brinjal curry for the
dinner. Tenali Rama told his wife loudly that it was raining outside,
and let the boy sleep in the room.
And the next day, the emperor came to know that few brinjals were
missing in his garden. The Gardener who kept the count of each
vegetable and flower found that the three brinjals were missing. It
became a challenging issue for the emperor and he took it very
seriously. He declared a reward for the person who can catch the
thief. Chief advisor Appaji suspected that only Tenali Rama can do
such things. And they told the emperor about it. The emperor sent his
courtiers and asked Tenali Rama to come to court immediately. Once
Tenali Rama came he asked him about the missing brinjals. Then
Tenali Rama told, I was not aware of the missing brinjals. Then the
chief advisor told Tenali Rama was lying. Lets enquire his son.
The king sent his courtiers to bring Tenali Ramas son. Once his son
came, he was asked what vegetable he had in the dinner last night. The
child replied, The brinjal curry and it was very tasty. Then the
advisor told Tenali Rama that he needs to accept his crime. But Tenali
Rama said his son had slept very early and he might be saying
something which he got in his dream.
So, the emperor asked the little kid that can you please explain clearly
what had you done yesterday after coming from the school?
Tenali Ramas son replied that yesterday after coming from the
school, I played for some time and after that, I went on to the roof, did
my homework, and slept on the roof. But when the rain started, my
father came and woke me up. By that time my dress was fully wet,
then we went inside, had the dinner and slept again.
The chief advisor Appaji was shocked because there was no rain at all
yesterday. And the atmosphere was fully dry. So, they thought the kid
had a dream and freed Tenali Rama without any
punishment. However, later Tenali Raman told the truth to the
emperor and was pardoned by the emperor for his clever witty idea.
One day, Krishnadevaraya saw a strange dream. He dreamt of a
magnificent magical palace. It was made of dazzling stones and
floated in the air. The palace had every comfort and amenity that one
could ever wish for. It could be lit up with a thousand lights or made
to disappear into the darkness in a jiffy.

The next day when the king woke up, he vividly remembered the
dream. He summoned all his courtiers and told them about it. The
courtiers sang praises of the king and his beautiful dream. The king
made a public announcement: I will give a hundred thousand gold
coins to the person who can build me the palace of my dream.

Everyone was startled at the kings announcement. They knew that it

was not practically possible to build the palace that of the kings
expectation. But no one had the courage to say so. Many of the kings
well-wishers told him that such a palace can only exist in ones mind.
But he refused to listen and threatened his courtiers with grave
consequences if they did not find someone who could make his dream
come true.

The courtiers got worried and approached Tenali Raman for help.
The senior minister requested Tenali Raman, and suggested that he
alone can make the king to understand that his wish to erect the palace
of his dream is absurd to rescue them from the severe punishment.
Tenali Raman assured them that he would try to help them.

A few days later, a very old man came to meet the king in his court.
He was crying for justice.

Krishnadevaraya asked, what brings you here my good man? Tell me

without fear and I assure you that justice will be done. I have been
robbed, Your Majesty, wailed the old man. Someone has taken
away all my savings and now I dont have a single paisa left.
Who robbed you? asked the king angrily. Such a crime cannot go
unpunished. You name him and I will have him hanged immediately!
Your Majesty! I will tell you but first assure me that on hearing upon
his name, you will not get angry and punish me instead, requested the
old man.
Yes, I promise, replied the king impatiently.
It is you, my lord, said the old man in a trembling voice.
How dare you say a ridiculous thing like that, I will, began the king,
but then he remembered his promise and calmed down. He asked that
the old man to explain what he meant to say.
Your Majesty! Last night, I dreamt that you came with your entourage
of ministers and soldiers and looted my entire lifes savings, five
thousand gold coins! said the old man.
Are you a fool or completely insane? roared the king. How can you
treat your dream as a reality? Dreams are not true!
But they are, Your Majesty! If your dream of a palace hanging in air
can come true, why cant my dream come true? retorted the old man.
And then, the man took off his beard, hair and stood before the king.
It was none other than Tenali Rama!

He bowed before the king and said, Your Majesty! This was the only
way of convincing you that building the palace of your dreams was
not practically possible.

The great king Krishna Deva Raya had a lot of wise ministers in his
court. The wisest of them was Tenali Rama. One day, a merchant
came to the kings court from a foreign kingdom. He saluted the king
and then said, Your Majesty, I have heard from many people that you
have very wise ministers in your court. But with your permission, I
would like to test the wisdom of your ministers. This aroused the
kings interest and he gave the merchant his permission. The merchant
gave the king three dolls that looked identical. He said, though these
dolls look similar, they are different in some way. If your ministers
can find out the difference, I will bow to their wisdom. But if they
cant, I will assume that there are no wise ministers in your court. I
will be back in thirty days for the answer.

The king asked all of his ministers except Tenali Rama to assemble.
He gave them the three dolls and told them to find the difference in
them in three days time. But at the end of three days, none of the
ministers could figure out the difference. The king got worried and
called Tenali Rama. He said to him, Tenali, I did not summon you
before because I thought that this problem will be too simple. But
since no one has been able to find the solution, it is up to you now.
Find the difference between these dolls. Tenali took the three dolls
and went away.

The problem proved difficult for Tenali too, but at last, after a lot of
effort, he figured out the difference. He went to the court with the
three dolls on the day that the merchant had to return. Then, he
announced in front of the whole court that he had found the difference
between the dolls. He said, these three dolls are different because one
of them is good, one average and one bad. When everyone asked
Tenali that which doll was which, he showed them a tiny hole that
was present in the ears of each of the dolls. Then, he took a very thin
wire and put it in the hole of the first dolls ear. The wire came out
from the dolls mouth. He did the same with the second doll and the
wire came out from the dolls other ear. In the third doll, the wire went
to the heart and did not come out.

Tenali Rama explained, In the first doll, the wire went in through the
ear and came out through the mouth. So, this doll is bad as it
represents people who cannot keep a secret. In the second doll, the
wire came out of the other ear. So, it is average and represents
harmless people who do not understand what is said to them. The
third doll, in which the wire went to the heart and did not come out,
represents good people who will keep the secret that you tell them.

The king, the merchant and all the courtiers were very impressed with
Tenalis wise answer. Then Tenali said, but there can be another
explanation too. The first doll represents people who gain knowledge
and spread it among others, so it is good. The second doll represents
people who do not understand what they are taught, so it is average.
The third doll represents people who have knowledge but keep it all
to themselves. They do not teach anyone anything and so they are bad
people.

Krishna Deva Raya was very fond of collecting rare

objects. One day, a courtier had an idea. He asked a painter to colour
a peacock red. The painter did his job so well and the peacock really
looked naturally red.

The courtier took the peacock to the kings chamber and after
presenting it to him, said: "Sir, this is the rarest red peacock available
only in the dense forest. I have spent a large amount on it, so that you
can add this rare bird in your precious collection." The king was
surprised on seeing the peacock and observed the peacock. He was
confused. But the peacock looked naturally red so the king said "Yes,
it is the rarest peacock. I am glad to have."

The king gave 1000 gold coins for red peacock.

Tenalirama was present there when that peacock was presented to the
king. While the king was talking to the courtier he smelled a faint
smell of paint.

Raman left the court and asked his servant to find the good painters of
the town. Raman asked them to paint five peacocks with red paint.

Next day, Tenalirama took the painter and five peacocks with him to
the court. Tenalirama said, " Sir, yesterday you received one red
peacock today I have five more peacocks. And while you gave
twenty-five thousand gold coins for one I m ready to sell five for
only 1000 gold coins."

The king again found them naturally red. And the king gave an order
to Tenalirama "You can take 1000 gold coins from the royal
treasury"

On hearing this Tenali Raman said, "Sir you should give the award to
this painter as he painted the peacock so beautifully so as to make
them look naturally red"

King asked, "Are they not naturally red?"

"No, you smell them closely and you would get the faint smell of the
pain said Tenalirama. The kind did so and awarded the painter
handsomely. But that courtier was punished.

Tenali Raman once again proved that intelligence coupled with wit
was greater strength.

Once upon a time the good King Krishna Deva Raylans mother fell
ill, and the poor king was distraught. He called every doctor in the
land to court, but everyone agreed that she was too ill to recover.
"Nothing can be done," they concurred.
When his mother heard the news, she called her son to her side. "My
beloved, I have just one more wish before I die."
Naturally Rayalu was determined to fulfill his mother's wish, and so
he said, "Of course, whatever you want. I am king, and anything can
be yours."
"Very well," she said. "I wish to eat a mango before I die."
It was the time of year when the trees were just beginning to bloom,
and it would be many more weeks before the mango trees bore ripe
fruit. The king sent his servants out in search of a mango. "Cost is no
object," he said. "Go where you must. Whatever you do, find a nice,
sweet mango for my mother."
The servants set off, and they travelled everywhere, searching every
farm and field in the land. At long last one of the servants found a ripe
mango, and he hurried back to the palace as fast as he could. The
journey was long, and before he had arrived, the king's mother died.
Rayalu was beside himself with sadness. "How could I fail my mother
in her final wish?" he wept to his advisers. "I am king. I should not
have let my mother down."
The thought that she had died without once more tasting a mango sent
him into the depths of despair. So, sad was he that he could not even
rise from bed. He no longer read poetry. He could not smile or eat or
speak. He could not give orders to his servants. How could he ask
anyone for anything? After all, if he had failed his mother, he would
surely fail at anything and everything he tried to do. He was
convinced of that.
His advisers became very concerned and gathered to discuss what
they could do to help their king. The Royal Master thought for a
while, and at long last he had an idea. He hurried to the king's
bedside.
"Sir, your mother was always generous to the poor of our nation. I
believe she would be happy if you fulfilled her desire to help others in
need. Perhaps you could give away mangoes to the poor to feed
them."
The king's eyes lit up. "Yes, I can help the poor just as my mother did.
Do you think this will ease her soul?"
"I am certain of it," said the Royal Master.
"But I must do more," the king urged. The next day he called his
advisers to his chambers. "We shall give away not only mangoes. We
shall give away gold!"
Before long word spread that the king would pass out mangoes and
gold to all the poor in the land. He would do this in his mother's
memory. And from everywhere the Brahmins soon came. They lined
up outside the palace, and the line grew so long that there seemed no
end in sight.
Day after day, the advisers passed out mangoes and gold, and
eventually the chief of the king's finances began to worry. "We'll run
out of gold if this does not stop," he told the advisers. "We must warn
the king."
The advisers told the king that he must stop. "You will have no
money," they cautioned.
But the king refused to stop. "I must fulfill my mother's every desire,"
he said.
So, the lines continued, the handouts continued, and the advisers
became more and more worried. Then one morning the king's trusted
adviser Tenali Raman had an idea as he watched the long lines
outside the palace.
He told the servants and soldiers to tell each Brahmin that he must
speak to Tenali Raman before he walked inside for his mango and
gold.
Everyone knew that Tenali Raman was one of the king's closest
advisers, so naturally they assumed it was the king's orders to speak to
him. When the first Brahmin came to see him, Tenali Raman smiled
and said, "We have changed things a little today. The king wishes to
give extra gold to he who has a burn upon his back."
When the Brahmin heard this, he begged Tenali Raman to burn him.
Later, when this Brahmin approached Rayalu, the king as usual
handed him one mango and a gold coins, but the Brahmin said, "Sir, I
have a burn, please give me the extra gold."
"What on earth are you talking about?" the king asked, and so the
Brahmin told him the story.
The king was furious, and he called Tenali Raman to his chambers.
"How dare you harm our people! What were you thinking?"
Tenali Raman bowed. "My dear king, please understand, when my
mother was dying, she asked me to please burn her back, for she
believed this would keep her alive. I refused. But you see, if I had
fulfilled her wish, she might live still. But I am poor and cannot invite
the Brahmins to come to me. And since all these men have come to
you, I thought in this way I might fulfill my poor dead mother's wish."
When the king heard this story, he understood the lesson Tenali
Raman was trying to teach him. "You want me to think more
carefully about what I am doing, isn't that so?" the king asked.
Tenali Raman bowed his head and said, "If you say so, sir."

The king wanted all his people to grow horses.

He called all his people and gave them one horse each to bring up. He
also gave them lot of straw so that the horses can eat. All people were
happy except Tenalirama. He tied his horse in a room and daily in the
morning gave it very little straw. The rest of the straw he gave to his
cows. His wife was very angry and said, "It is too bad"

After one more year, the king wanted to see all his horses. All of them
brought their horses. They were indeed very strong. But King noticed
that Tenalirama had not brought his horse. He asked him why he has
not brought his horse. Tenalirama replied that his horse was very
strong and he could not bring it. The king was surprised. He said, I
will send my guard to your house tomorrow.

Next day the guard went to Tenali Ramans house. He had a beard,
which was very long. Tenali Raman took him to the room where the
house was kept locked. He asked him to see through the window. The
inspector peeped in through the narrow window and his beard entered
the room first. The horse thought that it was straw. It Caught the beard
of the guard and started pulling. The inspector was crying in pain. The
Guard lost his beard and ran to the king.
He told the king that Tenalirama's horse was very strong. King gave
Tenali Raman 100 gold coins

Once in that city there was lot of problems due

to rats. Rats were everywhere. They were eating all sorts of books and
papers. They also used to make holes in wooden shelves and eat rice.
Sometimes they even nibbled the ears of little clever girls. Everybody
knows that Cats Kill rats. But there were so many rats in the city but
very few cats. So, the king asked every house in the city to grow cats.
But cats need milk to drink. Most of the houses did not have cows.
So, the king gave cows to every house and asked them to grow them
too. All people were happy and used to give cats lot of milk to drink.
Tenali Raman was a lazy man and liked to drink milk. So, the first
day he boiled the milk and poured it in a pan. He gave the piping hot
milk to the cat. The cat, which was hungry came and sipped the milk
from the pan. Since the milk was hot it burnt its mouth. The cat ran
away. The next day and the next Tenali Raman did the same thing.
After a few days, he stopped giving milk to the cat and started
drinking it himself.
Tenali Ramans cat was lean and hungry and all other cats were stout
and happy. One day the king wanted to see all the cats given by him
and give prize to the fat cat. He was very angry with Tenali Raman
for not growing his cat properly. Then Tenali Raman told the king
that he was not lucky since his cat did not drink any milk. The king
wanted to put Tenali Raman in Jail for telling a lie and wanted him to
prove what he said.
Then Tenali Raman brought the pan of milk and his cat. The cat on
seeing the milk ran away. It thought that it was being given again hot
milk. The king pitied Tenali Raman and let him away. The clever
Tenali Raman lived happily forever drinking lots and lots of milk.
 Once, Raja Krishnadeva Rayalu was
invited by Adil Shah, the Sultan of Delhi to settle the ongoing conflict
that was going on between the two regions.
Hoping to prevent unnecessary bloodshed and re-establish peace,
Rayalu headed for Delhi with his team of poets, dancers and scholars.
At Delhi, Adil Shah gave a red-carpet welcome to Rayalu. During the
pleasant rounds of discussions, Krishnadeva Rayalus poets recited
some sequences from the epic Mahabharat. Adil Shah was immensely
impressed to hear the verses from the epic and requested Rayalu to
make his men rewrite the Mahabharat, portraying him and his friends
as Pandavas and his rivals as Kauravas.
King Krishnadeva Raya was shocked to hear such a strange demand
from the Sultan.
He was worried that if his men failed to meet the Sultans demand
properly, he might declare a war on Vijaya Nagar. Seeing his king
worried, Tenalirama promised him that he will handle the situation in
the most prudent way possible.
The king was certain that Tenaliram would cope with the intricate
wisely, and hence he granted him the permission to deal with the
Delhi Sultan directly.
Next morning, Tenaliram sought permission to meet the Sultan in
private. He presented himself before the Sultan and requested him
with folded hands, Your Highness! It was our pleasure to know
about your interest in our ancient texts. The best of our writers and
poets are busy composing the new Mahabharat, but there is one place
where we have got stuck and wish to seek your guidance.
The Sultan said, Speak up, O Poet! What do you desire of me?
Tenaliram said, Jhampani! You are being portrayed as Dharmaraja,
eldest of Pandeva and your friends as Bheema, Arjuna, Nakula and
Sahadeva. But, as you know all the five were married to Draupadi and
were sharing her equally.
Who, amongst the royal family, should be described as her?
The Sultan most certainly did not want his royal Beghum to be
equated with Draupadi and hence, ordered Tenaliram to stop re-
writing the Mahabharata with immediate effect.
Everyone including Rayalu appreciated the sharp intelligence and
presence of mind that Tenaliram had displayed in solving the toughest
problem just like that.

Long time ago, there lived a

beautiful woman called Vidyullatha in Vijayanagar. She was a
learned lady who was accomplished in all genres of fine arts.
One day, out of her pride and arrogance over her abilities, she put a
hoarding outside her house that said, A reward of one thousand gold
coins would be presented to those who would be able to defeat her in
humour, wit and knowledge of ancient texts.
This became a prestigious issue for all the scholars in the region.
Many of them took up the challenge and tried to defeat Vidyullatha in
the war of words, but none succeeded.
Days passed like this. One morning, a vendor happened to pass by her
house selling the firewood. The man was shouting at the top of his
voice, Firewood. Strong Firewood. Who wants my strong and
long-lasting firewood?
The vendor had a shrill voice and was shouting consistently which
irritated Vidyullatha. She stormed out of the house and called the
vendor, Vendor! Come here! I will buy your firewood. Just tell me
know much do you want for it, but please stop shouting.
The vendor replied, Madam, I will not sell this for money. If you can
give me a handful grain I will readily give you all the firewood that I
have.
The vendor said, I need a handful grain, Madam. Have you
understood me clearly?
Vidyulltha yelled at the vendor, You are asking me whether I have
understood what a handful of grains mean? I am the most learned lady
in the entire district! I know what you want. Now stop arguing and
put this firewood in the backyard.
The persistent vendor said, Madam, I pity you! You really do not
know what I want. If you cannot pay the price, you should pay me
one thousand gold coins and wipe the invitation hoarding on the
compound wall.
Vidyullatha was infuriated. She asked angrily, What nonsense are
you saying?
The vendor said, There is no nonsense in what I am saying. I told
you the price and you agreed for it. Now if you cannot pay the price,
you must give me one thousand gold coins for you have clearly failed
to understand what I meant. And considering that, I have defeated you
in the war of words.
A heated argument ensued between the two and then Vidyullatha
decided to approach the provincial Court of Law for justice. She
presented her argument in front of the judge, My Lord! This
firewood vendor is crazy. He asked for a handful of grains in lieu of
his load of firewood. I agreed to give him that but he keeps arguing.
The judge looked at the vendor and asked him what the matter was.
He humbly replied, Sir, I informed her beforehand that the load of
firewood would cost her a handful grain. I wanted one grain that
could fill the hand. If she cannot understand this much, she has no
right to put up that hoarding in front of her house.

Vidyullatha was outwitted by the firewood vendor and the verdict was
given in favour of the vendor. Vidyullatha was ordered to pay him
one thousand gold coins and ordered to take down the hoarding from
her wall.
That witty vendor was none other than Tenalirama. He had also heard
about Vidyulallthas arrogance and haughtiness, and had thus taken
the guise of firewood vendor to teach her a lesson.
 Once, there lived a man who was very rich but
was a miser. He had a lot of money but did not like to spend it on
anyone. One day, he was very sad because ants had entered his bowl
of sugar. So, he thought of drying the sugar in the sun to drive the ants
out. He placed the sugar in a heap on a large piece of paper and kept it
out in the sun. But he was worried that his friend, Subba Sastry might
come and eat the sugar so he sat on watch next to it.
Subba Sastry, who was very fond of sweets in any form, and had seen
the rich man keep the sugar out in the sun. He called his son and said,
I am going to the rich mans porch to talk to him. After five minutes,
come running to me, shouting Our cow is dead.
After giving his son these instructions, Subba Sastry went to the rich
mans porch and started talking to him. Subba Sastry asked the rich
man why he was looking so upset. The rich man replied that he had
been having a lot of losses. Then Subba Sastry asked him what he was
drying and the rich man replied by saying that water had fallen into
some mud in his garden so he was drying it.
Just then, Subba Sastrys son came running to the porch shouting,
Our cow is dead! Our cow is dead! Subba Sastry pretended to be
grieving, and as was the custom, picked up one handful of the mud
that was sugar and put it into his mouth. He picked up another handful
and put it in his sons mouth. The rich man was shocked to see this.
He started shouting, This is not mud! Dont eat it. This is sugar.
Subba Sastry replied, No, you told me that this is mud. It tastes like
mud, too. He went on eating till all the sugar was over. The miserly
rich man was left sad and grieving over the loss of his sugar.
 King Krishna Deva Rayalu had a royal teacher
by the name of Thathacharya. Thathacharya belonged to the
Vaishnavite sect, the followers of which worship Sri Maha Vishnu as
the Supreme God. Thathacharya was very defiantly opposed to the
Smarthas who follow the tradition instituted by Sri Adi
Shankaracharya.
Whenever Thathacharya stepped out of his house, he used to cover his
face with his cloak so that he would not have to look at any Smarthas.
This annoyed the people of the town a lot and they nicknamed him
stupid ritualist. The learned Smarthas and other people of the town
wanted to teach Thathacharya a lesson for humiliating them but were
afraid to do so as he was the royal teacher of the king. After a lot of
pondering, they finally decided to entrust this job to Tenali Raman.
Together, all the learned people went to Tenali and asked him to seek
a solution to their problem. Tenali Raman thought that it was a
difficult task but he assured them that he would do his best.
Around the same time, King Rayalu also became aware of
Thathacharyas mannerisms and how they were hurting the
sentiments of the rest of the public. He was concerned that this may
lead to communal differences in the kingdom. So, he, too, summoned
Tenali and said, I am going to entrust you with a very important and
confidential task. It has been brought to my notice that Thathacharya
is humiliating the Smarthas by his mannerisms and behaviour towards
them. People are disgusted with him. I cannot take any action against
him personally because he is an elderly person and is also my family
master. So, it is now up to you. You must find a solution.
Tenali Raman replied that he would do his best to bring about a
change in Thathacharyas ideology towards the Smarthas.
The next day, Tenali paid a visit to Thathacharya. Thathacharya was
just about to leave his house and on seeing Tenali, he started covering
his face with his cloak. Seeing this, Tenali said loudly, Dear Master,
I am your beloved disciple. Why are you covering your face?
Thathacharya replied, Tenali Rama, since you really are my beloved
disciple, let me tell you a secret. The Smitha culture is full of sin.
Whoever looks at a Smarthite will be born as a donkey in the next
birth. Therefore I cover my head and avoid looking at Smarthas. Keep
this a secret, dont reveal this to anyone.
Tenali promised to keep this knowledge secret and left. He was
overjoyed as he had finally found a way of teaching Thathacharya a
lesson. Now, he just had to wait for the right opportunity. A few days
later, King Rayalu along with Thathacharya, the Ashta Diggajas and
some other courtiers went on a leisurely picnic to a garden on the
outskirts of the city. After spending the day there, when they started
returning, they saw a large herd of donkeys coming their way. Seeing
this, Tenali Rama left the kings side and rushed forward towards the
donkeys. He fell prostrate on the ground and started paying homage to
the donkeys.

Everyone present, including the king, was astonished to see Tenalis

behaviour. The king shouted, Tenali, have you lost your mind? Why
are you paying respects to those donkeys?
Tenali Rama replied, No, Your Honour, I have not gone crazy. All
these donkeys are Thathacharyas ancestors and relatives. I feel so
blessed on seeing them reborn as donkeys. They have been reborn as
donkeys because of their sin of having looked at Smarthas in their
previous birth. Therefore Thathacharya covers his face to prevent
himself from the sin of seeing Smarthas. If you do not believe me,
you can ask him yourself.
King Rayalu looked at Thathacharya for an explanation but
Thathacharya just stood there with his head hung low in shame. From
that day onwards, Thathacharya stopped covering his face on seeing
Samarths or humiliating people from different traditions or cultures in
any other way. King Rayalu was impressed the way Tenali Rama
dealt with this difficult situation and felicitated him with a reward.
 One early morning, King Rayalu woke
up. He sleepily walked out of his room and called out to the guards.
When a guard appeared, the king ordered him to fetch the barber
immediately. The guard left to carry out his orders and the king
returned to his room. He sat down comfortably in an easy chair and in
no time, he was deep asleep again.
When the Barber came to the kings room, he found the king sleeping
in the chair. He did not want to wake the king up. So, very quietly and
expertly, he trimmed the kings hair and shaved his beard. The king
was still sleeping soundly when the barber completed his job and left.
A little while later, the king woke up. As he did not see the barber
whom he had summoned, he got angry. He shouted for his attendant
and told him to bring the barber to him that very instant. The
attendant rushed off to carry out his order. Just then, the king
happened to put his hand on his chin. To his surprise, his chin felt
smooth and shaved. So, the king went to take a look at himself in the
mirror. He saw that is hair had been trimmed neatly and his beard was
properly shaved. The king was impressed with the barbers work.
When the attendant brought the barber along, the king said to the
barber, You have done good work today. I am impressed with you.
Ask for a boon and I shall grant it.
The barber was very happy to hear this. He replied, Your Majesty,
you have been so kind that my family and I have no dearth of
anything. But, since long I have had just one wishthat is to become
a Brahmin if Your Highness can bestow this boon upon me.
The king was astonished on hearing the barbers wish but he said, If
that is what you desire, it shall be fulfilled tomorrow. The barber was
overjoyed and he left the room, praising the king. Then, the king
summoned some Brahmins and instructed them, I have promised to
transform the barber to a Brahmin. You must make sure that you carry
out the transformation with all your knowledge. I will reward all of
you suitably. Lured by the mention of the reward, the Brahmins
agreed at once to transform the barber to a Brahmin.
This news spread around the town and became a cause of great
concern for the Brahmins. They talked among themselves, What the
king is doing is not fair. It is something that goes against dharma. You
cannot just transform somebody into a Brahmin. This will result in
more and more people wanting to become a Brahmin. But none of
them had the courage to voice their objections openly for fear of
punishment. So, they decided to go to Tenali Raman to seek a
solution. Tenali listened to the whole story and assured the Brahmins
that he will do his best to stop this activity.

The next morning, the Brahmins who were ordered by the king, took
the barber to the holy river and began the procedure of the
transformation by chanting hymns and mantras. The king was also
sitting at a distance and looking over the proceedings.
Suddenly, the king saw that at some distance, Tenali was standing
beside a black dog. Out of curiosity, the king walked up to Tenali and
asked him what he was doing with the dog. Tenali replied that he was
trying to transform the black dog into a white cow.
The king laughed loudly and said, Oh Tenali. You are such a fool!
How can a dog turn into a cow by giving it a dip in holy water and
chanting hymns around him?
Tenali replied, My Lord, forgive me for being foolish. But tell me, if
that barber can be transformed into a Brahmin, why cant this black
dog change to a white cow?
On hearing Tenalis words, the king realized his mistake. He called
the barber and told him that it was not possible to transform him into
a Brahmin so he should ask for another wish.
The barber replied respectfully that because of the kings kindness he
had plenty of everything and did not need anything.
The king appreciated Tenalis intelligence and rewarded him for
opening his eyes and stopping him from doing things against dharma.
 At the time when Krishnadevaraya ruled over
Vijayanagar, King Babar ruled over Delhi. Tenali was a famous jester
in King Krishnadevarayas royal court. When King Babar heard
Tenalis tales of wit and intelligence, he wished to meet him. So, he
sent a messenger to Vijayangar to request Tenali to visit Delhi. With
King Krishnadevarayas permission Tenali went to Delhi with the
messenger.
In Delhi, Tenali was welcomed and settled in the royal guest house.
The messenger went to King Babar to inform him about Tenalis
arrival. The next days appointment was fixed between King Babar
and Tenali. Babar told his courtiers, Tenali, the great witty jester from
Vijayanagar has come to Delhi. Tomorrow in the royal court none of
us must smile or laugh at his jokes. I want to test him as to how he
will make us laugh and win a reward.
The courtiers of Delhi Durbar promised not to smile or laugh that day
in the court before the guest. At the given time Tenali also arrived in
the Dilli Durbar. He told many witty tales and jokes to courtiers and
King Babar, but all remained silent. No one even smiled at the jokes.
This went on every day for 15 days. From the sixteenth day Tenali
stopped going to Delhi Durbar. He disguised himself and followed the
King Babar everywhere to note his daily routine. Babar used to go for
stroll by the river Yamuna with his prime minister every morning. On
the way, they would give gold coins to the poor and the needy
beggars. After observing this Tenali planned.
Next morning, Tenali dressed up as an old man. He took a spade and
a mango sapling and stood by the river Yamuna waiting for the King
Babars arrival. Seeing him at a distance Tenalis started planting the
sapling. King Babar came to him and said, Old man, you are very old
indeed. You wont live long enough to enjoy the fruits of the tree you
are planting. Why are you taking so much trouble? Your Majesty, I
enjoyed the fruits from the trees planted by my ancestors. This trees
fruits will be enjoyed by the others. I find joy in giving to others. I am
not planting this to myself. The king was impressed by the reply and
gave a bag full of gold coins. The old man thanked him and said,
Your Majesty you are indeed a great and kind king. People get the
fruits when the tree has grown but you have given me the fruit of my
labours even before I had planted the sapling. The thoughts of helping
others has really benefited me.
I like this thought of yours. You can now take this second bag of gold
coins as a reward, King Babar said. Oh, Your Majesty, this tree will
bear fruits once in a year only but before it has been planted you have
filled my arms with fruits of joys twice. King Babar said, I like your
thoughts and impressed by them and gave the third bag too to old
man. Now the prime minister got worried and said to king, your
majesty lets leave now, this man is too intelligent. His witty remarks
will claim all the royal wealth from you. King Babar laughed and got
ready to walk away. Now the old man said, Your Majesty, can you
give me just a look? When Babar turned to look, he saw Tenali
holding a false beard in his hands. King Babar burst out in laughing
on seeing what Tenali had been up to. He said, I am pleased, Tenali.
You have truly proved that you are witty and a great jester.

King Babar called Tenali to the court and gave him many more royal
rewards. When Tenali returned to Vijayanagar, King Krishnadevaraya
was proud to see how Tenali had saved grace. Tenali smiled and said,
so Your Majesty I am fit for a reward from you too. King
Krishnadeva Raya agreed with a smile and gave Tenali ten thousand
gold coins as a reward.

Once, a great pundit from a foreign land visited King

Krishna Deva Rayas court. He claimed that he had knowledge of all
subjects and was an expert in every field. He challenged that he would
argue with all his wise ministers and defeat them. The king accepted
his challenge. The pundit then proceeded to argue with the learned
men of the kingdom on various subjects. The kings ministers failed
miserably. Then, the king summoned his wisest minister, Tenali rama.
Tenali took a small bundle from his home, gave it the shape of a book
and tied it up. Then, he went to the court and announced that he was
ready to argue against the pundit but on the condition that the topic of
their debate would be based on the great book Thilakashta Mahisha
Bandhanam. The great pundit was stumped when he heard this
because he had never heard of any such book. He asked the king to
give him one nights time to prepare for the argument. He was
sleepless all night. He could not bear the thought of losing so he took
all his belongings and left the city before sunrise. He left a note for
the king saying that he had never heard of the great book.
The next day, at the appointed time Tenali appeared in court for the
debate. But he was informed that the pundit had already gone away.
The king being a learned man wanted to read the great book that
Tenali had mentioned, so he asked Tenali about it. Tenali laughed and
replied that there was no such book called Thilakashta Mahisha
Bandhanam. Inside the bundle, there was till which is called Thila in
Sanskrit and some sheep dung which in Sanskrit is known as Kashta.
These contents were tied by a rope made of buffalos hide which is
called Mahisha. Bandhanam refers to tying in Sanskrit.
This is how Tenali tricked the pundit into believing that there was a
great book that the pundit was completely unaware of. The king
appreciated Tenalis intelligence and rewarded him.

Krishnadevaraya was very fond of horses.

He never spared any thought or money when it came to buying well
bred horses. He was known for owning some of the countrys best
horses.
One day a horse trader, a foreigner from an Arabian Country, came to
his court and announced, I have some fine horses for sale. They are
the best Arabian steeds you can get in the whole world. I have
brought one horse to show you. If you like him I can send in for the
others . The Emperor was very excited by the offer, as the only breed
he didnt have in his stables were the Arabian steeds. He saw the
majestic horse standing outside his palace and immediately offered to
buy the whole lot of them. The man took an advance of 5000 gold
coins and promised to return with the whole set of horses in 2 days
and went away.
Two weeks passed and the King saw no sign of the trader. He was
growing a little impatient and went out into his garden for a stroll to
take his mind off the trader. He saw Raman sitting in the corner of his
gardens, feverishly writing something on a sheet of paper.
What are you writing Raman? he asked. Raman continued to write
without looking up. The King was very curious and demanded I
command that you show me what you are writing immediately.
Well sir, you may not like it, but Im making a list of greatest fools
in the empire, said Raman.
The Emperor was astonished at the reply. Hand over the paper to
me he said. I need to see the names in there. I am sure that the list
you have written must be quite sensible and true. Raman handed over
the paper and within a moment he heard the Kings voice thundering,
How dare you write my name on top of the list Raman? Isnt this the
height of impudence to your King? I demand an explanation. You
think I am a fool indeed!
Any man who would give 5000 gold coins to a stranger and expect
him to return, is a fool! replied Raman.
Oh! so thats what is troubling you said the Emperor. You think
the man wont return. What if he does? You are wrong then
In that case, said Raman with a twinkle in his eye, Ill scratch out
your name and put his there The King understood the wise words
behind Ramans wit and never again made any major decisions
without consulting his beloved courtier.
King Krishnadeva Raya had forgotten a promise of gifting lot of gold
coins to Tenali. Tenali was looking for an opportunity to remind the
king about the promise.

One day, on seeing a camel the king wondered, why God created an
animal with such an ugly hump on his back.

Tenali told him that the camel did not keep a promise in his previous
birth. So, God has punished him with promise as a burden on his
back, in his next birth.

This reminded the king about the forgotten promise. King promptly
ordered the treasurer to give hundred gold coins to Tenali Rama.

Once upon a time, king Krishnadeva raya prepared his army to invade
another city called Bijapur. The king of Bijapur heard about this
invasion. He knew well that he could not win against the king
Krishnadevaraya. So, he wanted to stop the war.
He finds out the Krishnadevaraya is a firm believer of astrology and
wanted to deal with him using astrology. King of Bijapur selected one
of the astrologer of his palace and sent him to Krishnadevaraya. The
astrologer was paid to convince the king and stop the war.
The astrologer met the king Krishnadevaraya and analysed his
horoscope. He told the king, Respected king, as per your horoscope,
the movements of planets are not favourable at present. The chance of
winning a war is remote. It is better to postpone the war for some
time.
As the king already made full arrangement for the war, he got
confused. The queen and other ministers were also afraid about the
words of astrologer and advised king to postpone the war.
Tenali Rama was observing all the above silently. He could guess that
the astrologer was not telling the truth.
Tenali Rama called the astrologer and asked, Whether your forecast
will be true always. Whether you can tell the future of anybody
through your astrology. If so then please tell me the proposed life
span of yours.
The astrologer replied, Dear sir, my astrology will always be true.
My life span according to my horoscope is 90 years.
Rama suddenly took his sword and cut the head of the astrologer. He
turned and told the king, He is a liar. He is unable to forecast his own
life span. He is supposed to live up to 90 years but died now.
The king understand that the astrologer was from Bijapur and invaded
Bijapur as per his plan. He won the war and praised Rama for his
timely act.