Tales of Tenali Raman - Tenali Raman and The Incense Stick

One day the topic discussed in the royal court of Krishnadevaraya was intelligence. The king kept talking about his courtiers’ intelligence. Some of the courtiers were very jealous of Tenali Raman and hence they told the king that they were very intelligent and clever but they didn’t get a chance to show their intelligence because of Tenali Raman.

King Krishnadevaraya did give a thought to this issue. He decided to do something about it in order to ensure a harmonious environment in his court. He turned to Lord Vishnu for guidance. His attention diverted to the incense stick burning in front of the god. The lighted incense stick was spreading scented smoke in the room. 

All of a sudden, the king got an idea. He said to his courtiers, “I think you are right. You don’t get to prove your superiority because of Tenali Raman but you will get a chance to prove your superiority in the court. You can participate in a content for the same and thus you can get a chance to prove your extra intelligence and cleverness.”

He further told Tenali Raman, “Tenali, you are not allowed to speak or do anything in that contest.” This made all the courtiers who were jealous of Tenali very happy. Finally, they were getting an opportunity to impress the king with their intelligence. 

The king said to all courtiers, “As you all can see the smoke coming from the incense stick. Bring me the smoke of the lighted incense stick of the length of one yard. The one who manages to do this will be declared as the most intelligent man in my court. He will also be declared as cleverer than Tenali Raman.”

The courtiers were shocked after hearing the king. They said, “What is the king saying? How is this possible? How can anyone measure smoke?” The king saw their surprised faces. He said, “You all wanted to prove your intelligence to me so this is to test your intelligence. I know some of you are capable of solving this so do it.”

The courtiers thought that somehow, they had to find some solution to this. Some tried to measure the smoke that was coming out of the lighted incense stick but in vain. Whenever they tried to measure, the smoke would disperse in wavy moments. Many of the courtiers kept trying various ways to measure the smoke till evening but nothing happened. 

King Krishnadevaraya silently smiled at their futile efforts. Finally, the courtiers got tired after numerous efforts. One of them said to the king, “Your majesty, it is impossible to measure the smoke and to bring it in one yard length. I am sure even Tenali Raman cannot do it. Tell him to do it but I am sure he will fail this task too like us and thus he shouldn’t be given more importance henceforth.” All the courtiers agreed with him.

The king said, “Okay, I will tell Tenali to accomplish this task. If he succeeds this then we have to declare him the most clever and intelligent person.” All the courtiers agreed.

King Krishnadevaraya turned to Tenali Raman, “Are you ready to accept this challenge?” Tenali Raman stood up from his seat and came forward. He bowed to the king and said, “Yes sir, I want to try doing it with your permission.”

King Krishnadevaraya smiled, “Alright, you can proceed.” Tenali Raman called one of his servants and gave him some instructions in a low voice. The servant nodded and went away. He came back in a few minutes with a glass tube in his hands. The glass tube was sealed at one end and open from another. The glass tube measured one yard. 

There was a pin drop silence in the court now. Everybody was eager to what Tenali Raman would do next. They didn’t want to miss any detail about how Tenali tried to accomplish this impossible task. 

Tenali Raman went near the lighted incense stick. He held the open end of the glass in such a way that the rising smoke started filling the glass tube. Within a few moments, the glass tube was completely filled with smoke. Tenali Raman closed the open end of the glass tube with a cloth tightly. 

Tenali then came to the king and handed him the glass tube saying, “Here is your smoke my Lord. This measures one yard. You can measure this with a ruler if you like.”

All the courtiers were shocked by what Tenali had done. King Krishnadevaraya smilingly praised Tenali Raman. He turned to the courtiers and said, “Now you all have to accept that Tenali Raman is the cleverest of all."

Tales of Tenali Raman - Tenali Raman's Unmatched Wit

King Krishnadevaraya was brave and skilled in the art of war. He was a great soldier too. He conquered the neighboring weak and cruel kingdoms and added vast areas to the Vijaynagar Kingdom. 

Once he had to fight a decisive war with his enemy but he was worried as his enemy was very strong. Before the war, he wanted to be sure of his victory. So he called his royal astrologer to ask him for an auspicious time to march into the war which could lead him to a victory. 

The astrologer was a very wise scholar. He consulted his charts and calculated the positions of the stars and planets in conjunction with the king’s star sign. He made a favorable conclusion and told the king, “Your Majesty, you can start marching with your troops on the coming Sunday. I see that some stars favor you and some don’t. You will have to worship god in a particular way to appease him and only then the victory will be yours.”

However, the king could not follow his astrologer’s advice because his enemy had a huge army which already marched towards him. King knew he couldn’t afford disregarding his astrologer’s advice as he wanted to win the war. 

The king looked at his ministers but none said anything to him. He then looked at his favorite minister, Tenali but even he was quiet. Tenali Raman was blessed with Kalika Goddess and was very intelligent. Tenali could see the king’s predicament and he also shared the king’s worries. 

Tenali said to the king, “Your Majesty, let’s go to the battlefield.” The king accepted the challenge as he had a great respect for Tenali. When they reached the battlefield, Tenali saw that the rival army had already assembled. He made a keen observation of his and rival army’s strength and weaknesses. 

Tenali Raman said to the king, “Your majesty, I have analyzed both the army’s strength and weaknesses. I can now predict a victory for you.” The king was happy with this victorious outcome of the war but he was still uncertain about it because of what the astrologer had said. So he asked Tenali to explain the ideas and conclusions in detail. 

Tenali was very observant and he had judged the armies in a scientific way. He said to the king, “We can see a large number of elephants, less number of horses and a large number of soldiers in the enemy camp. On the other side, we have a few elephants but a powerful cavalry with specially trained Persian horses. We also have large number of young and energetic soldiers.”

He further added, “Our weapons are modern but enemy comes with old and traditional weapons. Their soldiers are old and don’t seem to have any of the enthusiasm. Our soldiers look confident and are highly experienced. You are also a great warrior and you have fought many wars and won them. Hence you have a great advantage over the enemy and more chances of winning.”

The king got a little thoughtful after hearing this. Tenali Raman said, “You don’t need to worry at all, your Majesty. All you have to do is forget that you consulted any astrologer. Leaver your worries aside and think like a great warrior. Decide your own military strategies. Strike the enemy’s elephants and create a havoc in the enemy camp. While the enemy would be in confused, you move in your cavalry and defeat them.”

The king did not show any reaction. Now Tenali spoke aggressively, “Your majesty, if the astrologer had predicted your defeat, then would you have surrendered your empire to the enemy without a fight?” The king replied authoritatively, “No, never! That is impossible! I would have still fought till my last breath.”

Tenali Raman said, “So, why don’t you forget what the astrologer foretold? Do not depend on your stars and planet for victory. I would suggest that you start your war at the right moment when your enemy is at the weakest point. To depend on astrology is a sign of weakness. The predictions of the astrologers differ from man to man. What matters the most is faith in God and faith in yourself. Man can achieve the impossible with the right efforts. All people including me will pray for you. You will definitely win.”

Then the king said with confidence, “Yes, I will win the war.” At that moment, the king realized that Tenali Raman was such an extraordinary person. The king won that war and many other wars too. 

Tales of Tenali Raman - Tenali Raman and The Wicked Priest

Appalacharya was the family priest of King Krishnadevaraya.  He was also related the king and performed all the religious rituals for the king and his family. Appalacharya was a very talented scholar. He was respect by all in the court and the king would always consult him for certain issues. 

But even after all this, Appalacharya was neither happy nor satisfied. He always felt jealous of Tenali Raman. He thought he was way cleverer and more intelligent than Tenali Raman but his talent was not appreciated to that extent. After all, Appalacharya was just a priest and Tenali Raman was a minister. 

Whenever someone said anything good about Tenali Raman, Appalacharya got more and more jealous. He got more irritated towards Tenali. He started insulting Tenali often. 

There were two main sects during the time of Krishnadevaraya – the Smartha sect and the Vaishnava sect. Tenali Raman belonged to the Smartha sect and Appalacharya was from the Vaishnava sect. Appalacharya took advantage of this and started spreading rumors that the king was partial towards the Smartha sect and that was the reason why Tenali was made the minister. 

He gathered all the sect members and started misleading them by spreading such rumors. He also told them that Tenali hated the Vaishnava sect. He continued to spread such gossip to bring down Tenali Raman. 

The king was not aware of this jealousy and negative behavior of the priest but Tenali Raman was very much disturbed by this enmity from such a learned man. 

One early morning, Tenali went to Appalacharya’s house for some official work. Appalacharya saw him coming and once Tenali Raman came closer, Appalacharya covered his face with a cloth. Tenali Raman noticed it but did not comment. They discussed the official work and once concluding it, Tenali got up to leave. While leaving Tenali asked him, “Appalacharya, can you please tell me why did you cover your face when you saw me? Why is your face still covered?”

Appalacharya replied sarcastically, “Raman, you are very intelligent and knowledgeable so you should have understood my action. If we, Vaishnavas, see face of Smarthas first thing in the morning then we will be born as donkeys in our next birth.”

Tenali Raman was deeply hurt with this insulting reply. He had many friends from the Vaishnava sect and he knew this was not true. He decided to teach this arrogant and mean priest a lesson. 

Once, King Krishnadevaraya went on an outing with his courtiers. Tenali Raman and Appalacharya were also with him. They all saw some donkeys grazing in the nearby field. Tenali Raman went to the donkeys, knelt and bowed to the donkeys. The whole group stood in silence and looked at Tenali surprisingly. 

King knew about Tenali’s eccentric behavior and he knew there was some good reason behind his action. He asked Tenali, “Why are you bowing to the donkeys? Do they look like saint to you?”

Tenali replied, “No sir, it is nothing like that. I went to Appalacharya’s house sometime back for some official work early in the morning. Appalacharyaji covered his face when he saw me and when I asked him for the reason behind his behavior, Appalacharya kindly explained that when a Vaishnava sees Smartha’s face first thing in the morning, he becomes a donkey in his next birth. So, when I saw some donkeys here today, I thought they must be Appalcharya’s relatives so I felt it was my duty to bow down and kneel in respect and thus ask for their forgiveness on behalf of the Smarthas whose faces they had seen in their previous births.”

The king immediately realized what had happened. Some of his courtiers had disclosed the nefarious activities of Appalacharya to him. The king was appaled by Appalacharya’s behavior and Tenali Raman looked very hurt.

Before he could say anything, Tenali Raman spoke sadly, “Your majesty, I never hurt or harmed anybody. I never wish anything ill for anybody. We are what the God made us. Caste and religion are to worship God and achieve spirituality. It is not to measure one’s high or low position. I believe there is only one Supreme Power who can be called by many names so why do the learned try to hurt or harm us?”

The king felt sorry for Tenali Raman. He said, “Appalacharya, you are a scholar who is respected by everyone, even by me. You don’t have to be jealous about Tenali Raman or anyone. You have a distinctive place in my palace. You should have faith in me and my judgement. I don’t favor or discriminate anybody on the basis of their religion or language. The administration of this kingdom is based on the great Sage Vidyaranya’s principles. I am following his great teachings in all the matters of our kingdom. I can recognize merit and talent. I appoint my ministers and officers. I want my kingdom to flourish on good qualities of my ministers.”

The king further added, “I gave you many chances to prove your merit. It is not good on your part to behave in such manner. In future, if you indulge in activities unworthy of you, I shall not hesitate to send you away with punishment for your wrong actions. Consider this as a warning. Try to be a better man.”

Appalacharya took this advice in the right spirit. He begged the king for his forgiveness. He promised the king that he would behave properly and pledged his life for the betterment of the kingdom. He also assured Tenali Raman that he would only praise him in future and never ever hate him. 

Tales of Tenali Raman - Tenali Raman and The Talented Artist

Once the court of King Krishnadevaraya was visited by a courtier who gifted the king a pigeon with blue feathers. The king was rather surprised to see a blue feathered pigeon and asked the courtier where he found such a rare bird. The courtier replied, "My Lord, Recently I visited the jungles of Mysore, where I caught this bird with great difficulty. And I also saw some strange birds there."

Intrigued, the king asked, "Which other birds you saw there?" The courtier replied, "My Lord, I saw a red parrot, a golden peacock and also a green crane." The king said, "Fine! You go back there and bring me some more rare birds. I want all these birds here in my royal garden." The courtier said humbly, "But My Lord, this task is time consuming and very expensive."

To this the king replied, "Oh! Do not worry about this. I will exempt you from the court duty for one month. I will award you twenty thousand gold coins for each bird." The king ordered his royal treasurer to reward the courtier for the pigeon. The courtier smiled cunningly and returned to his seat.

Only Tenali had seen the courtier's smile and expression. He knew something was amiss. The bright colors on the pigeon looked unconvincing. He doubted whether the colors were even real. He decided to do something about it. The next day Tenali Raman went to the outskirts of the city and searched for a good artist. He placed and order for two birds of each kind the courtier had mentioned and told the artist to bring them in a cage after 5 days to the royal court. He handed some money to the artist.

After five days, Tenali came in the court with a big cage full of two red parrots, two green pigeons, a golden yellow peacock and blue crane. All the courtiers were surprised to see such rare birds. Tenali said to the king, "Your Majesty, I have brought some rare birds which I thought would look good in the royal garden." The king was surprised and inquired where Tenali found these birds. To this Tenali said,"Yes your Majesty, I went to the same place where the courtier went and found many varieties of rare birds. If you wish to have some more rare bird, I can get it within few days. All we have to do is order and it is done."

Shocked and little irritated with Tenali's answer, the king said, "What are you saying, Tenali? Explain yourself right now." Tenali replied, " My Lord, as you can see I have brought a bright blue crane, but if you wish to have a green crane, then you need to order for the same. It takes a few days, but you will get whatever you order." The king inquired, "What are you saying? Is it some magical place?" Tenali smiled and answered, "Not a place your Majesty, a man! The artist who has the talent of creating such magic."

And saying so, Tenali went out and came back with the artist. He introduced the man to the king, "My Lord, this is Vyakata. He belongs to a small village that is situated at the edge of the forest. He is a good artist and can color the birds to look like this." Now the king realized what Tenali wanted to tell him. He understood that his courtier had indeed cheated him. Immediately he summoned orders to suspend the courtier for three months and also to return the reward. Plus he asked the courtier to pay a penalty for the fraud. The kind thanked Tenali and honored him with precious gifts. The artist was also rewarded for his talent. 

Tales of Tenali Raman - Tenali Raman and The Unusual Cat

Once a merchant visited the courts of King Krishnadevaraya, and brought some Persian cats with him. The king immediately bought all the cats as a gift to his queen. The queen was very happy to receive this gift of cute cats and gave few of them to some of her favorite people in the court including Tenali Raman. Before giving one to Tenali, she instructed, "Tenali Raman, since you are one of my favorites, I am giving you this cat. Take care of her properly and feed her well. I have instructed the royal cowherd to give you one cow, so that you can give your cat plenty of milk to drink. I wish to see this cat after a month to check her growth."

Tenali took the cat home and couple of months passed by. The queen seemed to forget about the cats, until one day someone reminded her. All the persons whom she had gifted the cats were immediately summoned to the court along with the cats. The king and queen inspected each one of the cats and were happy to see that the cat which was with Tenali was the plumpest of all. The queen ordered one of her servants to get milk for all the cats. Once the milk bowls were brought, all cats except Tenali's rushed towards it. One of the servants took the milk bowl and kept it in front of Tenali's cat, but the cat ran and leapt into Tenali's lap. Everyone was surprised to see this incident. 

The surprised king asked Tenali the explanation for the cat's behavior. Tenali answered, "Your Majesty, we all know that cats always drink their milk with eyes closed. It seems they do this out of fear. But I wanted my cat to be fearless. So I wanted to get rid of this habit of my cat. To do so, I put a bowl of hot milk in front of it. I repeatedly told my cat to keep her eyes open and drink the milk. But it still closed it's eyes and started licking the milk. Since the milk was hot, it burnt her mouth. I applied an ointment on it. But since then, my cat runs away whenever it sees milk. So I have stopped giving her milk."

The king then asked surprisingly, "So how come your cat is fattest of all the other cats present here?" To this Tenali Raman replied, "My Lord, There are many rats in my house, as well as the neighbor's houses. I allow my cat to roam freely, whenever it is hungry and relish on those rats. My cat simply enjoys this, and recently this has also become one of it's favorite pastime. This way not only she enjoys her food, but also enjoys her freedom. This is how it has put on weight. "

The queen then inquired about the cow that she had given to Tenali for the milk to feed cat. Tenali answered to her query, "Your Highness! The cow gives plenty of milk which is full of cream. My children and his friends enjoy the delicious treat and thank you everyday." The king and the queen roared with laughter on hearing this. They were as usual pleased with Tenali's intelligent and witty jester. 

Tales of Tenali Raman - Tenali Raman And Challenge of The Linguist

Once in the court of King Krishnadevaraya, came a linguist who was known to have traveled all over India and learnt many languages. He conversed with the king's courtiers in many languages fluently. Everyone was thoroughly impressed with him including the king. Now the linguist challenged the court to find out what his mother tongue actually was. The court accepted the challenge and each one of them tried their best to find out the linguist's mother tongue.

One courtier who spoke to the linguist in Bengali said that the linguist was indeed a Bengali. Another one spoke to him in Hindi and declared that the linguist was Hindi.  Each one of the courtier came up with many languages they thought could have been the linguist's actual mother tongue. So no one reached to any solution. The linguist was smart and kept replying without actually revealing any truth. Later on he said to the king, "Dear Lord! There definitely going to be a lot of guessing. But I want more than just guessing".

So now the king turned towards Tenali Raman and asked him to try. Tenali Raman accepted the linguist's challenge. The linguist put a condition in front of the king, that if Tenali Raman failed in proving so, the king would have to reward the linguist with whatever he asked for. The king readily agreed as he had full confidence in Tenali.

Tenali turned to the linguist and said, "Sir, I really appreciate your superior linguistic skills. You indeed are very well read and intelligent. Though you are a master of lots of languages I still believe that you love your mother tongue very much. Please give me a day's time and I promise that I will give my reply tomorrow in this court." The linguist readily agreed and was made to stay in the palace as a royal guest. Tenali Raman himself made sure that all the staying arrangements made for the linguists were comfortable. The linguist was happy with the hospitality he received and enjoyed lovely dinner and soundly retired in his bed.

Tenali Raman had worked out a plan. He waited outside the quarters of the linguist until midnight. He made sure that the linguist was deep asleep. Then he tiptoed towards the linguist's bed. Tenali tickled the linguist slowly with a rough duster. Not once but he repeated the action twice. Suddenly woken from a deep slumber, the linguist started shouting, "Kon Che! Kon Che! Chowkidar! Ma Jagdambe, Raksha karo!" Tenali hid himself behind a cupboard and witnessed the whole act. Once he made sure that the linguist had gone back to sleep, he slid back, went to his house and slept well.

Next day in the court,  everyone including the king anxiously waited for Tenali. Even the linguist was eager about what was going to happen. Tenali Raman entered the court as his usual self and bowed down to the king. The king asked him," Tenali, can you tell us what his mother tongue is?" Tenali calmly answered, "Yes my lord. I can." The King said, "Then tell us," Tenali turned towards the linguist and said, "O Scholar of languages! You are an expert and I bow down to you. But I know your mother tongue is Gujarati. Please confirm it." The linguist replied, "My mother tongue is indeed Gujarati."

Everyone including the king was shocked and surprised to hear it. The king asked, " How did you know, Tenali?" Tenali Raman replied, " Everyone of us love their mother tongue. It is the most dearest to us. Though one may be proficient in many languages, yet he would always turn back to his mother tongue in dire circumstances. I used the same trick with our guest. Last night, I woke up our guest. Being disoriented and frightened he resorted to his mother tongue and shouted in Gujarati."

The linguist came forward and hugged Tenali. He admired his quick wit and praised him. The linguist regarded Tenali as a genius and as usual Tenali Raman proved that to be true. 

Tales of Tenali Raman - Tenali Raman and the Greedy Brahmins

Once when King Krishnadevaraya's mother got very ill, she spoke to the king about her wish of wanting to donate mangoes to the Brahmins. Not being a season of mangoes, the king found it difficult to fulfill her wish and before his guards could find any mangoes in the neighboring states,  his mother passed away. The king was heartbroken that he couldn't fulfill his mother's last wish. Time passed but king couldn't forget this episode at all.

So one day, the king called a Brahmin and asked him for an advice. He said, " O Brahmin! It was my mother's last wish to donate mangoes to the Brahmins. It was not a mangoes season so it was difficult enough and before we could find any, my mother passed away. I couldn't fulfill her last wish  and now I wonder whether my mother's soul will rest in peace?  O dear Brahmin! please help me to bring peace to my mother's soul."

This Brahmin was a greedy man and considered this as a golden opportunity to make some money for himself and the other Brahmins. He said to the king, " O my dear Lord! This is indeed a grave situation. If a person's last wish isn't fulfilled then the soul of this dead person never attains peace and wanders in the dark. Now that you haven't been able to fulfill her wish when she was alive, you will have to make sure that you fulfill it before its too late. But right now the only way to do this is not by donating real mangoes but only pure, golden mangoes to the Brahmins."

Being a religious and faithful man, King Krishnadevaraya readily agreed with the Brahmin's suggestion. He not only distributed golden mangoes among the Brahmins but also offered them other gifts. The Brahmins guaranteed the King that now his mother's soul would rest in peace. This made the king very happy and relieved.

Tenali Raman had witnessed the religious ceremony and was unhappy with the Brahmin's greed. The fact that angered him more was that the Brahmins had actually looted and deceived the king in the name of religion. So he decided to teach the Brahmins a lesson.

As soon as the Brahmins got ready to leave the king's court, Tenali Raman approached them and requested, " O dear Brahmins! I am so impressed with the rites that you performed to liberate the soul of the king's mother. It is my mother's death anniversary today and I request you to come visit my home and perform some religious rites for her. I have made arrangements for some gifts that I wish to give you after the rites are performed."


Hearing about the gifts the Brahmins readily agreed to perform the rites and happily went with Tenali Raman. They were aware of the fact that Tenali Raman always received gifts from the king for his witty answers and intelligence. So they knew that Tenali Raman would offer them expensive gifts. As soon as the Brahmins entered Tenali's house, Tenali locked the doors from inside and lighted a fire in the hearth inside the kitchen. He also put some long iron rods in the fire to heat.

The Brahmins were shocked by Tenali's act and wondered what was going on. They did not see any preparation for the religious rite that was to be performed. On the other hand Tenali was busy heating long iron rods and turning it properly from all sides to heat well.  After losing patience,  the Brahmins asked Tenali, "Dear Raman, can you tell us what is going on here? We don't see any signs of preparation for rites to perform. On the other hand you are busy heating iron rods. If you don't wish to perform any rite, please let us know so we could leave." On this Tenali replied, " O Brahmins! please have some patience. I am waiting for the rods to heat, once that is done you can start with the rituals."

Puzzled, the Brahmins started looking at one another. They started to get a bit nervous. One of them asked Tenali, " Tell us Dear Raman, what has iron rods got to do with the rites that are to be performed for your mother? This just looks like a complete waste of time and we have to return home."

Calmly, Tenali Raman replied, "The thing is my mother suffered from arthritis. She used red-hot irons to relieve pain in her joints. On her last day, she asked me to heat the iron rod, but before I could do so she passed away. Now I know that her soul hasn't attained peace because her last wish was not fulfilled. So I am going to put this red-hot irons on your bodies. This way I am sure her last wish will be fulfilled and finally her soul will rest in peace." The Brahmins looked shocked. Tenali continued, "Why not! If the king's mother can attain peace by you receiving golden mangoes then why can't my mother attain peace if I put red-hot iron on your bodies. If the king's sin can be recompensed by offering you golden mangoes then I am sure my sin can be recompensed by putting red-hot iron on your bodies."

The Brahmins looked aghast. Tenali allowed them some time to recover from their shock. Then he said, "O Great Brahmins! Please have patience. Now in few minutes I will bring red-hot iron to each one of you." And, saying so Tenali Raman went inside. Now the Brahmins had realized what message Tenali Raman wanted to convey them. They were ashamed of themselves. All the Brahmins went to Tenali Raman and asked for his forgiveness. The very next day they went to the king's court and returned the golden mangoes. Wondering why, the king asked for explanation. The Brahmins replied, " O Lord! You have been kind and generous to us. But we have taken undue advantage of the situation. We got greedy and we are ashamed of our behaviour." Now they told the king about their episode with Tenali Raman and how he helped them realize their mistake.

After listening to all this the king said, " O Brahmins! It is against my custom to take back the gifts that I give as charities. So there is no way that I will take back the golden mangoes. Please keep them with you." On this the Brahmins replied, " No way we could keep the mangoes and continue to be the sinners. Please O King! don't force us to keep the mangoes."

The king got very angry on listening all this and started losing his patience. Finally Tenali Raman came to the Brahmin's rescue. He said," O Lord! Please don't force the Brahmins to accept the mangoes against their wishes. Your stand is also right when you say that you can't take the gift back. But I would request you to send the golden mangoes directly to each Brahmin's house. This way the problem will be solved without any trouble." The King readily agreed and was pleased with Tenali Raman. He came forward and hugged him.

Tales of Tenali Raman - Tenali Raman and The Shrewd Barber

The royal barber in the court of King Krishnadevaraya was known for his efficiency. He was a real expert and was known for his skilled hands and expertise. But the barber himself was never happy and satisfied with his work. He wanted to be better and do much better than his present work. His discontentment was known by few courtiers. These courtiers were jealous of Tenali Raman and always came up with new ways to get him out of the court. So they tried to use the discontentment of the royal barber to remove Tenali Raman from the king's court.

The courtiers visited the royal barber and said to him, "Don't you think you are wasting your skills and your life?". On this the barber answered, "Yes, I do believe it myself, that I can do better than this. But I seriously don't know what other than this I am good at!" One of the courtiers laughed on his reply and said, "Who said that one has to be skilled to do better in life! Now just look at Tenali Raman. He is successful for nothing. All he has to do is tell few jokes to the king and make him laugh. He is handsomely rewarded just to do that." Another courtier added, " Yes! In fact we are indeed sure you are rather more intelligent that Tenali Raman. Maybe you should try to impress the king and replace Tenali in the King's court."

The barber was impressed with the idea and said, "Yes! I think I am intelligent enough than Tenali Raman. But how do I replace him?" To this the courtiers suggested, "Why don't you impress the king with a good shave and when the pleased king asks you what you want as a reward you request him to give you Tenali Raman's position." So accordingly the barber, very next day impressed the king with a good shave. The pleased king asked him how he wanted to be rewarded and the barber asked the king to give him Tenali Raman's position in the court. The king thought to himself, " It is impossible to refuse this man. But I am sure the courtiers are trying to create unneccassary trouble for Tenali Raman. Now it is totally upto Tenali Raman to deal with this situation." So the king readily agreed and offered the barber Tenali's position in the court with a promise that the barber should be able to entertain the king as much as Tenali does.

So the next day, in the king's court the barber came and sat on Tenali Raman's seat. When Tenali entered the court he was surprised to see the barber seating in his place but did not say anything. He simply bowed to the king and left the court. The courtiers who were jealous of Tenali Raman were very happy that they were successful in removing Tenali from the court. The court proceedings started and the barber came up with some jokes which were enjoyed by no one. He realized that he had made a fool of himself in front of the entire court. After the end of the session, the barber left for his house.

On his way home, the barber saw Tenali Raman sitting under a tree washing and scrubbing  a black dog. Amazed, the barber went to Tenali and enquired, " Dear Sir, why are you washing this black dog? On this Tenali replied," Well, I saw this black dog on the road, but did not like his colour. So I am scrubbing the dog and removing his colour and turning him white." To this the barber said, "But Sir, we cannot change the colour of the dog". On this Tenali looked at him and replied, "Why not! If one person who is skilled in his profession can suddenly change his own profession and become something he is not at all good at, why can't this dog change it's colour."

The barber realized the message Tenali Raman was trying to convey to him and immediately apologized for his behaviour. The very next day the barber apologized to the king and said, "My Lord! I got greedy and on my friend's suggestion tried replacing Tenali Raman. But Now I have realized that a person can't become what he is not. I am a skilled barber and wish to remain the same. And I hope you will appoint me back as your personal barber again if you have forgiven me for my mistakes."

The king replied, "Don't worry barber, I am not angry with you. It's good to know you realized your true worth. I purposely granted your wish back then of replacing Tenali, otherwise you would never have realized the truth. Tenali Raman is indeed a jewel and his brightness cannot be replaced by anything else." Tenali Raman visited the king and narrated him about the whole incidence that happened the day before about the black dog. To this the king laughed merrily and handsomely rewarded Tenali Raman. And thus Tenali Raman once more proved his wit and intelligence.

Tales of Tenali Raman - Tenali Raman's Extraordinary Wisdom

Once upon a time a wise man showed up in King Krishnadevaraya's court. Being a great scholar, this wise man had earned many medals and accolades, which he showed proudly in the King's court. He had great knowledge of all the Vedas, Upanishads and religious books. Being proud of his achievement, the wise man showed off in the King's Court and enjoyed how people flattered him. He was not alone and was accompanied by handful of followers who continously sprayed words of flattery for the wise man. He enjoyed all the attention and challenged people who had doubts about him.

To prove his own wisdom, the wise man challenged the scholars present in the court. The king could see through his scholars and understood that they were in no position to accept the challenge so he himself fixed a date and asked his scholars to make the necessary arrangements.

Now the scholars were really worried as they thought they couldn't match the wise man's intelligence. They came together and discussed the strategy. Though they didn't wish to participate, they very well understood the king's anger and the consequences for refusing so. So after much discussion, the scholar's from the King's court decided to seek help from Tenali Raman. They were very much aware how Tenali Raman knew to handle such tricky situations.

Thus the whole party of scholars from King's court went to Tenali Raman and made him aware of the situation. They explained to him the difficult situation they were put into and requested him to help them, thus to avoid shame and disgrace. Tenali Raman listened to them and replied, " My dear Scholars, I can see how you are worried about the disgrace you may face. I, also understand that this is a matter of your prestige and honour. All I will request right now is for you all to go home and relax. Leave everything to me". On such assurance from Tenali Raman, the scholars returned home with much relief.

The day of debate arose and the King's court was filled with courtiers, pundits and dignitaries. King Krishnadevaraya was also present but looked little tensed. The wise man entered the court and walked up in front of the king with great pride and confidence. His followers came with him and stood surrounding him, ready to cheer and enjoy the debate. The wise man and his followers were used to such high-end debates and were always coming up with new ways to insult and disgrace their opponents.

After few minutes, Tenali Raman entered the court dressed like a pundit. He carried a large packet wrapped in a cloth, which resembled a big volume neatly packed by thick strings. Tenali Raman bowed to the king. King Krishnadevaraya saw his tension relieving with the sight of Tenali Raman. It was not the knowledge that Tenali Raman possessed which provided him the relief but Tenali's quick wittedness that king knew would help save the situation.

The King thus announced to start the debate. Tenali Raman rose and spoke aloud, " O wise man! I have heard so much about you and your knowledge. You are undoubtedly intelligent and knowledgeable. I, myself too have defeated many opponents in such debates like you , but yet I find myself to no comparison when it comes to you. Sir, I am carrying this book with me and with your permission would like to start the debate on this book itself?" To this the wise man asked the name of the book.

Tenali Raman replied, " The name of this book is 'Thilakasta Mahisha Bandhana'". The wise man tried to recollect this book but couldn't remember it at all. Now the wise man was in a fix. He knew if he said that he knew about the book he would have to talk about it, but if he said he didn't know about the book it would prove to be his lack of knowledge and also would prove his defeat.

So the wise man thought for a while and replied, "Little pundit, it has been a long time since I have read that book. So presently I have forgotten  few chapters from it. Why don't you all provide me a day's time so I can refresh my memory and debate on this as you suggest". Tenali Raman readily agreed to it and was granted king's permission.

On entering the royal guesthouse, the wise man started worrying. He knew that it was impossible to read entire volumes of the said book in so little time. But on the other hand he didn't wish to be defeated by the young pundit and be a cause of humiliation in public. So he along with his followers fled from the palace in the middle of the night.

As usual the courtiers and the dignitaries gathered the next day in the court for the debate. Everyone along with the king waited for the wise man to appear. When the king inquired with his guards, then only he realized that the wise man had fled in the night. Shocked, King Krishnadevaraya turned to Tenali Raman and demanded, " What have you done to him? Which book are you carrying exactly that scared the wise man? Why was he so afraid? I want to know the name of this book."

To this Tenali Raman replied, "The name is Thilakasta Mahisha Bandhana, but actually there is no such book." The King asked, " But then what are these volumes that you are carrying?" Tenali Raman humbly replied, "Your Majesty, this packet in my hand contains no such volumes, but some old and useless books that I have tied together along with some sticks and thick rope. The sticks mean 'Thilakasta', the tying means 'Bandhana' and the rope  that is been used for tying is actually used to tie the buffaloes and so I added 'Mahisha'. And hence I gave this packet this name. The proud man got confused and wondered that if he confessed his ignorance, it would be disgraceful and so he fled".

King Krishnadevaraya was very much pleased with Tenali Raman and praised his quick wittiness. He also rewarded Tenali Raman handsomely. The scholars present in the king's court were relieved and thanked Tenali Raman for his quick wit.

Tales of Tenali Raman - Tenali Raman and The Thieves

In the Kingdom of Vijaynagar, a band of thieves where known to cause enough trouble to the people, especially the rich merchants. The guards of King Krishnadevaraya tried their best to catch them, but they remained fruitless. The thieves used to search for a rich merchant and then loot his house and get away with it.

These thieves have been constantly observing Tenali Raman. They were aware of the fact that Tenali Raman was handsomely rewarded by the king very often. Looting his house was going to be an excellent opportunity. But what the thieves were unaware was that Tenali usually distributed all the gifts and rewards among the poor.

So one night the thieves seek the opportunity of robbing Tenali Raman. They came to his house one night and hid behind the bushes. But Tenali Raman had already seen them hiding. Being clever, he knew how to handle this situation. He went to the nearby window and started speaking loudly to his wife, "My dear wife, I have been hearing a lot about these thieves who loot rich people at night. I have an idea of saving our valuable treasures. Why don't we put all our wealth in this big trunk and hide it in some secret location." His wife asked, "Where do you plan to hide it?" To this Tenali Raman said," Come with me, I will show you."

Tenali Raman put some big stones in the trunk and closed it. Then he dragged the trunk and brought it behind his house. He pushed the trunk into the big well and went inside the house with his wife. The thieves meanwhile were witnessing the whole episode. They were very happy that they knew the secret place where Tenali Raman had hidden the valuables. The trunk indeed looked very heavy when Tenali Raman was dragging it. So they waited patiently behind the bushes allowing the family of Tenali Raman to sleep. Then they went near the well and examined it. It was indeed a big well and full of water. The only way, they realized, to remove the trunk out was to empty the water from the well. So they started drawing out water from the well.

Meanwhile Tenali Raman had managed to come out of the house and hide himself outside. He had heard all the plans the thieves were making. He saw the thieves drawing out water. He realized he had not watered the plants in a while. So an idea came to him. Without the thieves' notice he tried making small channels in the ground with the help of a shovel. The thieves did not notice him as they were busy drawing out water. They kept throwing water on the ground which through the different channels made by Tenali started flowing towards the garden. By this simple act, the water wasn't wasted and the plants were watered well. This went on for sometime.

 The well being big, the thieves got tired after a while. They stopped and sat near the well and discussed about their plans. Meanwhile Tenali had asked his son to fetch the guards. The guards surrounded the thieves and captured each one of them. The thieves were too tired to protest or run.

In the king's court the next day, the thieves were brought before the king. The king summoned the thieves to prison. The king was impressed with Tenali Raman's bravery and presence of mind.

Tales of Tenali Raman - Tenali Raman and Goddess Kali's Blessing

Once upon a time in a small village called Tenali in the state Karnataka, there lived a young boy named Ramakrishna who was great devotee of Kalika Devi. Ramakrishna used to worship the goddess daily at the village temple.

So one afternoon when Ramakrishna was offering his prayers at the temple, a sage passed by. The sage saw a young boy praying the goddess and was impressed with his devotion. He came to the young lad and enquired whether he visited the temple daily. The young lad answered yes.

On listening his answer the sage asked Ramakrishna, " Do you young lad, worship her daily without fail ?" To this the lad answered, " Yes, I do worship her daily without fail."

So the sage out of curiosity questioned, " Ramakrishna, do you worship the goddess faithfully?". To this Ramakrishna smiled and answered, " Yes, absolutely as the goddess looks after me and cares for me." The sage who now was enjoying the conversation carried on, " Have you ever seen her?". To this the innocent Ramakrishna answered, " No, I haven't been that lucky yet, but I am very much eager to see her. You think I can see her someday?" To this the sage replied, " Yes, why not? If you are really one of her great devotees then she will definitely meet you. But then you do have to prove it to her, impress her. Let me help you, here I will give you one mantra, this you should pray to her whole night. She will definitely appear before you. But mind you, don't you get scared with her ferocious looks."

Ramakrishna smiled to this and said eagerly, " No, I would never be afraid of the goddess as I worship her everyday." Smiling and satisfied with the answer, the sage guided Ramakrishna with the mantra that he needed to chant with full concentration and after blessing him left. Ramakrishna followed the sage's instructions and sincerely chanted the mantra with full concentration. He was so engrossed with the chanting that he didn't even realize that the night had passed and the sun had rose. Ramakrishna was abruptly disturbed by a sweet voice that was calling out to him. As Ramakrishna opened his eyes he was awestruck to see Goddess Kali standing in front of him in her glorious yet ferocious avatar. The young lad continued to look at the goddess dumbstruck. Then suddenly he started laughing out loudly. This made the goddess angry and ask, " What's wrong Raman, are you not afraid? To this Raman replied, " No Mother Goddess! How can I be afraid of you. When I worship you". Goddess Kali was amused by the answer," So, tell me Raman, why are you laughing?"

To this Raman fearlessly answered, " O Mother Goddess, when I first saw you I was impressed with your glorious avatar, but the thing that made me laugh is that though you have thousand faces, how come you have just two hands?" Goddess Kali looked amused and confused, to this Raman explained, " O Goddess, all I am saying is, see I have one nose and two hands, so when I catch a cold it still gets difficult for me to manage my running nose with both hands. You on the other hand have countless noses. I seriously wonder how you wipe and manage them with just two hands. Listen, Mother Goddess please don't get angry with me and curse me for this; but I seriously want to know." 

Goddess Kali was impressed with the child's vivid imagination and genuine curiosity. His innocence made her laugh. She said, " Ramakishna, I simply love your modesty, quick wittedness and imagination. So from now on, You will be known as Tenali Raman and I am making you a 'VIKATAKAVI'. With my blessing you shall be famous throughout the world and would be known as a witty and wise man. Go to Vijayanagar kingdom and meet King Krishnadevaraya." And by saying so, she blessed the lad and disappeared.

Young Ramakrishna was indeed very happy. He decided to follow the Goddess's advice and go to Vijayanagar Kingdom. Thus the young Tenali Raman started his long journey which finally changed his destiny.