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Popular Akbar and Birbal stories about the renowned Mughal emperor Akbar and his counsellor, Birbal, have circulated for many years. It was mostly passed down from generation to generation through word of mouth. Many villages even devised new stories with morals and assigned the characters of Akbar and Birbal as they saw suitable. Kids enjoy hearing about the interesting, and sometimes funny, events in Akbar and Birbal's lives, so they make excellent bedtime stories.
One bitterly cold winter evening, the emperor Akbar and his witty minister, Birbal, were taking a leisurely walk with a lake on one side. Seeing the scenarios he concurred with the emperor: "I do not know if somebody can stay in this freezing water throughout the whole night, not taking any warmth. If so, I will reward him amply." In his confidence in human will, Birbal accepted the challenge and managed to find someone poor enough to take on the challenge. That man stood on the freezing lake night long, bearing the cold because of the prospect of reward. The next morning, Akbar asked the man how he had been able to stay in the cold water all night long, to which the man replied, "I kept my eyes fixed on the far-off light in a palace window, and that gave me hope. But when the emperor heard this, he refused the man's reward saying that the light from the palace had warmed him and thus, he hadn't stood in the cold. The poor man was heartbroken but Birbal, famous for his wisdom, quickly thought of a way to teach the emperor a lesson. The following day, Birbal invited Akbar for lunch at his house. The emperor hurriedly came there expecting some great feast and found him preparing khichdi - a very simple rice-lentil preparation, but preparing it at an unusually elevated distance of 10 feet above the fire, using no chance of its heat reaching it. Now Akbar was puzzled and asked Birbal, "How will the khichdi get cooked with the fire that far away?" Birbal replied, "If a poor man could warm himself up from the far-off light of a palace, surely this khichdi can be cooked by a far-off fire." Akbar was disappointed with his own mistake and began to laugh and apologize for his fault. He immediately called the poor man and gave him the money he was promising, as well as learned his lesson for being just.
The moral of Birbal's khichdi is that we should be decent as well as fair in our actions and judgement. The decision of Akbar of not rewarding the poor man proved his rash and unfair judgement but through Birbal's glib move, he realized the truth. It teaches us sometimes we have to keep ourselves distant from such things and then think about it from a different angle before making a judgement.
Fairness in Everything: The story is a reflection of being fair. Akbar had failed to look at the man's durability initially and hasty judgment.
Quick Thinking Solves Problems: Birbal used creativity for quick thinking, a line between being intelligent and being smart. His unique way helped Akbar see his mistake in judging him.
Compassion and Patience: The poor man was patient and determined while standing all night in the cold, given the reward. Here, it reminds us that mostly, persistence and hope can get one even through the toughest times.
One thing that can be taken from the mistake of Akbar is not to pass judgments hastily. What the emperor has done by not giving credit to the man who deserved it because of his hard work shows how assumptions lead to rotten judgments. It is how in life before delivering judgement, all prospects should be considered.
These akbar and birbal stories show how Birbal’s cleverness and wisdom helped solve problems and make everyone happy. Through his clever plans and smart solutions, Birbal taught valuable lessons about honesty, teamwork, and using our brains. Each tale highlights the importance of thinking carefully and working together. Birbal’s adventures remind us that wisdom and fairness can lead to positive outcomes. They’re both fun and educational, showing that good thinking and honesty always shine through. These great timeless stories educate us about great life values, and how we can navigate through toughest of times or challenges, only if we have a sense of calm and presence of mind.
