Once upon a time there lived a poor Brahman, who earned a tiny income as a clerk. He had one son, a bright, clever boy, who went to school and was a favourite alike of boys and masters. He might have risen to great learning, had his father lived. Unhappily before the boy had left school the poor Brahman died. The boy had to leave school and try to keep his mother and younger brothers and sisters. At first he became a candidate for a clerkship in a public office. But this brought him no pay; and although he wrote petitions in his spare time, he only earned thereby Rs. 3 or Rs. 4 a month. This sum was but enough to keep him and his family from starving. One day he resolved to seek some other way of earning a living and this is what he did.
He went into the town and hired the smallest shop he could find. He spent the few annas he had in the world in buying some writing paper, an ink pot, a bottle of ink, a pen and an empty box. Over the shop he got painted the words “WISDOM SELLER.” All round him were jewellers’ shops, cloth shops, green-grocers’ shops. The other dealers waited for customers, but the green-grocers shouted to the passers-by “Pumpkins! Pumpkins!—three pice a pound!”
The Brahman boy thought that he would do as the green-grocers did and when any one passed, he called out at the top of his voice, “Wisdom! Wisdom! All kinds! All prices!” At first the passers-by could not make out what he meant. When they understood, they did not think of buying his wares. They crowded round his shop and laughed at him. “Who would buy wisdom,” they cried, “especially from a lad like that?” But the Brahman boy did not mind them at all. He went on shouting at the top of his voice “Wisdom! Wisdom! All kinds! All prices!” For several days he made no money at all; but at last the whole city got to hear of the new shop and four or five passers-by stopped and bought an anna or two worth of wisdom. He was thus rather better off than when he had been an unpaid clerk; but he knew that when the novelty wore off, he would get no more customers. Still he did not despair.
It so happened that a certain Nagar lived in that city. He was really very stupid; but he had inherited a large fortune from his father and so he thought himself very clever. Just to show off, he called his only son VIDHYA or LEARNING. But in spite of this grand name, the son was just as stupid as the father. One day Vidhya passed the Brahman boy’s shop and heard him shout “Wisdom! Wisdom! All kinds! All prices!” So foolish was he, that he thought wisdom was a sort of vegetable. He first asked its price per pound. The Brahman boy said “I sell not by weight, but by quality.” Vidhya then put two pice on the counter and said he would take half an anna’s worth. The boy wrote on a piece of paper “It is not wise to stand and watch two people fighting.” He then tied the paper inside Vidhya’s scarf and took the money.
Vidhya went home and said to his father “I have bought some wisdom for two pice and it is tied inside my scarf. Let us undo the knot and look at it.” His father did not understand, but undid the knot and finding the paper read “It is not wise to stand and watch two people fighting.” He was very angry and said to his son “Well, you are a fool! Fancy paying two pice for this nonsense! Why, everyone knows that it is not wise to stand and watch two people fighting.”
In a great rage the Nagar walked to the Brahman’s shop and began to call out “Rogue! Thief! Cheat! you did my son out of his money, just because he was a foolish boy. Give me back the two pice, or I shall call the police!” The Brahman kept his temper and said quietly: “Why are you so angry about nothing? I did not make your son give me the two pice. He asked me to sell him so much wisdom and I did so. Give me back my wisdom and take back your money.” At once the Nagar threw the paper at the Brahman and cried: “Now give me my money!” The Brahman said “No, I said I would give you back your money if you gave me back my wisdom. You only offer me the paper. If you want your two pice back, you must sign a document, binding your son never to abide by my advice and always to stand and watch people fighting.” The passers-by took the side of the Brahman boy. The Nagar signed the document and went away with his two pice, very pleased to get them back so cheaply.
Two or three months later each of the king’s two queens sent her maid to buy her some groceries. They both went to the same grocer and both tried to buy the same article. As the grocer had only the one sample they began to quarrel so fiercely that the grocer in a fright took to his heels and ran out of the shop. But the two maids went on quarrelling. Just then Vidhya strolled up and saw the quarrel. Before meeting the Brahman boy he would have run away; for stupid though he was, he knew it was unsafe to stand and watch a fight especially between the two queens’ maid servants. But he remembered the promise made by his father, so he went close up and watched. One of the maids noticed him and called on him to witness that the other maid had struck her. The other maid retorted that so far from giving blows, she had received any number of them; and she, too, called on Vidhya to be her witness. At last they separated and the maidservants and Vidhya went to their several homes.
The two maids went to their mistresses and exaggerated what had happened. The queens in turn became furious and sent their maids to complain to the king. At the same time each sent word to Vidhya that if he did not depose in favour of her maid servant he would be beheaded. Vidhya was very frightened and told his father. The two talked the matter over all that day and all the next night, but they could not find a way of escape. At last Vidhya said “Let us ask the Brahman boy, who sells wisdom; if he really has any to sell, he may help me out.”
As a last resort, the Nagar agreed and father and son went to the Brahman boy’s shop and told him what had befallen Vidhya. The Brahman boy asked for a fee of Rs. 500. On getting the money, he told Vidhya to feign insanity and to pretend that he did not understand what the king asked him. Next day the king heard the case. The king questioned him closely, but no question would he answer. He merely gabbled all the time, until the king lost all patience and drove him out of the court room. Very pleased with himself, Vidhya ran home and to all whom he met he praised the wisdom of the Brahman boy, whose fame thus spread through the whole city.
The Nagar was at first delighted at his son’s escape; then he began to reflect that his son must always feign insanity or the king would learn that he had been tricked and would certainly cut Vidhya’s head off. He went to the Brahman boy, who asked for another fee of Rs. 500 which the Nagar paid.
“Vidhya should go to the king,” said the Brahman boy, “when he is in a merry mood and tell him the whole story. When he is in a good temper, he will laugh at it and forgive him.” Vidhya followed the advice and one day finding the king in a good humour he confessed everything. The king laughed heartily and forgave him. Then he sent for the Brahman boy and asked him whether he would sell him wisdom and, if so, at what price. “Yes,” said the boy, “I shall be very proud to sell the king wisdom; but my fee will be one lakh.” The king paid the lakh and got in return a paper on which the boy had written: “Do nothing without thinking deeply first.” The king knew the advice to be excellent and dismissing the young Brahman, he had the words embroidered on all his clothes and engraved on all his plates, cups and dishes.
A few months later the king fell very ill. The prime minister eager to get rid of him, urged the doctor to put poison in the royal medicine. The doctor agreed and gave the king a poisoned draught. As the king lifted his gold cup to his lips, he saw engraved on it the words “Do nothing without thinking deeply first.” Without suspecting anything he thought over the words and lowering the cup looked intently at its contents.
The doctor’s guilty conscience made him fear that the king guessed that the medicine was poisoned. He threw himself at his master’s feet and confessing everything, prayed for mercy. The astonished king called the guard and had the doctor seized. He sent for the prime minister and bade him drink the poisoned medicine. The minister in his turn threw himself at the royal feet and begged for mercy. But the king had him hanged on the spot. He then sent for the doctor and after rating him soundly, banished him from the kingdom. Lastly he made the Brahman boy, whose wisdom had saved his life, Prime Minister and loaded him with honours.
Support The Dharma Dispatch
