Best Flowers One day Akbar was taking a walk in his Royal gardens with several courtiers. Many flowers were flowering at that time of season. A poet pointed out towards a beautiful flower and said, "Look Jahaanpanaah, how beautiful flower that is? No man can produce such a beautiful thing as this." Birbal was also there. He said, "I don't agree with this, sometimes man can make more beautiful things than this." Akbar said, "Oh no Birbal, you are talking nonsense. This flower is really very beautiful." After a few days, Birbal presented Akbar a very skilled craftsman from Agra. He present ... read more

Birbal Denies Rumor One day a man stopped Birbal in the street and began narrating his woes to him. "I've walked twenty miles to see you," he told Birbal finally, "and all along the way people kept saying you were the most generous man in the country." Birbal knew the man was going to ask him for money. "Are you going back the same way?" he asked. "Yes," said the man. "Will you do me a favor?" "Certainly," said the man. "What do you want me to do?" "Please deny the rumor of my generosity," said Birbal, walking away.

Akbar is Greater than God Once a merchant came to Akbar's court and praised him a lot as he wanted to Akbar to sign a trade agreement with a neighboring country. He was praising him a lot as he wanted to impress him, but in a short while he noticed that the Emperor was not impressed at all with his praises. So he thought of another way to impress him. He shouted - "O Emperor, You are greater than even God." and sat quietly to notice the effect of his words. Birbal was also listening to all this and was anticipating some kind of trouble out of this praise. So his brain stated working ahea ... read more

Noble Beggar One day the Emperor asked Birbal, "Birbal, is it possible to be the both "noblest" and the "lowest" together?" Birbal said, "Yes, Jahaanpanaah" "Then bring me such a person." Birbal went and returned next day with a beggar and presenting him to Akbar said, "This is the lowest among all of your subjects, Jehanpanah" Akbar asked, "Good, that may be true, but I don't see that how he can be the noblest?" "He has been given the honor of having an audience with the Emperor, that makes him the noblest among the beggars, Jahaapanaah."

The Choice of Birbal One day Emperor Akbar asked Birbal what he would choose if he were given a choice between justice and a gold coin. “The gold coin,” said Birbal. Akbar was taken aback. “You would prefer a gold coin to justice?” he asked, incredulously. “Yes Jahaanpanaah,” said Birbal. The other courtiers were also amazed by Birbal’s display of idiocy. For years they had been trying to discredit Birbal in the emperor’s eyes but without success and now the man had gone and done it himself. They could not believe their good fortune. “I would have been dismayed if even the lowli ... read more