The Starving Dog’s Ghost: Raman Outsmarts the Priests

The clever Tenali Raman once again found himself targeted by the court priests. When his dog died of starvation, the priests seized the opportunity to trap him. They spread rumors that the dog’s ghost was haunting the village and convinced the people that only elaborate poojas could appease the restless spirit. Their true intention, however, was to extort money from Raman.

Feigning ignorance, Raman played along and said, “I trust your wisdom, learned priests. Please perform the poojas, and I will pay you handsomely. I have a fine horse that I will sell to fund the rituals.”

The priests were delighted and gleefully anticipated earning at least 100 gold coins. “Poor Raman has fallen into our trap,” they whispered to each other, eagerly preparing for the rituals.

Meanwhile, Raman advertised the sale of his horse with an unusual condition:
“Horse for sale at just one copper coin. Buyer must also purchase the accompanying dustbin for 100 gold coins.”

When the priests arrived after their initial poojas to collect their remuneration, Raman had already sold his horse under the advertised terms. He handed over the single copper coin from the horse’s sale to the priests and explained that the dustbin’s proceeds of 100 gold coins were not part of the transaction.

The priests were left fuming, realizing they had been outsmarted by Raman’s cunning ploy. Not only had they failed to extort money from Raman, but their greed had also been exposed to the public.

Moral of the Story:
Greed blinds wisdom. Cunning plans made with dishonest intentions often backfire, especially when pitted against the intelligence of someone like Tenali Raman.