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One day, Birbal came to the court very late. When the Emperor wanted to know the reason, he said, “What can I do, Your Majesty? My children started crying today and they were insisting that I should not go to the court. It was with great difficulty that I managed to explain to them that it was important for me to go and attend the court. I had to waste a lot of time in the process, and hence I am late.”
The Emperor wasn’t satisfied with Birbal’s excuse and said, “Birbal, I don’t agree with you. It is not at all difficult to pacify a child and so, there is no reason why it should take such a long time!”
Birbal laughed and said, “Maharaj, it is easy to scold children. But to explain to them something is very difficult.”
The Emperor said, “Don’t talk foolish. Bring any child before me and I will show how easy it is!”
Then Birbal said, “Huzoor, I shall act and behave like a child, and you, considering yourself to be my father, try to pacify me. And let us see.”
Then Birbal started behaving like a small child. He made funny gestures at the Emperor and ran about in the court playing like a small child. He threw away his ‘Pugree’. Finally, he sat on the Emperor’s lap and started pulling his moustaches.
The Emperor said, “No, my child! don’t do this. Be a good boy.”
But Birbal started crying loudly.
Then, the Emperor ordered some sweets. But, Birbal still kept on crying.
The Emperor got irritated, but trying to maintain his cool, he said, “Do you want to play with toys. Here, take these toys.”
But Birbal said crying, “I want a sugarcane!”
The Emperor smiled and ordered for a sugarcane.
Soon the guards brought a stack of sugarcanes. But, Birbal didn’t stop crying. “I want a big sugarcane chopped up into small pieces!”
Then the Emperor asked the guards to chop up the sugarcane into small pieces.
Crying even more loudly, Birbal said, “No, not the guards; you yourself chop it up into pieces.”
The Emperor was highly upset by this time. But he had no alternative but to chop up the sugarcane.
Then he placed the sugarcane pieces in front of Birbal and said, “Now eat these quickly my boy!”
But Birbal continued with his childish demands and said, “I wanted the whole sugarcane!”
The Emperor pulled out one whole cane from the stack and giving it to Birbal, said, “Here take this and stop crying!”
But Birbal cried, “No, not that, I want a whole sugarcane out of these small pieces!”
“Oh you silly child! It is not possible!” The Emperor was highly annoyed.
But Birbal kept on crying.
At last the Emperor lost his cool and said, “Now if you don’t stop crying, I will slap you really hard!”
Now Birbal got up and said laughing, “Oh, no! do not beat me, Your Majesty. Do you now realize, how difficult it is to satisfy the whims of a child?”
The Emperor agreed with the views of Birbal and said, “Yes, it is certainly not a child’s play to pacify a crying child!”