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 not 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 passersby “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
passersby 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 passersby
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, every one 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 passersby 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 maid-servants 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.