Tenali Rama and the King's Dream
- 3 minute read
- Ages 7-11
- Moral Stories
King Krishnadevaraya woke one morning having dreamt of a palace in the air.
It had been extraordinary. Towers standing on nothing, gardens hanging in the sky, staircases going up into cloud, and no ground under any of it.
He described it at court and said he wanted it built.
The court
There was a long silence.
The chief architect said, carefully, that a building requires foundations.
The king said he was not interested in what buildings usually require. He had seen it. It existed in his mind and therefore it could exist. He offered an enormous sum to anyone who would build it, and said that anyone who told him it was impossible would be treated as a man who lacked imagination.
Nobody spoke after that.
Tenali Rama
Tenali Rama came forward and said he would build it.
The king was delighted.
"How long?"
"Some months. But I will need the money in advance, Your Majesty, because the materials are unusual and must be gathered first."
The money was given to him. It was a very large amount, and Tenali Rama took it home.
The complaint
Some weeks later a man came to the court in tears and said he had been robbed.
He said thieves had broken into his house in the night and taken everything he had, and that he had seen one of them clearly, and that it was Tenali Rama.
Tenali Rama was sent for.
"Did you rob this man?"
"Certainly not, Your Majesty."
"He says he saw you."
"He says he saw me," said Tenali Rama. "Might I ask him one question?"
The king allowed it.
"When did this happen?"
"Two nights ago," said the man. "In my sleep. I dreamt it. I saw your face as clearly as I see it now."
The court again
The court began to laugh and then stopped, because the king was not laughing.
"A dream," said the king. "You want me to punish my minister for something you dreamed."
"Your Majesty saw it," said the man. "That is what I was told to say."
Everybody looked at Tenali Rama.
"He is a friend of mine," said Tenali Rama, "and he has done exactly what I asked him to. Your Majesty, I will build the palace you dreamed of on the day this man's case is decided in his favour. Until then, the money is in a box at my house and Your Majesty may have it back this afternoon."
The king sat there for a while.
Then he sent for the box, and took the money, and never mentioned the palace again.
Moral of the story
Tenali Rama never told the king he was wrong. He built him a second dream and asked him to treat it exactly like the first.
Questions and answers
- What did the king dream about?
A palace floating in the air with towers on nothing, hanging gardens and staircases going into cloud.
- Why would nobody at court object?
He said anyone who called it impossible would be treated as lacking imagination.
- What did Tenali Rama ask for?
The money in advance, saying the materials were unusual and had to be gathered.
- What was the man's complaint?
That Tenali Rama had robbed him, which he had seen clearly in a dream.
- What was Tenali Rama's offer?
To build the dream palace on the day the dream robbery was judged in the man's favour.
Word meanings
- architect
- A person who designs buildings.
- foundations
- The solid base a building stands on.
- in advance
- Before the work is done.
- in his favour
- Decided in his support.
Questions about Tenali Rama and the King's Dream
What is the moral of this story?
That the way to challenge an unreasonable demand is often to apply it consistently. Tenali Rama accepted the king's rule and asked him to live by it.
Why does Tenali Rama return the money?
Because his point is made and keeping it would make him a thief rather than a minister. The story is careful about this.
Is this a real historical event?
No. The Tenali Rama tales are folk stories, though Tenali Ramakrishna and Krishnadevaraya were both real people.
What age suits this story?
Ages seven and above, since the joke depends on following the parallel between the two dreams.