🍲 Birbal's Khichdi

One cold winter day, King Akbar stood by the palace lake. He asked, 'Will anyone stand in this freezing water for one full night? I will give a big reward.'

A poor man said yes. He needed money for his family. He stood in the icy water the whole night, shivering till morning.

When he came for his reward, Akbar asked, 'How did you survive?' The man said, 'I kept looking at a lamp burning far away in the palace. It gave me hope.'

Akbar said, 'Then you cheated! You took warmth from that lamp. No reward!' The poor man went away with a heavy heart.

Birbal, the king's wise minister, heard everything. The next day, Birbal did not come to court. Akbar went to his house to check.

Birbal sat next to a small fire. A pot of khichdi hung from a tall tree, far above the fire. 'What is this?' Akbar laughed. 'Khichdi can never cook from a fire so far away!'

Birbal smiled. 'Why not, My King? If a man can get warmth from a lamp far away in the palace, my khichdi can cook from this fire too.'

Akbar understood his mistake. He called the poor man and gave him double the reward.