The Brass That Proved Gold
Khandu, the wealthy shopkeeper of Shivpur sat on his veranda and watched the passers-by. Shivpur was a prosperous village and many sorts of people visited it. A beggar who was almost blind approached Khandu and pleaded for alms. Suddenly Khandu's attention went over the bowl the beggar was holding. The bowl had four blobs and its bottom which glittered like gold. Khandu offered the beggar a coin and asked him endearingly, "Your bowl is very old. It may break at any time. If you leave it here, I can give you a new one." "Thank you, sir. But this is very precious to me," replied the beggar. Khandu was left in no doubt about the bowl being made of gold. It so happened that soon his eyes fell on Bhikham, a notorious thief, who was passing that way. He called him and whispered to him, "Bhikham! I want you to find out where this beggar lives." "May I know why?" queried Bhikham. "Well, there is nothing to hide from you. The bowl he carries seems to be made of gold-at least the blobs at its bottom. Though he is almost blind, he is aware of its value." Lowering his voice further, Khandu said again, "Bhikham, I need your help in getting hold of the bowl. But, Please remember, it is I who have discovered it, not you. You should claim no share of it. I will pay you for your service, anyway."
"Very well," Bhikham agreed to help Khandu in fulfilling his evil design and followed the beggar. "Brother, where do you live?" he asked when he caught up with the beggar. "I have no house to live in. I wander about in the day-time and relax in the shade of somebody's house. At night I sleep under the banyan tree at the center of the cremation ground," replied the beggar. After a little more useless talk with the beggar, Bhikham returned to Khandu and reported his finding to him. It was late in the afternoon. Khandu did not allow Bhikham to go away. He fed the thief sumptuously and then, when it was night, went out with him in search of the beggar. They could locate the beggar easily. He lay asleep under the banyan tree at the center of the cremation ground. Bhikham went near him stealthily and returned with the bowl. "Let me see it," said Khandu eagerly.
"Here it is," said Bhikham, and instead of handing the bowl over to him, he brought it down on his head with all his strength. What Bhikham wanted was to snatch away Khandu's purse which contained his day's sales proceed from his shop, apart from possessing the gold bowl. As Khandu swooned away and fell down, Bhikham relieved him of the purse all right, but the bowl broke into two pieces and slipped of his hand. From a nearby corner was heard some voices. Bhikham ran away without picking up the broken bowl. Khandu regained consciousness after an hour or so. He cursed himself for trusting Bhikham and lamented the loss of his purse. But he was happy that the gold bowl lay near him in two pieces. He collected the pieces and walked to the goldsmith's house forthwith. "What makes you visit me at this hour?" asked the surprised goldsmith. "Look at these pieces. How much money should these fetch me?" asked Khandu as he placed the pieces before the goldsmith. To the goldsmith too the pieces looked like gold. He realized that the shopkeeper would not visit him at the hour unless he had, in a dubious way, come to lay his hands on something valuable.
The goldsmith pretended to examine the pieces carefully and then said, "This is alloyed gold, not pure. I can buy these for a hundred coins." It was not a bad offer so far as Khandu was concerned. He accepted the amount and left hurriedly. The goldsmith began examining the pieces carefully after Khandu left. He was disappointed to find that the metal contained not an iota of gold. It was ordinary brass. "I will see Khandu in the morning!" he murmured and kept the pieces on a rack. It so happened that two thieves who followed Khandu and saw a part of the transaction peeping through a window understood that something valuable had changed hands. They observed carefully where the goldsmith kept the pieces. One of them sneaked in as soon as the goldsmith fell asleep and escaped with them. The goldsmith confronted Khandu in the morning. "Return me my hundred coins, you rogue!" he shouted. Khandu naturally did not wish people to know that he had stolen a beggar's bowl. He said apologetically, "Do not fret and shout, my brother, I will return the money as soon as you return me my property!" "I have thrown the rubbish you gave me into the drain!" said the goldsmith."In that case, brother, you can also take it that I have thrown away the rubbish you gave me into the drain!" replied Khandu calmly. The goldsmith felt undone. Fuming and sweating, he walked out.
The two thieves were going in another direction. It was by chance that from one's bag one piece of the bowl fell down. The goldsmith recognized it immediately and ran to take hold of the fellow, shouting, "Thieves! Thieves!" The thieves tried to escape, but some sepoys who were nearby pursued and captured them. They were led to the King's court. Asked by the king, the thieves confessed to their having stolen the broken bowl from the goldsmith's house. The goldsmith narrated how he had been deceived by Khandu. Summoned to the court, Khandu confessed to his having stolen it from the beggar. He also narrated how Bhikham had relieved him of his purse. Bhikham was absconding. But before long he was arrested. The beggar, called to the court, was asked, "Why did you value this bowl so much?" "My lord, a hermit had kindly given it to me. He said that I should preserve it, for, although it was made of brass, it might one day prove as valuable as gold," replied the beggar. The king asked the goldsmith, "How much would the bowl cost had it been made of gold?" "Five thousand coins, my lord," replied the goldsmith. "Good. Let Khandu pay four thousand and Bhikham one thousand. The five thousand should be kept in the royal treasury. The beggar should be given a monthly allowance out of it," was the king's order. "The mendicant's words proved true!" exclaimed the beggar in joy.
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