Equal to a Thousand
Ramdas was poor, but he worked hard. He had a small plot of land. Whatever was produced on it was just enough for him to make both ends meet. But he ate and spent as little as possible and saved as much as he could. This he did for years. With the money he saved- which was not much-he bought coconuts from the people of his village and put them in a cart and carried them to the town. He sold them at some profit. After a few months, he bought even more coconuts and hired two carts and gained a greater profit by selling them in the town. He repeated this several times and made a profit every time. But he spent not a single coin from his gains for himself. He continued to wear tattered clothes and go without a pair of slippers. He never ate anything better than coarse rice. Who would think anything but that he was a great miser? He alone knew that he was not. If he saved, it was because he cherished a sweet dream. That was to once feed a thousand worthy souls on his birthday. At last, he knew that he had gathered enough money to fulfill his dream. As the birthday was near he consulted the chief priest of the village on how to find a thousand worthy souls. "What difficulty is there to find a thousand worthy souls? To begin with, I am one, my five sons and fifteen grandsons make twenty more. Other priests of this village and the villages nearby can be counted to make up the rest," replied the priest.
"Fine. I will meet each one of them personally and request them to have food at my house on my birthday," said Ramdas. Ramdas had several friends among the poor. They helped him to clear the ground in front of his house and erect a thatch. Priests known to be good hands at cooking were booked for the great day. On a sacred day Ramdas's house wore a festive look. The cooks arrived in due time and began their work, assisted by the villagers. But it so happened that a big party of guests descended on the local landlord a little before midday. The landlord sent for a few cooks. But they were not available. "Sir! Ramdas is celebrating the birthday with great pomp and show. He is going to feed a thousand priests. All the cooks are engaged by him," a servant reported to the landlord. "What did you say, poor Ramdas is feeding a thousand priests? Are you drunk, fellow? You think feeding a thousand priests, mind you is as easy a thing as feeding a thousand fish?" growled the landlord. "I know, sir, that so far nobody but yourself and your heaven gone forefathers had dared to feed a thousand priests. But, I repeat sir, that is the feat Ramdas is keen to perform," said the servant. The landlord stood fuming. In poor Ramdas, he saw an adversary who challenged his supremacy.