Funday Times

A Sri Lankan folk tale retold by J.B. Disanayaka
The king, the monk and the acolyte
Once upon a time, there was a king. He was proud thinking that he knew everything. To prove that no one knew more than he did, he kept on asking three questions from all learned people in the land and no one could answer any one of these questions satisfactorily. When someone could not solve the questions, he was put into prison.

Then he heard about a learned monk who was in a temple. Everyone thought that this monk was one of the most learned men in the land. The king sent word to the monk to come to the palace. The monk had to obey the king's orders. The king spoke to the monk with respect. "Venerable Sire, I am told that you are one of the most learned men in my country. Then I am sure that you could answer the three questions that I am going to ask you now".

"Yes, Your Majesty", said the monk. "I shall do my best to answer your questions correctly". "But" said the king, "If you fail to solve them correctly, I have no choice but to put you into prison". The monk thought for a while and said, "That's alright. But I need some time to think about them. I shall come back in three days and answer your questions. What are the three questions that you have in mind?"

The king asked the first question; "Where is the centre of the earth?" The monk nodded his head and asked, "What is your second question, Your Majesty?" The king asked: "How many stars are there in the sky?" The monk nodded his head again as if he knew the answer. The king asked the last question: "What Venerable Sire, do I have in mind?" The monk agreed to come back in three days with the correct answers.

How can the monk answer these questions? Who knows the centre of the earth, or the number of stars in the sky or what the king thought? The monk was very sad because he would also be imprisoned along with the other learned men who could not answer these questions correctly. He confined himself to his room and took no food, trying hard to solve the three questions.

Buddhist temples have laymen who help monks in their daily work. Such a lay servant is called, in Sinhala, aebittiya (acolyte). The acolyte of this temple was a very kind man and was very worried about the plight of his master. He spoke to the monk very politely, "Do not worry, Venerable Sire, I shall take care of your problem. Let me go to the palace on the appointed day and answer these questions to the king's satisfaction". The monk had no choice but to agree to the acolyte's idea.

On the third day, the acolyte dressed himself like the monk and with the walking stick of the monk, went to meet the king. The king and his ministers were eagerly waiting to see how the monk would solve the questions. "Are you ready to answer my questions, Venerable Sire?" asked the king. The acolyte said, "Yes, Your Majesty". The king asked the first question: "Tell me where the centre of the earth is".

The acolyte paced a few steps up and down in the courtyard. He placed his walking stick in a particular spot and said, "Here, Your Majesty, is the centre of the earth. Measure it from any direction and let me know if I am wrong". How can the king measure it? "Alright", said the king and accepted it as the correct answer.

The king posed his second question. "How many stars are there in the sky?" The acolyte took a deer skin out of his satchel and spread it before the king. "The number of stars in the sky is equal to the number of hairs in this hide. Count them and tell me if there is any difference". How can the kincount the number of hairs on a deer-skin? He had to accept it as the correct answer.

"Now my final question. What do you think I have in my mind now?" The acolyte smiled. "Your Majesty", he said. "Now you think that I am the monk who came to see you the other day. But I am not. I am only the acolyte of his temple. Isn't that what you have in your mind now, Your Majesty?"

The king had to agree. He gave him many gifts and said, "You are a wonderful man. Look after the monk with care. Is there anything else that I can do for you?" The acolyte nodded his head. "Yes, Your Majesty, could you please set free those learned men in your prison because you know the answers now?" The king agreed and everyone in the land began to talk about the kindness of this acolyte.

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