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Ishani came to me for another story last night.
And I began thus:
Once upon a time there was a greedy king called King Midas. He had lots of gold in his treasury. But yet he wanted more and more gold so he could become the richest king in the world.
So he prayed and prayed to Goddess Laxmi day and night. One night Goddess Laxmi appeared to him and asked him what he wanted. And Midas said:
"I want the boon that whatever I touch with my hands becomes gold"
Goddess Laxmi granted him his wish and said:
"But this boon will work only for one week"
As he got up and touched his cot and it became a golden cot. And then he rushed and touched his throne. It at once turned into a golden throne. And then he touched his crown and it too turned golden. And then he went out and touched his lawn benches and they too turned golden.
He was happy and went on touching the trees in his kingdom and then the hills and then his fields and then the animals in his stable. They all turned into gold that week.
He melted the gold he thus acquired and got a huge number of gold coins. He built bigger and bigger treasury buildings to store all these gold sovereigns as long as his boon lasted.
And King Midas became the richest king in the world.
By and by there was a famine in his kingdom and his subjects were starving and they appealed to their King Midas for food.
He didn't have any food in his treasury but only gold coins. But his subjects couldn't eat gold coins and so they revolted and killed King Midas.
Ishani then said:
"You must be joking...he could have bought rice and wheat with his gold coins from the neighboring kingdoms and fed his subjects"
"Yes, but he was too greedy to spend the gold he acquired"
"Is this a true story?"
"Yes...this is what the British did to their subjects in the vast worldwide empire they built. And Indian politicians led by Mahatma Gandhi overthrew their empire and drove them away with their tails tucked between their legs"
"What did the Indians do with all the gold they got? Did they also do like King Midas and got killed?"
"No, Indian politicians were cleverer and whenever there was a famine they distributed a little wheat (rotten) they bought from America in what was called PL 480. They also gave their citizens bits of paper they called votes once in 5 years and that made them happy for the nonce"
"Very clever"
"Yes, they continue to do it even now"
"But tell me granpa...when King Midas was hungry and touched the rice in his plate for his dinner that week, all that rice should have turned into gold which he couldn't eat, no way. Also, when his cute little daughter (see pic above) ran to embrace him, she too would have turned into lifeless gold, no?"
"No...King Midas used his leather gloves before eating his food and touching his daughter"
"I see...but his leather gloves too must have turned into gold and made it impossible for him to use them since gold doesn't bend, no?"
"No...they were fake leather made in Hyderabad under the 'Make in India' scheme"
...Posted By Ishani
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Ishani came to me for another story last night.
And I began thus:
Once upon a time there was a greedy king called King Midas. He had lots of gold in his treasury. But yet he wanted more and more gold so he could become the richest king in the world.
So he prayed and prayed to Goddess Laxmi day and night. One night Goddess Laxmi appeared to him and asked him what he wanted. And Midas said:
"I want the boon that whatever I touch with my hands becomes gold"
Goddess Laxmi granted him his wish and said:
"But this boon will work only for one week"
As he got up and touched his cot and it became a golden cot. And then he rushed and touched his throne. It at once turned into a golden throne. And then he touched his crown and it too turned golden. And then he went out and touched his lawn benches and they too turned golden.
He was happy and went on touching the trees in his kingdom and then the hills and then his fields and then the animals in his stable. They all turned into gold that week.
He melted the gold he thus acquired and got a huge number of gold coins. He built bigger and bigger treasury buildings to store all these gold sovereigns as long as his boon lasted.
And King Midas became the richest king in the world.
By and by there was a famine in his kingdom and his subjects were starving and they appealed to their King Midas for food.
He didn't have any food in his treasury but only gold coins. But his subjects couldn't eat gold coins and so they revolted and killed King Midas.
Ishani then said:
"You must be joking...he could have bought rice and wheat with his gold coins from the neighboring kingdoms and fed his subjects"
"Yes, but he was too greedy to spend the gold he acquired"
"Is this a true story?"
"Yes...this is what the British did to their subjects in the vast worldwide empire they built. And Indian politicians led by Mahatma Gandhi overthrew their empire and drove them away with their tails tucked between their legs"
"What did the Indians do with all the gold they got? Did they also do like King Midas and got killed?"
"No, Indian politicians were cleverer and whenever there was a famine they distributed a little wheat (rotten) they bought from America in what was called PL 480. They also gave their citizens bits of paper they called votes once in 5 years and that made them happy for the nonce"
"Very clever"
"Yes, they continue to do it even now"
"But tell me granpa...when King Midas was hungry and touched the rice in his plate for his dinner that week, all that rice should have turned into gold which he couldn't eat, no way. Also, when his cute little daughter (see pic above) ran to embrace him, she too would have turned into lifeless gold, no?"
"No...King Midas used his leather gloves before eating his food and touching his daughter"
"I see...but his leather gloves too must have turned into gold and made it impossible for him to use them since gold doesn't bend, no?"
"No...they were fake leather made in Hyderabad under the 'Make in India' scheme"
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