King Vikramaditya was one of the bravest, most judicious, and most adventurous rulers of ancient India. The fame of his justice and ability to rule traveled far and wide. People from distant places would visit his court with different problems, often hoping that all their issues would find a solution in the presence of Vikramaditya.
One day, a sage visited the court and presented a fruit to the king, who then called his treasurer and asked him to keep the fruit in the treasury. The next day, the sage appeared again and presented another fruit. Vikramaditya gave this fruit to the treasurer to keep it safe as well. This practice continued for several days. Each time, the presented fruit was preserved in safe custody, considering it public property.
As usual, one morning the sage appeared in the court again and asked, “O great king, what did you do with the fruits given by me?” The king replied, “Your Holiness, the fruits are well preserved in treasury.”
“But those must have rotten and met the poor fate by now!” exclaimed the sage.
“Your Majesty, why don’t you find out yourself in what condition those fruits are,” asked the sage.
The king agreed and called the treasurer. Along with him, he himself went to the treasury. There, he found all the fruits rotten. A few of them had lost their shape and had split open. A shiny thing was peeping out of each fruit. The king picked up a fruit and tore it apart. A fine, big-sized gem popped out. Amazed to see it, the king tore open all the fruits one by one and was even further surprised to find a similar fine gem in each of those fruits.
Vikramaditya returned to the court with the gems and sought from the sage, “Your Holiness, from where did you find such fruits? As per my knowledge, there is no such fruit.”
“O king, you are right. There is no such fruit tree. It has been possible by my supernatural power. If you wish to get more and more gems to keep your treasury full of riches, you must help me increase my spiritual power,” replied the sage.
“Your Holiness, for the prosperity of my kingdom, I’m ready to help you. Tell me, what can I do for you?” asked the king.
The sage replied, “O king, I know that no other king is equal or superior to you in courage and intelligence. The job which I’m going to assign you, no one can do barring you.”
The sage then explained, “There is a forest named Bandhavgarh Forest, which is twenty-five miles away from your capital. As you move deep into the forest, at one place you will find a peepal tree. From one of its branches, a corpse can be seen hanging upside down. I want you to bring me that corpse.”
“But whose corpse is it and why do you want that ?” wondered the king.
“I’ve nothing to do with the corpse. But a ghost named Betal has made the corpse his home. I want to keep the ghost in my captivity. This will increase my occult power immensely and then I’ll be helpful for the goodness of your kingdom and bring prosperity to the subjects and the treasury.”
The king thought for a while and then accepted the challenge for the sake of his people. The sage briefed him about the path and the location of his mission. He asked him to proceed with his task on the next full moon night and bring the corpse to the crematorium, where he himself would be waiting for the king.
On the prescribed full moon night, Vikramaditya, armed with his sword, proceeded towards the forest. There, after a thorough search, he located the said corpse, which was indeed hanging from a branch. The determined king went near the tree, pulled the corpse onto his shoulder, and began walking towards the crematorium. Seeing the king walking, Betal, from within the corpse, asked, “Who are you, and why do you want to take me with you?”
“I’m Vikramaditya, the king of this kingdom. I’m taking you to the capital’s crematorium where a sage is waiting for you,” replied the king. “What will you get by taking me there?” sought the ghost.
“The sage will keep you in his captivity and that will increase his power. With his increased supernatural power, he has also assured me to do wonders for my kingdom,” said the king.
Hearing the king, the ghost replied, “O king, I am Betal, a ghost. I would like to warn you that the sage is a wicked man. He does not intend any welfare for your kingdom or society. By keeping me as his captive, he wants to increase his evil power and eventually harm the people with his enhanced abilities. I am ready to accompany you; however, you must live up to one of my conditions.”
“What’s this condition?” asked Vikramaditya.
“On the way to your destination, I’ll tell you an interesting story. You must listen to the story carefully and quietly. If you speak anything during the journey, I’ll return to the peepal tree, ” said Betal.
The king agreed to his condition. Betal said further, “Vikramaditya, I’ve heard a lot about your wisdom and bravery. I expect you to resolve the hidden riddle in my story. If at the end of the story you knowingly avoid the answers to my questions just to remain quiet, your head will be split into pieces.”
“I’ll try to solve the puzzle to the best of my ability,” promised the king.
“I would like to believe you,” said Betal and began narrating his tale.
Dear Readers, try solving the riddles of Betal on your own before reading the answers provided by King Vikram.
All you readers will have a lot of fun solving the upcoming riddles 🤴😇👻!
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