Authorship Disputed
Nobody knew that Rajshekhar of Pushpapur was a talented poet, not even he was sure of his own greatness. He wrote simply because he felt inspired to do so.
An Invitation to the Court Poet
In a town miles away, Nagbhushan, the court poet, lived a life of prestige. Rajshekhar’s friends advised him to share his compositions with Nagbhushan, believing he would be able to provide a proper evaluation of them.
The Bold Encounter
Feeling quite shy, Rajshekhar ultimately decided to carry a bunch of his newly composed verses to the town and met the renowned poet, Nagbhushan. “O Great Poet, here are some attempts at poetry by this humble young man. Please read them and tell me honestly if they show any promise. If not, I will not waste my time writing such stuff,” Rajshekhar said nervously.
The Deceptive Offer
Nagbhushan glanced through the poems and was struck by their excellence, far superior to what he had ever written. An evil thought took possession of him. He said, “Young man, it seems you have some capacity for writing poetry. However, I cannot give you a complete evaluation right away. Leave your work with me, and we’ll meet again in a fortnight. I will read them thoroughly and form my opinion.”
The Disheartening Return
Rajshekhar returned after two weeks and greeted Nagbhushan. “What do you want?” asked Nagbhushan, seemingly unaware of their prior meeting. “I am the man who left a bunch of poems with you for your kind perusal,” Rajshekhar replied.
“You must be mistaken, young man. You likely left your poems with someone else,” Nagbhushan retorted rudely. “Why would I give my poems to anyone else? You are the famous poet! My poems must be here!” insisted Rajshekhar.
“Don’t be impertinent. Who is the witness to your leaving the poems with me?” asked Nagbhushan, raising an eyebrow.
The Plan to Expose
Rajshekhar stood in silence for a moment. Finally, he sighed and said, “Now that you raise the question of a witness, I understand your motive.” With that, Rajshekhar left the poet’s house without returning to his village.
A week later, Rajshekhar learned from a courtier that Nagbhushan was scheduled to read a new bunch of poems to the king. On the appointed day, he presented himself in the court.
The Dramatic Revelation
Hardly had Nagbhushan finished reading a stanza when Rajshekhar stood up and exclaimed, “This is my composition!” Everyone was stunned, and Nagbhushan was consumed by shame and anger.
The king took the manuscript from Nagbhushan’s hands and said, “Young man, are you mad? This is clearly our court poet’s handwriting!”
“My lord, my manuscript lay with the court-poet for a fortnight. He must have made a copy of it,” Rajshekhar replied, his voice resonating with the force of truth.
The King’s Decision
“The young man is a rogue! These are my best poems. I have decided to dedicate them to the king!” shouted Nagbhushan, trying to appease the king.
“Are you willing to dedicate these poems to me if I declare them to be yours?” the king asked Rajshekhar playfully.
“No, my lord, I am sorry to say,” replied Rajshekhar, throwing Nagbhushan’s deceit into sharp relief.
The Final Search
Curious, the king asked, “But why?”
<p“The reason lies in my original manuscript,” said Rajshekhar. The king detained Nagbhushan and sent two of his officers to search his house. They returned with several manuscripts, and Rajshekhar pointed to one that was his. <p“My lord, look at the first leaf. I have already dedicated this bunch to our family deity,” explained Rajshekhar. It was found to be true.
The Unraveling
Nagbhushan fell at the king’s feet and apologized for his offense. He lost his position, and needless to say, Rajshekhar was appointed as the new court poet.