King of the Desert
Rangu’s Defiance
As Rangu grew up, he proved to be worthless, wicked, and lazy. His grandmother, who worked hard to provide for both of them, soon grew tired of his behavior.
“Now that you are a grown lad, you must work if you want to be fed,” she told Rangu one day.
“I am a clever boy. Why should I work as long as you are here?” Rangu blurted out defiantly.
“In that case, my clever boy, I am not going to feed you!” retorted the old woman.
A Hard Lesson
Rangu took her words lightly, dismissing them as a joke, but he could not ignore them for long. His grandmother did not cook that night, and they both went to sleep without dinner. The following morning, she did not make any arrangements for food either.
As Rangu realized that he could only stay at home if he was willing to starve, he attempted to be brave. He did not complain, yet as the hours passed, he knew that the situation was becoming unbearable.
Into the Forest
After some time, Rangu left home and walked aimlessly, not knowing where to go. By evening, he found himself inside a forest and decided to climb a tree to spend the night.
Unbeknownst to him, a ghost lived in that tree. The ghost had a sister who had been imprisoned in a bottle by an exorcist, and the bottle lay buried at the foot of the tree.
The Offer of Gold
Seeing Rangu, the ghost called out, “Under the tree is buried gold. If you are clever, you should dig it out!”
Although Rangu did not bother to look at the ghost, he proclaimed, “I am a clever boy and I will dig out the wealth.” He hopped down and started digging at the foot of the tree, but the earth proved too hard to penetrate.
After an hour of digging, Rangu’s fingers ached, and he felt compelled to stop. “I need a spade or a crowbar for digging,” he said.
The Sage’s Gift
“If you are really clever, then you should be able to find one,” replied the ghost. Rangu looked around and noticed a beam of light coming from a nearby hut. He rushed over and found a wandering couple cooking their food inside.
Rangu asked them if they could lend him a digging instrument, but they did not understand him. Instead, they pointed him in the direction of a mendicant who lived nearby.
When Rangu arrived, he explained his predicament to the mendicant, who happened to be a sage with great powers. In a good mood, the sage granted Rangu a crowbar and said, “Whenever you remember me and ask for a boon, it will be granted to you, but only once.”
The Result of Greed
Excited, Rangu returned to the tree and began digging again. Soon, he unearthed the buried bottle. With great joy, he picked it up, though he could not see what was inside due to the darkness.
“Please smash the bottle on the ground,” said the ghost. Rangu complied, and with an eerie shriek, the ghost’s sister flew up to join her brother.
“I heard a shriek, but where is the gold?” Rangu asked, but received no reply. As it started to rain, Rangu thought perhaps the rain obscured his vision. Remembering the promised boon, he declared, “Let there be no rain in the land where I live!”
The Consequences of His Wish
Instantly, the rain stopped, but Rangu found no gold. Exhausted and hungry, he headed home, where his worried grandmother welcomed him back and resumed feeding him as before.
“Granny! I am no ordinary man. There will be no rain in the land where I live!” Rangu boasted. Initially, she dismissed his claim as foolishness, but as days turned into weeks, it seemed Rangu’s boast might indeed be true.
In the rainy season, the neighboring lands received abundant rain, while not a drop fell on theirs. The drought resulted in famine, leading to great distress among the people and the king.
The King’s Dilemma
Finally, Rangu’s grandmother brought him before the king, explaining, “O King, I will reveal the cause of the drought only if you promise to spare this foolish lad’s life.” The king obliged and listened to her tale.
“What shall we do? As long as this boy is alive, we will have no rain, but I cannot kill him since I promised!” the king pondered, looking to his minister.
“My lord! This boy can accomplish what an army cannot. The neighboring king is plotting to invade our kingdom. Let us send Rangu to live there. In two years, the kingdom will face severe famine, making it easier for us to conquer,” the minister advised.
A New Kingdom
The plan delighted the king, and Rangu was sent to the neighboring kingdom, where he lived comfortably, favored by the king. As expected, without rain, the kingdom soon fell into drought.
Two years later, Rangu’s king invaded and conquered the drought-stricken kingdom. “What should we do with Rangu now?” the king asked his minister.
“Beyond our northern border lies a desert, a no-man’s land. Let us build a house for Rangu there and declare the desert his own kingdom,” suggested the minister. Thus, Rangu was given a nice house in the desert, and whatever he needed was sent from the palace. He lived happily, reigning as the king of the desert.