The Lucky Ring

Long, long ago, there lived a man called Raghu in a tiny hamlet. He had a son named Madhu. After Raghu’s wife died, he remarried a woman called Munni. When a son was born to Munni, she began to ill-treat her stepson, Madhu. Eventually, unable to bear the ill-treatment any longer, Madhu, who was only sixteen, decided to leave. Despite his father’s sorrow, he did give Madhu the precious ring that belonged to Madhu’s mother for recognition upon his return.

A Journey of Trials

Madhu traveled far and wide. After many years, he decided to return home, but as ill luck would have it, he lost his mother’s ring in a dark forest. Upon his arrival, his father had difficulty recognizing him, and his stepmother, Munni, refused to acknowledge him. He was asked to furnish the ring as proof of his identity. Unable to do so, Madhu left home once again.

Into the Ogre’s Den

Upon his departure, he found himself back in the same forest where he had lost the ring. There, he encountered an old woman under a load of firewood. After helping her, he wandered deeper into the forest and found himself face to face with an ogre. Surprisingly, the ogre offered him work, promising a treasure of jewels if he could cut down certain trees and find a path to a particular banyan tree within a year.

The Lucky Find

With assistance from the ogre’s wife, who was actually the old woman he had helped, Madhu was able to complete the task. At the edge of the forest, he found a bird’s nest brimming with jewels atop a huge banyan tree. And among those riches, he found the ring he had lost. Overjoyed, he quickly delivered the treasures to the king who, in return, offered him his daughter’s hand in marriage.

A Happy Ending

Raghu was thrilled to hear of his son’s fortunes, and even Munni was ready to acknowledge Madhu as her son, now the royal son-in-law. And that is the tale of Madhu and the Lucky Ring.