Prince Vajramukti meets Padmavati(vikrambetal)

Once again king Vikram aditya began his arduous march through the forest, Carrying betal on his shoulders.And once again, Betal began to narrate another riddle of the king to solve. This is what he narrated: In the city of Kashi lived two best friends-Prince Vajramukti and a minister's son. The two were very close. Their deep friendship and absolute devotion towards one another, was the talk of the entire kingdom. One day, Prince Vajramukti and his friend went hunting They were busy chasing animals when the prince galloped ahead, leaving his friend behind While wandering in the forest, the prince came across a meadow splattered with green grass and beautiful, multicolored flowers. There, amidst the beauty of nature, the prince saw some young women delightfully squealing and running around. One young woman-the prettiest among them was blind-folded and was trying to catch hold of her friends to identify who they were.

But the girls kept darting away from her. Amidst the laughter and the ensuing commotion, the blind-folded girl grabbed the prince's arm by mistake. There was a lot of giggling from her friends. When the girl opened her blindfold, her face turned pink with embarrassment. Charmed, the prince asked her three questions: What is your name? What is your father's name? Where do you live?

The beautiful maiden straightened her posture, drew herself to her full height and laughingly made three signs, all of which the prince found perplexing. First, she picked a lotus flower and pointed to herself. Next, she took off her earrings and placed them on her ankle. Lastly, she made a gesture of plucking her teeth. The prince looked bewildered, he was not able to understand her sign language. Before he could ask her anything further, the beautiful maiden ran away and disappeared with her group of friends.

Dejected, the prince went back to the spot where his friend was waiting for him. He told his friend about the three questions he had asked the maiden and the three symbolic gestures she had made. Do you think you can decode the signs and put my mind at ease, my friend?' The minister's son thought deeply and began decoding each gesture of the girl's sign language. Placing a lotus flower on herself means that her name is Padmavati. And she placed her earrings on her ankle that means she lives in Karnapur. Lastly, her gesture of pulling out her tooth means that her father is a dentist

Excited that the confusing symbols had been decoded so quickly by his wise friend, the prince hugged him tightly. "What are we waiting for then?' said the prince. Let us set off for Karnapur immediately and begin our search for the mysterious girl who has enchanted me and taken my heart with her. So, both the friends went off to Karnapur. They decided to disguise themselves in order to avoid being recognized. Once there, they began a door-to-door search for the dentist's beautiful daughter. During their frantic search, they came across a kind woman who, on seeing strangers with no place to stay in, offered her hospitality. She assured them they would be comfortable in her house. Expressing their deep gratitude to the kind lady, the friends accepted her kindness. Once inside her house, they began discussing their mission. They explained to her that they were in search of a beautiful girl whose father happened to be a dentist. They had guessed her name to be Padmavati, they told her. The kind lady clapped her hands in joy and said, Then you need not look any further. I know who she is! I am the lady who has been her caretaker ever since her mother died. I have been looking after her since her childhood.' The prince and his friend were overjoyed upon hearing this. But they decided it would be best to meet the prince's would-be bride after informing her about their arrival. That night, the prince's excitement kept him awake. Morning finally dawned. It was now time for the kind old lady to set off on her duty. Once there, she quietly informed Padmavati that two strangers from another city were looking for her desperately. And that one of them was the young man, whom she had chanced to meet in the forest while playing with her friends. Padmavati smiled as she heard this. But being a young woman who was fond of testing people through riddles, she thought of an idea. She dipped four fingers of her hand into a sandalwood paste bowl and smeared the good old lady's cheek with it. The wise woman smiled and made her way to her home. Prince Vajramukti once again could not solve the riddle, but his friend did. He interpreted Padmavati's action as her willingness to meet four days from then. The prince was very happy.

He remained restless for the next three days. On the fourth day, he duly set out to meet his lady love at a pre-decided place. His friend, meanwhile; waited at home with the old lady. When the prince did not return for three long days, his friend along with the old lady went out looking for him. During their search, the minister's son saw a young woman being ruthlessly dragged by the guards. What is THAT?' asked the minister's son. Sorrowfully, the old lady told him, 'It is the law of this kingdom that any girl who is suspected of having a bad character is punished strictly. Meanwhile, the prince was severely disappointed at being unsuccessful in. meeting Padmavati. He kept waiting at the appointed place, but she never turned up. Still he continued to wait. He told this to his friend on meeting him.

Extremely perturbed, the prince now asked his friend what he should do. They decided that the prince should throw off his disguise and declare his intentions honestly. Having come to this decision together, they went off to meet Padmavati's father-the dentist--to seek his daughter's hand in marriage. And then they heard the most unexpected news. am helpless, said the father. There is no way you can marry my Padmavati. You know why? The King of Karnapur has already declared his intentions to marry her. How can 1, mere father of a girl, turn down the proposal from the ruler of this land? Dejected, the prince was prepared to return home. But his friend had an idea. An idea which he implemented quickly. Cunningly and carefully, the minister's son the prince's best friend-managed to enter Padmavati's house. Once there, he began to frantically search for her precious ornaments. When he found them, he wrapped them up and managed to escape secretly from the house, without being caught. Next day, the friend disguised himself as a yogi and went to the most prominent local jeweler's shop in the kingdom to sell the stolen jewelry. The shopkeeper immediately recognized that he had sold these ornaments to the dentist's daughter. Suddenly, there was a lot of hue and cry from the crowd that had subsequently gathered there. The fake yogi was dragged all the way to the king's court. Why, O holy man did you steal the maiden's jewelry? thundered the king. Your Majesty, said the yogi. This girls trouble. While I was deep in meditation, she tried to entice me with her beauty. I stole the ornaments just to punish this woman of loose character!' Loose character??' boomed the king, 'Summon her and make her appear before me immediately!'

Padmavati was brought to the court instantly. Confused, she listened to the false allegation levelled against her. 'You have been proved to be a woman of loose character. The law of the land dictates that we throw this woman out of the kingdom's limits. Guards! Do as I order, roared the king. Before Padmavati could protest, the guards clasped her hands tightly and dragged her away. They took her to the land's outer limits and left her there alone. The young girl shivered at the sudden, unfortunate turn of events. It was a full moon night. Weeping, she looked up at the moon and asked, 'O Moon! What future do I have now? Look what has happened with me!'

Justthen, out of the shadows came out Prince Vajramukti, he had been asked by his friend. the fake yogi to wait there. At the sight of the prince's handsome bearing, Padmavars face lit up. With one strong amm, the prince swooped up his queen onto his graceful horse. Together, they galloped off to the life of their dreams. Ending the story, Betal asked, O Vikram, tell me now, who was at fault in this entire game-plan? Prince Vajramukti, his friend or the King of Karnapur? Speak or I will smash your head into smithereens! King Vikramaditya thought deeply, paused awhile and then spoke, In my opinion, the two friends were motivated by love and loyalty. Prince Vajramukti by his love for Padmavati and his friend by his loyalty towards his best friend, the prince. I think it was entirely the King of Karnapur's fault. He banished and punished an innocent maiden by acting impulsively. He fell for the words of a yogi, without even trying to find the truth. A wise king should always investigate thoroughly before reaching a decision. Since this king did nothing of the sort, I would say, it was entirely his fault." "Ahaaa! guffawed Betal, 'Yes, you know all the answers, Vikram. I admire your intelligence. but not your foolishness at opening your mouth. Look at me as I flyyyyyyyy!' With that, Betal flew back to his favorite tree.

In addition to King Vikramaditya’s judgment, the story also highlights the importance of wisdom, patience, and moral responsibility in positions of power. A ruler is not merely expected to enforce laws but must also ensure that justice is fair and based on truth rather than assumptions. The King of Karnapur failed in this duty by allowing himself to be influenced by appearances and false accusations. His hasty decision not only ruined an innocent girl’s reputation but also demonstrated a lack of proper judgment expected from a leader. Furthermore, the actions of the minister’s son, though driven by loyalty, raise ethical questions. His clever but deceitful plan ultimately led to Padmavati’s suffering, even if the final outcome reunited her with the prince. This suggests that good intentions do not always justify wrong means. True wisdom lies in choosing a path that upholds both honesty and justice.

The tale, therefore, teaches us that decisions made in haste can have severe consequences, and that truth must always be carefully examined. It also reminds us that intelligence should be guided by integrity. Only when wisdom, patience, and righteousness work together can true justice prevail in society.