le money and gold he had. They entered Ramakrishna's house and
were hiding in the back yard. Ramakrishna sensed their presence and secretly
informed his wife. Then they said to each other: "Thieves are active in the town.
So let us hide our valuables in the well at the back of the house." The thieves
heard their words clearly. Ramakrishna and his wife filled a trunk with stones and
dropped it into the well with a splash, which the thieves could hear.
The thieves were convinced that the trunk contained the jewels. They
wanted to get the trunk. The entire night they drew water from the well and
poured it into the garden. All plants in the garden got plenty of water! Early next
morning, Ramakrishna cried aloud, "Our plants have had enough water; you can
stop now!" On hearing these words the thieves fled. Ramakrishna and his wife
enjoyed their practical joke!
Ramakrishna had a son by name Bhaskara Sharma. He was as intelligent
as his father.
It is said that he helped his father on several occasions to knock sense
into the heads of vain people.
Ramakrishna's life fills us with wonder. He was yet a boy when he lost his
father. Because of the narrow-mindedness of the teachers of the day he was
denied education. By his own efforts he acquired education and attained fame as
a scholar and poet in the court of Krishnadevaraya. He used humor to teach
arrogant people a lesson. He corrected any one - a rich man or a learned man or
a minister - who did wrong; he corrected even the king.
Life demands serious thought, it is true. But laughter, too, is necessary.
Humor lightens the mind. But our object in laughing at others should not be to
wound others; our object should be to correct them. Laughter should be gentle
and friendly. Such was the humor of Tenali Ramakrishna.
