The River flowing through Two Kingdoms

Once there was a king who was known for his temper. 

He and his cousin ruled two countries which were across a river. 

Once as this king was studying the waters of the river he thought of the king of the other kingdom. The king of the other kingdom had been his own cousin but now the two men had become enemies.

Suddenly that made the king very angry. 

He turned to his minister. “I do not want our river flowing into our enemy's kingdom. Stop this river immediately. Our enemies should not benefit from our rivers.”

The minister knew that the king had one of his temper tantrums and did not say anything immediately. The minister just set about stopping the course of the river. 

That night the minister went to the timekeeper of the kingdom. 

The work of the timekeeper was to sound a huge bell which resounded across the kingdom every hour. 

The minister asked the time-keeper to sound the bell every half an hour for that night alone.

The king slept in his bedroom and when he heard the bell ringing through the kingdom for the sixth time, he realized that it was time for the sunrise.

He woke up but was surprised to see that it was still dark around him. 

Not knowing what to do he immediately called his minister.

The minister pretended to look alarmed. “Your majesty our kingdom is to the west of the kingdom across the river. The only reason for the sun not to rise today is that the neighbouring king has made sure that the sun does not come to our kingdom. He probably acted in retaliation after we stopped the flow of the river water. The king of the neighbouring kingdom stopped the sun in his own kingdom so that it could not come here.”

The king was furious at first. He did not want to believe the minister's words. 

But the darkness around him made him realize that that is the only thing which could have happened. 

So the king ordered the river to be opened to the other kingdom as well. 

Needless to say, the sun rose at its usual time. 

The king never knew how he had been fooled by his own minister to stop him from committing a stupid act.

Adapted From the Katha Sarith Sagara