Introduction: The Rise of King Vikramaditya
King Vikramaditya, a brave and courageous young man, lived in the city of Ujjain. The king of
that kingdom had no children, and one day, due to the sudden death of the king, there was
no heir left for the king’s wife. One day, the young man came to know that since the king had
died without children, a new king was being searched for. So he also thought of proposing
his name for this post.
The young man was fearless and courageous, so one day, early in the morning, he reached
the king’s palace and told the ministers that he was eligible for the post of king. The
ministers listened to him and told him that many people before him had also passed the
examinations for this post, and he was considered to be the king. At that time, the young
man was anointed as the king.
After being anointed as the king, he thought that maybe some god or demon was angry with
this kingdom. If that god or demon could be satis ed somehow, then this problem could be
avoided. On the night of his coronation, the king prepared many weapons and kept them in
his room. He sat hiding in a corner of the room with a sword.
That night, Agni Vetal came to the doorstep of Devraj Indra and was pleased to see those
weapons. He thought, why not enjoy these weapons rst and then take the king along? After
consuming those weapons, Agni Vetal said, “Rajan, if you tell me every day how old I am…
The next day, Agni Vetal again came to the king’s room and told the king, “Rajan, your age is
100 years.” On hearing this, the king placed the sword on the neck of Agni Vetal and said that
this means he had been blessed with a prosperous kingdom. The same king later came to
be known as Maharaja Vikramaditya.
King Vikramaditya and the Sadhu
It is a matter of long ago that a king named Vikramaditya used to rule Ujjain. He was very
popular and fearless among all the rulers of his time. One day, when he was looking after
the work of the court, a sadhu came to him and gave him a fruit. According to the king, that
fruit was gifted to him in the court. Therefore, all the people had a right over it. He told the
treasurer to apply a paste on that fruit and rub it carefully.
The next day, the sadhu came to the court again and presented another fruit to King
Vikramaditya. In this way, the sadhu started coming to the king again and again. Every time,
he would gift a fruit to the king and go back. The sadhu did not talk to the king in any way.
One day, the sage came to the court and asked the king, “O king, where are all the fruits that
I gave you?” The king took him to the place where all those fruits were kept. The sage asked
the king to cut one of those fruits. When the king cut the fruit, he was surprised.
There was a gem hidden inside that fruit. That is, there was a gem in every fruit. The sage
smiled and said, “Rajan, I can give you many more such gems. Your kingdom and people will
be prosperous. But you will have to do something for me.”
The king thought for a moment and said, “What can I do for you?
The sage said, “Rajan, there is a Peepal tree in the forest of Tanakpur, on which a dead body
is hanging upside down. You have to bring that body and give it to me.”
Hearing this, the king was shocked. He asked, “Whose body is that? What will you do with
that body? Or how can it be of any bene t to my subjects? I am not able to understand this.”
The sadhu told King Vikramaditya that a ghost named Betal resides in that corpse. The king
said, “For the welfare of my subjects, I will de nitely bring that corpse and give it to you.” The
sadhu said, “You can set out for this work on the next Amavasya. I will wait for you in my
ashram.”
Thus, on the next Amavasya night, King Vikramaditya went to the forest of Tankapur. After
searching for many hours, he saw that Peepal tree. He brought the corpse down with
annoyance, put it on his shoulders, and started walking toward the hermitage. If someone
else had been there in the place of the king, he would have been scared, but he moved
ahead fearlessly.
He was very brave. Whenever there was any work of amusing the subjects, he never backed
o . Due to this quality of his, the people admired him greatly.
Betal asked, “Why do you want to take me? Who told you about me?”
The king replied, “A saint has told me about you. He needs you, but who are you? You are
also a videographer.”
Betal said, “King Vikram, I am ready to go with you, but I have a condition.
The king asked him to tell his condition.
Betal said, “I will tell you a story to pass the time. Before reaching your destination, do not
utter a single word from your mouth. If you speak on the way, I will y back to the Peepal
tree. Then you will have to go back there again. And in the same way, you will have to bring
me back, carrying me on your shoulders.”
The king asked, “Do not refuse to come with me. Even if you go back a thousand times, I will
come to take you every time. I have promised the saint, and I do not go back on my word.”
Betal listened to the king and said, “O King, I know that you are a fair and loyal king. Now
listen to my story carefully. After listening to the story, you will have to answer my
questions. If you don’t answer, I will break your head into pieces.”
King Vikramaditya said, “Betal, you know that truth always wins. I will not break my word. I
am ready to listen to your story.”
Betal said, “I expect you to keep your word.” Saying this, Betal started telling his story. King
Vikramaditya was ready to listen to his story
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