The Half-Brother

When Akbar was young, his nurse took care of him like her son. She would feed him her milk when his mother was away. Akbar respected her a lot and treated her like his mother. He considered the nurse’s son as his half-brother. Akbar loved his half-brother and made lavish arrangements whenever his half-brother came to see him. Sometimes, Akbar stayed absent from the court to spend time with his half-brother. Birbal did not want Akbar to neglect his duties. So, when Akbar asked Birbal, “Do you also have a half-brother?” Birbal replied, “Yes, I shall bring him tomorrow, Your Majesty.” Next day, Birbal brought a calf to the court. Akbar shouted, “Birbal! What is this animal doing here?” Birbal replied, “Your Majesty, this is my half-brother. Since childhood, I’ve been feeding on the milk of his mother, the cow.” Akbar understood Birbal’s message and stopped giving undue importance to his half-brother.