Prologue

Many years ago, there was a kingdom in the southern part of Bharatvarsha, with a beautiful city called Mahilaropya. It was the capital, from which king Amarashakthi ruled the country. He was learned and wise. Regarded as a master of all the traditional art forms, he was respected by every other king and prince in the subcontinent.

Despite having tremendous wealth and fame, the king was not happy. He was worried about his three sons, Bahushakthi, Ugrashakthi, and Ananthashakthi, who were learning-impaired. He brought in the best teachers to educate them, but his efforts were in vain. The princes remained dunces.

One day, after assembling his ministers, the king lamented, "Gentlemen, all of you know very well that my sons lack common sense. A cow that does not provide milk is useless, so is an idiot and a disobedient son. Such children can only give life-long grief. Do any of you have any idea on how to make them intelligent?"

The ministers knew it would be futile to try to educate the princes. Still they provided their learned counsel. They said, "It takes twelve years to master the languages and grammar. And then one should spend more time learning religion and practical life, followed by the study of sciences. That will make them smart."

One minister named Sumati spoke differently, "Oh king, our time on this planet is limited. It will take years to master all the arts and sciences. There are so many obstacles to overcome, before one can get a good grasp of the subjects. Just like swans separate the milk from water, we should find a novel way to extract and condense life's wisdom, which the princes can then easily absorb."

He continued, "There is a brahman named Vishnu Sharman, who has a reputation to be competent in numerous arts and sciences. Entrust the princes to him. He will make them intelligent in no time."

The king had tried so many teachers already, "What is the harm in trying one more?", he said to himself. He summonned Vishnu Sharman to his court and said "Respected Sir, please impart wisdom to my three children. I want them to become street-smart, and be able to face the problems in life by themselves. If you do, I'll give you a hundred land grants."

Vishnu Sharman responded, "I'm eighty years old; I have no use for money, and all objects of sensual desire have lost their charm. I won't sell knowledge for land grants either. Hence, I'm going to take this up as a challenge. If I do not make your sons intelligent in six months time, your majesty can show me his royal bare bottom!"

The king was convinced by this unconventional promise, and he intrusted his three sons to the brahman.

Vishnu Sharman took the boys to his home. He composed five books; The Loss of Friends, The Winning of Friends, Crows and Owls, Loss of Gains, and Ill-considered Action. He narrated these stories and made the boys learn it by heart. As he had promised to the king, the boys learnt the art of intelligent living in six months time.