Short Questions (2 Marks)
Question 1 : Why did the guru decide the leave the Kingdom of Fools?
Or, Why did the guru want not to stay in the Kingdom of Fools?
Answer : The guru decided to leave the Kingdom of Fools because he realised that it was dangerous to live there as the people were all fools and anything could happen at any time. He was not sure about them and felt that they could also harm to guru and his disciple.
Question 2 : Why did the king order for the execution to be postponed?
Or, Why did the king decide to postpone the execution of the guru and his disciple?
Answer : The guru made a fool of the king by telling him that the new stake belonged to the God of justice and the first person executed on it would be the king in his next birth and the second person executed would be the minister in the next birth. As the king did not want to lose his kingdom even in his next birth, he postponed the execution so that he had time to think and take the advice of his minster.
Question 3 : Why were the guru and his disciple delighted?
Or, Why were the two men surprised as well as delighted when they went to buy grocery?
Answer : The guru and his disciple were surprised and delighted when they wen to buy grocery in the Kingdom of Fools because they found that everything cost the same – as single duddu whether it was a measure of rice or a bunch of bananas. Thus, everything was very cheap.
Question 4 : What magical powers did the guru have?
Answer : The guru saw everything in a vision; he could see far, he could see the future just as the present and the past. Further, he could appear anywhere at any time as happened when the disciple remembered him and he appeared to save him from the state.
Question 5 : Why was the dancing girl walking up and down the street?
Answer : The dancing girl was walking up and down the street because she had given gold to the goldsmith to make some jewellery. But, the goldsmith was busy with some other work and kept on promising her to give it soon, thus making her walk up and down to his house a dozen times.
Question 6 : What did the king and the minister do to change night into day and day into night?
Answer : To change night into day and day into night, the king and the minister ordered that everyone should awake at night and work as before and go to bed as soon as the sun rose.
Question 7 : What was foolish about the king’s trial of the merchant?
Answer : A thief, who had broken the wall of the merchant’s house was killed due to wall of the merchant’s house collapsing on his head. So, the king ordered that the merchant should be punished for the thief’s death. This was a foolish judgement. Once, who is a victim, should get judgement not punishment.
Question 8 : What reason did the guru give to the king for dying first?
Answer : The guru told the king that the stake was of the God of justice and whoever died first on that stake would be reborn as the king of the country. Whoever died next would be reborn as the minister of the country. That is why, the guru wanted to die first.
Question 9 : How do we know that, in the Kingdom of Fools, both the king and the minister were idiots?
Answer : In the Kingdom of Fools, both the king and the minister were idiots because they ordered that everyone should remain awake at night, plough their fields and run their businesses only after dark and go to bed as soon as the sun rose. Anyone, who disobeyed, would be put to death. This was an idiotic order.
Question 10 : Who became the king and the minister of the kingdom?
Answer : As the kingdom was without a king, the people requested the guru to become the king and his disciple to become the minister. The guru agreed on the condition that they could change their earlier laws. That happened after the death of the king.
Question 11 : What is the guru’s wisdom? When does the disciple realise this?
Answer : The guru’s wisdom is that there is no justice in the Kingdom of Fools, as the people’s behaviour is unpredictable.
The disciple remembers those words and realises this when the king decided that the disciple was a suitable person for execution because of his fatness and not because of his guilt.
Question 12 : What advice did the guru give to the disciple before going out of the city?
Answer: The advice that the guru gave to the disciple before going out of the city was that it was dangerous to stay in Kingdom of Fools as their behaviour is unpredictable and there would be no justice there. You must leave this city and do not greed for food. But, the disciple didn’t pay any attention to it.
Long Questions (8 Marks)
Question 1 : What reasons did the guru give to be executed with his disciple on the stake in the chapter ‘In the Kingdom of Fools’?
Answer : The guru was very much wise and he knew it well how to deal with the idiot king and the minister. The guru whispered a few words in the ear of the disciple and then he acted accordingly. This made the scene there very interesting and the king was puzzled (surprised) at the way the two were fighting there.
The guru told the king that the stake was of the God of Justice and whoever died first on the stake would be reborn as the king of the country. Whoever was executed next would reborn as minister of the country.
These are the reasons given by the guru for him to be executed with his disciple on the stake in the chapter ‘In the Kingdom of Fools’. However, this was only informed by the guru to trap the king into ordering his own execution.
Question 2 : How do the foolish king and his minister make sure that they would become the king and the minister in the next life also?
Answer : When the people are fools then it is difficult to please them but it is quite easy to trick them. That is what the guru did to the king and the minister. That is what the guru did to the king and the minister. The guru and the disciple started the trick very well and the king as well as the minister fell to it.
They were in no mood to lose their loved kingdom and that is what made them trapped in the trick of the guru. The foolish king and the minister didn’t want to lose their kingdom to anybody, particularly to the guru and the disciple as the guru had told them that if he was executed on the stake, he would be reborn as the king.
So, to ensure that he became the king again, the foolish king decided to die at the stake first. He instructed the executioners to execute the first two people who came to him. The king freed the guru and the disciple and he and his minister were executed in their place.
Question 3 : Give example to prove that the king and the minister both were idiots.
Answer : The king and the minister both were idiots because:
They ordered that the night be treated as day and day as night, so that everybody slept during the day and worked at night.
They called the disciple to be executed even though he was not involved in the case being tried. Actually the thief himself was to blame but the king and minister foolishly did not understand this.
Both the king and the minister did not understand the guru’s plan to save his disciple from execution, foolishly accepting his argument.
Question 4 : How was the Kingdom of Fools different from other places?
Or, In the Kingdom of Fools , life was different. How was it different from common life? Explain.
Answer : The Kingdom of Fools was different from other places because everyone was awake at night, ploughing their fields and running their businesses on the orders of the king. Anybody who disobeyed this order would be executed.
They would go to bed as soon as the sun rose.
Besides this, the price of everything was the same, one duddu, the local currency. So whether it was a measure of rice or a bunch of bananas, they all cost the same. Thus, everything was very cheap. There was no justice to be seen in the kingdom. One may be tried for the deeds one has not done actually. The king and the minister were both foolish and they didn’t understand what does the justice mean for the proper running of a state. There was nothing but chaos all round in the state.
Question 5 : The guru was a wise man. How does the story ‘In the Kingdom of Fools’ reflect it?
Answer : The story “In the Kingdom of Fools” reflects the guru’s wisdom because he advised his disciple not to stay in that kingdom as the future is uncertain in a place full of fools.
This is exactly what happened when the disciple was to be executed by the orders of the king for no fault of his. This wisdom is further reflected (shown) in the story when the guru convinces the king by pretending to quarrel with his disciple to order his own execution. Also , the guru had the magical powers and he could see very well that the future of such a state is next to nothing. Also,he was a good planner for he planned very well how to bring things in right and ordered manner. He not only saved his disciple but the people of state too.
Question 6 : How did the guru and his disciple become the king and the minister of the kingdom?
Answer : The guru had realised that the king and his minister were fools. So, he told the king that the first person to be executed on the new stake would become the king in his next life and the second to be executed would become the king’s minister. The foolish king and his minister, believing the guru, got themselves executed. As the kingdom was without a king, the people requested the guru to become the king and his disciple to become the minister. They agreed on the condition that they could change the earlier laws.
Question 7 : You are the disciple in the story , “In the Kingdom of Fools”. You are in trouble as you are about to be hanged. You decide to write a letter to your guru regretting your decision to stay in the Kingdom of Fools and requesting him to help you. Write the letter in 80 words.
Answer :
Dear Guruji,
Hope you are quite well and sound but I am not. I am such a fool to ignore the words of wisdom from you. That was one of the biggest mistakes that I should not have committed. I feel very sorry to have not heeded (paid attention to) your advice to leave the Kingdom of Fools as their behaviour is unpredictable and they may harm us. The prospects of eating tasty food at very cheap prices tempted me. Now, I am trapped. I am about to be executed for no fault of mine. As it is a Kingdom of Fools, it is futile to reason with them. I regret very much my staying on here. None but you can save my life. Please forgive me and help.
Your disciple.