“Birbal and the Washerman” is a lesson of Class 6 Textbook of MPBSE. Here all the Exercises Questions are done by teachers.
1. Word power
Complete the word puzzle given below with the help of the clues given:
- Courtier (A person who works in a King’s court)
- Emperor (He is also a King)
- Crown (Kings wear this on their head)
- Throne (A King’s seat)
2. Comprehension questions
1) Answer these questions in ‘Yes/No.’:
- Birbal was the King. – No
- Akbar was a generous King. – Yes
- Denu was a minister. – No
- The washerman was a greedy man. – No
- Kusum does not help her husband. – No
2) Say, who said to whom:
- “Water of this river is very cold.”
Akbar said to Birbal. - “Win a hundred gold coins, challenge from the King.”
The town-crier said to the people. - “I kept on praying for your safety the whole night.”
Kusum said to Denu. - “Your majesty, he is cooking food.”
The messenger said to Akbar. - “Salutations, Your Majesty.”
Denu said to Akbar.
3) Answer these questions:
- What was Akbar’s challenge?
Akbar’s challenge was to stand in the cold water of the river all through the night to win a reward. - Why was Denu ready to accept the challenge?
Denu was ready to accept the challenge because he wanted to win the big reward and improve his family’s living conditions. - Why didn’t Denu’s wife want to accept the challenge?
Denu’s wife, Kusum, didn’t want him to accept the challenge because she was worried about his safety and feared the cold water might harm him. - What was the courtier’s objection?
The courtier objected by claiming that the lights from Akbar’s palace kept Denu warm during the night, and therefore he didn’t truly endure the cold. - How did Birbal bring justice to Denu?
Birbal cleverly demonstrated the flaw in the courtier’s argument by showing that if distant fire couldn’t cook food, distant lights couldn’t warm Denu either. This made Akbar realize his mistake, and Denu was rewarded. - Why was Denu very happy at the end?
Denu was very happy at the end because he received the gold coins as a reward and justice was served.
3. Grammar in use
1) Complete the chart:
| Adjective | Adverb |
|---|---|
| happy | happily |
| loud | loudly |
| quick | quickly |
| proper | properly |
| successful | successfully |
| thoughtful | thoughtfully |
| beautiful | beautifully |
| helpful | helpfully |
2) Fill in the blanks using correct adverbs given below:
- “Are you really going away to America, Rohan?” said mother.
- The teacher said thoughtfully, “I will find a way to help you.”
- The cap seller said sadly, “All my caps are gone.”
- The patient slept comfortably after the doctor gave him some medicine.
- Ramesh went home happily after watching the play.
- Once he got his money he went home quickly.
- The lion roared loudly, “Who woke me up?”
Let’s talk
Talk to your friends in the class and find out who has…
- Seen a snake: Rahul
- Visited the Taj Mahal: Priya
- Traveled in a train: Arjun
- Sailed in a boat: Neha
- Helped someone in need: Ananya
Let’s write
Write a story of Akbar and Birbal in your own words.
The Wisdom of Birbal
One day, Emperor Akbar and his minister Birbal were walking in the royal garden. Akbar, as always, loved testing Birbal’s wit. He turned to Birbal and asked, “Birbal, can you tell me the difference between truth and falsehood within the distance of four fingers?”
Birbal smiled and replied, “Yes, Your Majesty, the distance between truth and falsehood is just four fingers.”
Akbar was puzzled and asked, “How is that possible?”
Birbal explained, “The distance between truth and falsehood is the space between your eyes and your ears. What you see with your own eyes is the truth, but what you hear might not always be true.”
Akbar was delighted with Birbal’s clever explanation. He praised Birbal for his wisdom and rewarded him generously.