In The Kingdom of Fools Notes Chapter 4 English Class 9 CBSE

Notes For All Chapters English Moments Class 9

About the Story

• This story is a Kannada folktale retold by A.K. Ramanujan.
• It shows how foolish rulers and people can cause trouble.
• It also highlights wisdom, intelligence, and the victory of common sense over foolishness.

Main Characters

1. The King – A foolish ruler who wants to change natural rules.
2. The Minister – The king’s foolish companion who agrees with him.
3. The Guru – A wise holy man who can see truth and future.
4. The Disciple – The Guru’s student who loves food and is greedy.
5. The Merchant, Bricklayer, Dancing Girl, Goldsmith, Thief – Characters involved in a funny court case.

Summary of the Story

1. The Strange Kingdom

• The king and his minister were idiots.
• They made a strange rule: night would be day and day would be night.
• People had to work at night and sleep during the day.
• Anyone who disobeyed would be punished with death.
• The people followed the rules out of fear.

2. Arrival of the Guru and Disciple

• One day, a Guru and his Disciple visited the kingdom.
• They were surprised to see no one awake in daylight.
• At night, the city became active.
• Everything in the market cost one duddu (a single coin) – rice, bananas, wheat, everything.
• The Disciple was very happy because everything was cheap.
• The Guru said, “This is a kingdom of fools. It is dangerous to live here.”
• The Guru left, but the Disciple stayed for cheap food and grew fat.

3. The Case of the Collapsed Wall

• A thief broke into a merchant’s house to steal, but the wall fell and killed him.
• The thief’s brother complained to the king that the merchant should be punished for building a weak wall.
• The foolish king started a chain of trials:
  • The merchant blamed the bricklayer.
  • The bricklayer blamed the dancing girl.
  • The dancing girl blamed the goldsmith.
  • The goldsmith blamed the merchant’s father.
• Finally, the king decided that the merchant himself should die for his father’s crime.

4. The Disciple’s Trouble

• The king ordered a stake to execute the merchant.
• But the merchant was too thin for the stake.
• They decided to find a fat person who would fit.
• The servants caught the Disciple, who had grown fat eating cheap food.
• The Disciple was to be executed, though he was innocent.
• He remembered his Guru’s words: “This is a kingdom of fools.”

5. The Guru’s Plan

• The Guru saw everything with his magical powers and came to save his disciple.
• He whispered something to the disciple and then told the king that he wanted to die first.
• Both the Guru and the Disciple argued about who should die first.
• The king got confused and asked why.
• The Guru lied cleverly that whoever died on the new stake first would become king in the next life, and the second would become minister.
• The foolish king and minister believed him and decided to die themselves to become king and minister again in their next lives.
• That night, they disguised themselves as the Guru and the Disciple and were executed instead.

6. The End

• The next morning, people saw the king and minister dead.
• The kingdom was in panic.
• The people requested the Guru and Disciple to be their new king and minister.
• The Guru agreed on one condition – he could change all the old laws.
• From then on:
  • Day became day and night became night again.
  • Prices became normal.
  • The kingdom became wise and peaceful.

Important Themes

• Foolishness vs. Wisdom – The foolish king and minister create chaos; the Guru’s wisdom saves lives.
• Greed – The disciple’s greed for cheap food puts him in danger.
• Justice and Irony – The king’s silly way of judging shows how foolish people can misuse justice.
• Cleverness and Intelligence – The Guru’s quick thinking defeats foolishness.