As Birbal was gaining in more popularity in Akbar’s kingdom and in other kingdoms too, the ministers were developing more jealous feelings towards him. All they wanted was to remove Birbal from the position of Akbar’s favourite minister. Whenever they tried something, they miserably failed, proving even further that Birbal deserved to have such an important place in the kingdom.
Once, some jealous ministers got together and conspired to get Birbal killed as this was the easiest way for them to get the Emperor’s favourite minister out of their way. So, one minister went to see Birbal’s barber to bribe him. The minister said to the barber, “Do as I say, or you won’t be spared. The next time Emperor Akbar calls you for your services, tell him that there is a saint in the capital who can send a person to heaven by performing some rituals. This way, he can be made aware of the well-being of his ancestors.”
With the threat and bribe, the barber got frightened and saw no other way but to do as the jealous minister said. The minister was very much aware of the fact that the Emperor was very sensitive about his ancestors and he would do anything to know their well-being. So, he thought to take advantage of it.
The next time the barber saw Akbar, he said the same thing as he was told to. With excitement, Akbar ordered to get the saint in the court. And the next morning the saint came to see the Emperor. The saint said, “An intelligent person will have to be sent to heaven. The ritual will have to be performed in the graveyard.”
Since an intelligent person was needed, so the Emperor without any delay asked Birbal to visit his ancestors. Somehow, Birbal had already smelled that something was cooking up in the minds of the ministers. He had sensed that there was no such ritual and it was actually a conspiracy. So, walking one step ahead, he asked Akbar to give him some time to be with his family. Meanwhile, Birbal asked a few courtiers, who were Bribal᾿s well-wishers, to dig an underground passage in the graveyard.
At the time of ritual, he pretended that he died and escaped through the passage. After a few days, Birbal came back, thus shocking everyone. He said, “Your Majesty, your ancestors are fine. However, they need the services of the barber. So, he will have to be sent to heaven now.”
After hearing the news, the barber panicked and confessed the conspiracy in front of Akbar. Birbal explained what he had planned. Later, Akbar felt sorry for believing such a story and punished the jealous ministers.
