A quarrel over a yawn

A small quarrel. Even wise kings have bad days. The king quarrelled with his queen, Thirumalambal, over a trivial (very small) matter. Then, for weeks, he did not say a single word to her.

He stopped visiting her altogether. The palace felt the change: the once cheerful corridors became quiet and forlorn (sad and lonely). A small thing had grown big.

The queen goes for help. Distraught (very upset), the queen tried her best to fix things, and failed. With no other choice, she went to Tenali Rama.

What really happened. The king had written a poem full of vague (unclear) words: sun, moon, stars, beautiful sky. But it made no sense. When he read it to his ministers, they avoided him and made excuses.

So, late one evening, he came to the queen to read it to her. She was exhausted after a tiring day. As he read, she yawned, not once but several times.

The king thought she was showing contempt (no respect) for his poem, and stormed off.

Notice: the queen never said a word against the poem. The whole quarrel is about something her body did on its own: a yawn.

She says: 'If I had known this would happen, I would have chosen another day.' That is not anger at the king. It is regret for a misunderstanding she never meant to cause.

Rama's reply. 'If you like, I will try my best to resolve this matter, Your Highness. But this needs a well-planned approach, and I may need time to find the right strategy.'

He does not rush to the king. He asks for time to plan something clever.