The Weight of the Elephant

The Kingdom of Vijayanagara was famous for its grand festivals. But King Krishnadevaraya also loved puzzles and science. One sunny morning, the King was standing by the riverbank, looking at his favorite royal elephant, Appu. Appu was a magnificent beast. He was huge, with long white tusks and a trunk that could lift a heavy log like it was a twig. “He is truly a giant,” marveled the King. Then, a question popped into his head. “Minister,” he asked. “How much does Appu weigh?” The Minister scratched his head. “I don’t know, Your Majesty.” “Find out!” ordered the King. “I want to know the exact weight.”

The royal servants ran in all directions. They brought the biggest weighing scales from the market—the ones used to weigh sacks of rice. Appu put one foot on the scale. CRACK! It broke into pieces. “We need a bigger scale!” shouted the Minister. They built a giant wooden balance, using tree trunks as levers. They managed to get Appu to stand on one side. But when they started piling rocks on the other side… SNAP! The ropes broke. Appu trumpeted nervously. He didn’t like this game. The King was disappointed. he looked at his court. “Is there no one in my kingdom wise enough to weigh a simple animal without breaking it?”

Just then, Tenali Raman stepped forward. He was eating a banana. “I can do it, Your Majesty,” said Tenali. “And I don’t need a scale. I just need a big boat and the royal treasury.” The King was surprised. “The treasury? Are you going to bribe the elephant?” “No, my King,” laughed Tenali. “Just wait and see.”

Tenali led everyone to the river. A large, flat-bottomed ferry boat was waiting. “Please ask Appu to board the boat,” said Tenali. The mahout guided the massive elephant onto the boat. The boat wobbled and sank deeper into the water under the immense weight. Tenali took a pot of red paint. He leaned over the side of the boat and painted a line right where the water touched the boat. “Okay, bring him off,” said Tenali. Appu walked off the boat. The boat rose back up, floating high on the water. “Now what?” asked the King. “Now truly comes the ‘treasury’ part,” said Tenali. “Bring the bags of gold coins! Bring stones! Bring iron bars! Anything heavy!” The servants started loading heavy sacks into the boat. Tenali watched carefully. “More!” he shouted. “Keep adding weight!” The boat sank lower… and lower. Finally, the water level reached exactly the red line that Tenali had painted. “Stop!” shouted Tenali. “That is it.”

He turned to the King. “Your Majesty, the weight of the elephant is exactly equal to the weight of the sacks now on the boat. We cannot weigh an elephant on a scale, but we can easily weigh these small sacks one by one and add them up.” The King was delighted. “Archimedes would be proud of you, Tenali!” “And the best part,” said Tenali with a twinkle in his eye, “is that since we used the gold from the treasury… maybe I can keep it as my reward?” The King laughed heartily. “You wish! But you shall certainly have a generous reward.”

Moral of the Story: Every problem has a solution if you think creatively (and know a little science).