A Bottle of Dew .

- A single drop of potion will turn anything into gold...

- Mysha Shah

R ama Natha was the son of a rich landlord. When his father died, he inherited large tracts of land. But Rama Natha never once looked after it. He had a strange belief-that somewhere in the world, there was a magic potion that could turn any object into gold. He spent all his time searching for it. Many people fooled him with fake promises, but he didn't give up. His wife, Madhumati, was tired and worried. She saw how much money he was wasting and feared they would soon be poor.

One day, a famous sage named Mahipati came to town. Rama Natha became his follower and asked about the magic potion. To his surprise, the sage said, "Yes, during my travels in the Himalayas, I heard how to make such a potion. But it's not easy."

"Tell me!" Rama Natha begged, excited.

"You must plant banana trees and water them with your hands every day. In winter, dew will collect on the leaves. You must gather that dew and store it in a bottle. When you collect five litres, bring it to me. I will chant magic words and turn it into the potion. A single drop will turn anything into gold."

"But winter lasts only a few months," Rama Natha worried. "It will take years to collect five litres."

"You may plant as many trees as you like," said the sage, "but remember, you must do all the work yourself."

Rama Natha went home, spoke to Madhumati, and began clearing his long-unused fields. He planted rows and rows of banana trees. He worked hard. During winter, he carefully collected dew drops each morning. Madhumati helped him. She also sold the banana harvests and earned good money.

Years passed. Finally, after six winters, Rama Natha had five litres of dew. He took the bottle to Mahipati. The sage muttered some chants and gave the bottle back.

"Try it," said the sage.

Rama Natha poured a few drops onto a copper vessel and waited. Nothing happened.

"You tricked me! I wasted six years!"

The sage smiled and called Madhumati. She came with a big box full of shining gold coins.

"There is no potion," the sage said gently. "You worked hard. You built a banana farm. Your wife sold the fruits. This wealth came from your labor. If I had told you the truth earlier, you wouldn't have listened. So I used this story to help you learn."

Rama Natha understood. From that day, he worked even harder, no longer chasing shortcuts.