King Krishnadeva Raya prepared to counter the attack of the enemy who had amassed on the border in large numbers. As he believed in astrology, he called the court astrologer and asked to carefully study his horoscope and predict the future.
After studying the king'shoroscope, the astrologer replied, ?Your Majesty, I see an outright victory for you. You will emerge as the victor.?
Tenaliraman was also present and listening to the conversation between the two. Just then, the king turned to Tenaliraman to ask for his opinion. Tenaliraman replied, ?I am only a court jester and I have very little knowledge about the war as I have never been present in one. It will not be correct on my part to comment on it.?
The king decided to take Tenaliraman to the battlefield so as to enable him to witness a battle. Tenaliraman looked at the king'stroops and the enemy'salso to assess who could be more powerful. After pondering for some time, he told the king, ?The enemy has more elephant than us while we have more horses, who are more active then the elephants. I feel our victory is certain.?
The king fought bravely in the war and won. On his return from the battlefield, King Krishnadeva Raya adequately awarded Tenaliraman for making the right prediction. While the astrologer had predicted the same, but Tenaliraman'sprediction was more logical as it was based on facts rather than on the stars.
