Birth And Education of Tenali Ramalinga

Ramakrishna was both a poet and a man of wit. He was born in Tenali, now a promising agricultural town, which is situated where river Krishna merges into the sea, The Bay of Bengal. It is called "The Andhra Paris" for its nurture of the men of fine arts.

Fortunately, Ramalinga’s name is associated with the name of his place of birth, and indeed, a double blessing:

"It blesses the one that gives, and one that takes,"

A permanent fame and prosperity for both.

As yet a boy, Ramakrishna had both bad and good reputations among his fellow boys, for he was highly naughty and intelligent. One day, an old saint that passed by on a road saw the boy, playing with other boys. He found in Ramakrishna "a spark", and asked him to follow to a distance. As Ramakrishna had no fear of strangers, he agreed to follow the stranger to whichever the place he wanted to take. The saint took him to the temple of "Maha Kali"; he made him to prepare for a puja, with these words:

"My dear boy, the moment I found you, my heart leaped with joy. I am old and may not live longer to appease the deity, and get from her boon. You are young and there is a spark in you. I am sure that Mother Kali will grant you that boon very soon."

With these words, the saint whispered "mantra" into the ears of the boy. He encouraged the boy to go ahead of in his Sadhana in the temple every evening. Ramakrishna had the tenacity to conduct the puja properly. Soon Maha Kali appeared before him in the form of a tendering mother with two silver cups in her two hands, and said:

"Dear lad, I have two silver cups in my two arms: One has in it milk that gives you wisdom; the other has in it curd that gives you wealth. Which do you like to have?"

Though she was warning him not to have both, the boy matched them and mixed milk and curd in one cup; and drank.

"What have you done?" Said Kali admonishingly.

Ramalinga coolly replied: "Mother, how is it possible that I can live in comfort without wealth and what will be the use of wealth without wisdom? Therefore, I wish to have them both. Sorry, if my words have offended you."

Hearing this reply, Mahakali smiled at the boy’s presence of mind. However, she granted her two boons conditionally:

"Look here my boy, you can have both wealth and wisdom. But your wealth of the royal patronaze will have ups and downs; and your wisdom will produce more of humorous distortions".

These two boons of Maha Kali made Ramakrishna’s later life most eventful, and it has been handed down to posterity in the from of Tenali Ramalinga Kathalu (stories).