Shukracharya Warns Bali About the Dwarf

Shukracharya: "Do not give it to him."

Shukracharya's voice was urgent. The small brahmin boy waited patiently as the guru pulled King Bali aside.

Bali: "He's just a dwarf, He wants three paces of land. I could give him three hundred and not notice."

Shukracharya: "He's not a dwarf. He's Vishnu himself, come to strip you of everything."

Bali looked at the child again—the pleasant smile, the tiny feet, the innocent request.

Bali: "You're certain?"

Shukracharya: "I've known divinity for longer than you've been alive. That child contains the cosmos. Those three paces will cover heaven, earth, and everything between."

Bali: "Then I'll refuse him."

Shukracharya: "Good."

Shukracharya relaxed.

Bali: "But... I've already promised. I said I would grant any boon to any brahmin who approached me during this yajna."

Shukracharya: "Break the promise! He's not really a brahmin—he's a god in disguise trying to trick you!"

Bali: "Does that matter? I made a vow. Everyone heard it. Every god, every demon, every sage. If I break it now, what is my word worth?"

Shukracharya: "Your word will be worth nothing if you lose your kingdom! Your armies! Your power! He will take everything, Bali!"

Bali: "I know."

Shukracharya: "You know? And you'll still—"

Bali: "I will still keep my word. What is a kingdom compared to honor? What is power compared to truth? I'd rather be a beggar who keeps his promises than an emperor who breaks them."

Shukracharya: "You're a fool."

Bali: "Probably. But I'm a fool who will be remembered. In a thousand years, when people tell this story, they won't remember me as the demon who fought the gods. They'll remember me as the king who kept his word even when a god tried to trick him into breaking it."

Shukracharya: "And you'll lose everything."

Bali: "Not everything. Not the only thing that matters."

Bali walked to where Vamana waited. He knelt, poured water over the dwarf's tiny feet, and made the gift official.

The dwarf grew. And grew. His first step covered all of earth. His second step covered all of heaven. There was nothing left.

Shukracharya: "Where shall I place my third step?"

Vishnu asked, now vast beyond comprehension.

Bali: "On my head, I have nothing else to give. But I will not be forsworn."

And Vishnu, moved by this demon king's honor, pressed him not into oblivion but into the underworld—giving him a kingdom to rule, devotees to bless, and immortality.

Shukracharya watched it all unfold. He had been right about the trap. But he had been wrong about what would happen to someone who walked into it with open eyes.

Sometimes, being tricked by a god is still a victory.