(Translated from urdu by Sufiya Pathan)
Part (I)
Q1) Why didn’t he pay
the school fees on the day he brought money to school?
Ans) He could not pay the fees on the day he bought money to
school because the teacher who collected the fees, Master Gulam Mohammad, was
on leave. Fees and funds were to be collected the next day.So, he brought money
back.
Q2) (i) What were the
coins ‘saying’ to him?
Ans) Coins were persuading him to spent the money and
purchase the crispy, syrupy jalebis. They told him to look at the hot jalebis
that are coming out from the kadhao in the shop to be eaten by someone who had
money. And you had the money.
Ans) It seems that the coins were misguiding the boy. But
actually it was his imagination that was arising because of his temptation for
the jalebis. He was longing to eat them but his goodness was stopping him from
doing anything wrong. In the state of conflict his mind was making stories.
Q3) Why didn’t he take
the coins’ advice?
Ans) He was a good boy. He got so much at home that looking
at these jalebis in the market was a sin. If he spent money today, what would
he tell to his teacher? Moreover, he was a God fearing boy. He thought that how
he would show his face to the God on the day of Qayamat.
Q4) (i) What did the
oldest coin tell him?
Ans) The oldest coin told that they were saying all these
things for his benefit. He also wanted to eat those hot jalebis. If he spent
money today, he would get four rupees tomorrow as scholarship. He could pay his
fees and funds with that money.
Q4) (ii) Did he follow
his advice? If not, why not?
Ans) He controlled his temptation and refused to listen to
the advice of the coins. He was the most promising student in the school. In
fourth class he even won the scholarship of four rupees per month. He came from
a well-to-do family. A boy of this stature could not eat jalebis in the market
place.
Q5) He reached home
with the coins in his pocket. What happened then?
Ans) He reached home with coins in his pocket. But coins kept
persuading him. He went inside and took his food. After that, suddenly he
rushed out of the house barefoot and reached the market. There he ordered a
whole rupee worth of the jalebis.
Part (II)
Q1) (i) Why didn’t he
eat all the jalebies he had bought?
Ans) Those were inexpensive days. One rupee was a big amount.
Halwai opened a full newspaper and put a pile of jalebis on it. Boy ate to his
full but he could not eat all the jalebis.
Q1) (ii) What did he do
with the remaining jalebies?
Ans) He ate so many jalebis that his stomach was full up to
the throat. He distributed the remaining jalebis to the children in the street.
More children gathered there. He bought jalebis from the remaining money and
started to distribute them among children. Many beggars also came and got some
jalebis.
Q2) “ The fear was
killing me” What was the fear?
Ans) The fear was that his family members might come to know
that he had spent the school fees on jalebis. He stomach was already full. If
he refused to take dinner, he had to explain. If he pretended illness, doctor
would be summoned. Doctor would easily open his secret.
Q3) “Children’s stomach
was like a digestion machine.” What do you understand by this? Do you agree?
Ans) “Children’s stomach was like a digestion machine”, it
means that children have strong digestive system. They can digest anything and
in any amount. It is true to some extent. The boy in this story ate too much
jalebis. He felt discomfort at night, but by the morning everything was as usual.
Q4) How did he plan to
pay the fees the next day?
Ans) His plan to pay the fees next day was very simple. As
suggested by the oldest coin, he decided to pay fees and funds from the
scholarship money that he was going to receive the next day.
Q5) When it time to pay
the fees, what does he do? How is he disobeying the elders by doing so?
Ans) In the school he came to know that scholarship would be
given the following month. Teacher announced that fees would be collected
during the recess. In the recess he left the school and kept moving till he
reached the railway station. He disobeyed the elders by spending the fees money
on sweets. He cursed himself, how this advice escaped from his mind on that
day.
Part (III)
Q1) What was the consequence of buying jalebies with fees money?
Ans) His plan was simple - Jalebis
from fees money and fees from scholarship. But this plan failed because
scholarship was postponed to the next month. Now his dilemma was that he could
explain to his family and he could not face his teacher. He had to bunk the
school and spend the time praying near the railway station.
Q2) His prayer to God is like a lawyer’s defense of a bad case. Does he
argue his case well? What are the points he makes?
Ans) His prayer were not for love and
devotion. It is the fear that he would be caught. He knew that he had done
wrong. He was defending a bad case, but he didn’t have courage to face the
reality.
He made some arguments like he was a good boy,
he had memorized the entire namaaz. He promised that he would not commit the
same mistake again. He wanted help just once. He argued that God has no
shortage of anything, and He can give him four rupees.
Q3) He offers to play a game with Allah Miyan. What is the game?
Ans) He offered to play a game. He
would run and come back after touching the signal. Allah miyan would place four
rupees under the nearby rock. He would turn the rock and found the money.
Q4) Did he get four rupees by playing the game? What did he get to see
under the rock?
Ans) No, he didn’t find the money the
rock. He saw a big hairy worm that wriggled towards him. He screamed and ran
away again towards the signal. When he came back, he turned the rock to find
the worm again.
Q5) If God had granted his wish that day, what harm would it have caused him
in later life?
Ans) If God granted his wish that
day, he would not have learnt the lesson of life. We should face the reality
bravely. Even if we commit some mistake, we should not hide them. We should
learn our lessons from the mistakes and move on. God has given us mind, heart
and His love. We should use them to light our path.
