The Trade Test Poem by Rajaram Ramachandran

A Drummer, an Astrologer,
A Scientist and a Teacher,
Far from east and west,
Claimed themselves, the best.

They met in a choultry,
Of a nearby Country,
Their talents to display,
Before the King next day.

The Drummer went to cook.
The Scientist, in market, took
A cup of ghee,
Just for a rupee.

To take meals in leaves,
The Astrologer climbed with ease,
A giant almond tree,
For leaves, dust-free.

To buy fresh curd,
A cry the Teacher heard,
Of a curd seller,
Near a street corner.

‘Thud, Thud’, ‘Thid, Thid’,
A sound came from the lid,
O’er the clay rice pot,
That was boiling hot.

The beats of the sound,
Wasn’t well metered,
So, the Drummer gave a shot,
That broke the pot.

The Scientist had a doubt,
O’er the ghee he bought,
‘The cup, the ghee was holding,
Or, the ghee, the cup was holding? ’

The cup, when turned down,
Let all the ghee down.
His joy knew no bound,
O’er the truth, he found.

The Astrologer got stuck up,
Right on the tree top.
‘Chirp, Chirp’, he heard,
A warning signal of a lizard.

The teacher went on quarrelling,
O’er the curd seller’s absurd spelling,
‘Currud’ in a manner,
Hurting his sense of grammar.

At the appointed hour,
The King sent his Minister,
Who went in search,
And traced them, each.

The Minister was spell bound,
When, at last, he found,
They were but simple fools,
Quite ignorant of their tools.