Why should an assistant be paid less?

Once upon a time, there was a king who ruled a small country south of the Vindhyas. Among the people close to him were his prime minister and his faithful assistant. The King relied on the prime minister and the assistant for a number of things on a day to day basis.

The assistant had a monthly salary of eighteen rupees while the prime minister's salary was much higher. Whereas the assistant moved around and worked hard all the time to get things done, the prime minister sat at one place and just passed orders all day.

Now, the assistant started to feel that this was not right and that he should be paid as much as the prime minister. So, one fine day, the assistant gathered enough courage to ask the King  'Sir, I carry everything you need and work hard for you all day. Your prime minister has such an easy job of sitting in one place and issuing commands and yet my pay is so much lower than the prime minister. Why this discrimination?'

'Your work is back breaking. The prime minister's job is seemingly easy. However, the prime minister has to be paid more', replied the King. 'Even though your work is tiring, you are not being underpaid. However, since you are discomfited, I will increase your salary by another four rupees', granted the King.

The assistant was silent, but he was not convinced. Why should the prime minister be paid so much higher??

A few days later, the King went on a hunting expedition to a forest and the prime minister the assistant accompanied him. They spent a lot of time in the forest and went deep inside when they came across a stream. They washed up in the  stream and the King then rested in the shade of a nearby tree.

After some time, they saw a group of people on the other side of the stream. The King was curious to know who those people were, so he commanded the assistant - 'Go and find out who those people are'

The assistant crossed the stream and spoke to the group of people and came back and reported to the King, 'Sir, they are theater artists'

'Where are they from?' asked the King

'I had not asked them that Sir. I will go over just now and find that out', said the assistant

'They are from a village near Srisailam', said the assistant once he came back

'Is that so', said the King. 'How long are they here for?'

The assistant did not know the answer for that question. He crossed the stream once again and came back with the news that there will be here for a week.

'Will they come to our kingdom?'

The assistant crossed the stream yet again to find out and came back to say 'If your majesty wishes them to come, they would be glad to come to our kingdom'

'Ok. What kind of plays will they perform? How much money do they want to perform? What arrangements do they need to come and perform in our kingdom?' The assistant kept crossing the stream to get answers to all these questions and got very tired after some time. However, inspite of this, the King did not get all the information that he needed!

The King then called the prime minister who had just returned from a short scouting expedition and told him - 'There are a few people camping on the other side of the stream. Please go and find out who they are why they are here'

The prime minister went accordingly and crossed the stream. He spoke to that group of people for a few minutes and came back with this report

'Sir, this group is from Srisailam. They are a theater group of twelve people including men and women. They are in this camp for a week and are planning to go to the next village after that. I have invited them to come over to our kingdom to perform. They are quite interested in performing the 'Dashavataram' play. If we provide them with a place to stay and take care of their food, they are willing to settle down in our kingdom for ever. If you so wish, they are eager to meet with you right now!'

The King did not need any more information than what the prime minister obtained. He called his assistant and admonished him, 'Look - You made ten to twelve trips and still did not get the information I needed. The prime minister made one trip and got all the information I need and more. That is why he is paid more. That is why you are paid less. Do you understand?'

The assistant was now convinced with what the King told him.