A Strange Wrestling Match

Exercise

Questions

Q. 1: What was Vijay Singh’s weakness? Which awkward situation did it push him into?
Answer: Vijay Singh’s weakness was that he was fond of boasting. This pushed him to an awkward situation where he was suggested to go to the Haunted Desert where he could find ghosts.
Q. 2. Was the old woman’s gift to Vijay Singh eccentric? Why?
Answer: The old woman gifted a lump of salt and an egg to Vijay Singh. Yes, the gift was eccentric as he could not understand what the purpose of such a gift was on a desert.
Q. 3. Why did Vijay Singh ask the ghost disguised as Natwar to come closer?
Answer: Vijay Singh asked the ghost disguised as Natwar to come closer so that he could size up his enemy like all other good wrestlers.
Q. 4. What made the ghost speechless? Why?
Answer: Vijay Singh pretended to be brave. He looked at Natwar’s face and said that he was a plain, lying ghost. This made the ghost speechless because people used to get afraid when they saw him but here, Vijay Singh was brave and confident.
Q. 5. Why did Vijay Singh say “Appearances can be deceptive”?
Answer: Vijay Singh said that “Appearances can be deceptive” because he wanted to insult the ghost. He wanted to show the ghost that he was very confident and strong enough to make the ghost lose.

Questions

Q. 1: How did Vijay Singh use the egg? How did he use the lump of salt?
Answer: Vijay Singh handed over a rock to the ghost and asked him to squeeze it. He told the ghost that the rock was full of fluid. The ghost was unable to squeeze the rock. Then, Vijay Singh insulted the ghost and carefully took the egg in his hand and took the rock from the ghost. He squeezed the egg, the yellow fluid dripped down and made the ghost think that he actually squeezed the rock.
Vijay Singh then challenged the ghost to crush another rock. This time, he said that it was nothing but salt. The ghost could not crush the rock. Then Vijay Singh took the lump of salt from his pocket and the rock from the ghost in his hand. He crumbled the lump of salt and let the rock drop into the darkness. Thus, Vijay Singh showed that he was way more powerful than the ghost.
Q. 2. Why did Vijay Singh conclude that the ghost would not be a worthy opponent to him? Was he fair in his judgement?
Answer: Vijay Singh concluded that the ghost would not be a worthy opponent to him as he could not perform any of the challenges that Vijay Singh threw on him- neither could he crush the rock full of fluid nor he could crumble the rock made of salt.
No, he was not fair in his judgement because he used unfair tricks to prove that he was more powerful than the ghost.
Q. 3. Why did Vijay Singh ask the ghost to accompany him to town next day?
Answer: Vijay Singh asked the ghost to accompany him to town the next day so that he could boast that he claimed victory even in a fight with a ghost. He wanted the ghost to accompany him as his prisoner.
Q. 4. What made the ghost believe Vijay Singh was dead?
Answer: There was no sound or groan in response to the ghost’s beating on the bolster, which he thought to be Vijay Singh. This made the ghost believe that Vijay Singh was dead.
Q. 5. Vijay Singh complained of insects in the cave. What was he referring to, and why?
Answer: Thinking that Vijay Singh was sleeping on the bed, the ghost had beaten him seven times with his stout club.
Vijay Singh complained that some insect flapped him with its wings seven times. He did so to prove that he was so powerful that those beatings with the stout club were as powerless as an insect’s flap.
Q. 6. Was it really a ghost who Vijay Singh befooled? Who do you think it was?
Answer: No, it was not really a ghost who Vijay Singh befooled. I think he was a fraudulent human who used to trick people into thinking that he was a ghost. Taking advantage of their fear, he would loot them of their possessions.