The Blind Men and the Elephant

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Long ago and far away,

there lived six blind men.

Although these men could not see,

they learned about the world in many ways.

 

They could hear the music of the flute with their ears.

They could feel the softness of silk with their fingers.

They could smell the scent of food cooking and taste its spicy flavor.

Together they took care of their home, and they were very happy.

 

Then one day, the blind men heard some exciting news.

The prince had received a new elephant at his palace.

The blind men had heard of elephants, but they had never met.

They did not know what an elephant was like.

"Let us go to the prince's palace,"

said one of the blind men.

"Then we can find out what the elephant is really like."

Off they went.

it was a long walk to the palace.

The blind men grew hot and thirsty.

But they did not stop.

They could not wait to touch the elephant.

Finally they reached the palace.

A guard came to greet them.

The blind men told him why they had come.

"Of course you may touch the elephant," said the guard.

"I am sure the prince will not mind."

The guard led the six men to the animal, which stood quietly in the garden.

 

The first blind man touched the elephant's side.

"It is strong and wide," he thought.

" I think an elephant is like a wall."

The second blind man touched the elephant's long,round trunk.

" Oh, it is just like a snake!" he decided.

The third man grabbed the elephant's smooth ivory tusk.

"Why, an elephant is as sharp as a spear!"

The fourth man held the elephant's leg.

He thought it was as round and firm as a tree.

The fifth blind man held the elephant's ear.

The ear was very, very big.

The elephant flapped it gently.

The fifth man laughed.

"It's just like a fan!"

The sixth blind man touched the animal's long,thin tail.

"An elephant is like a rope," he thought.

 

By now, it was midday.

The sun burned hot in the sky.

The guard took the six men over to a tall, shady tree.

"Why don't you rest here?" he said.

"I will bring you some water."

While they waited, the six blind men talked about the elephant.

"No one told me that the elephant is like a wall,"  said the first man.

"A wall?" said he second man.

"Oh, no. It is like a snake."

The third man shook his head.

"An elephant is clearly like a spear."

"What?" said the fourth man.

"An elephant is like a tree."

The fifth man started to shout.

"A wall? A snake? A spear? A tree?

You are all wrong. An elephant is like a fan."

"No It is like a rope!" yelled the sixth blind man.

The sound of angry voices filled the garden.

It was the sound of the six blind men fighting about the elephant.

"A wall!"  "A snake!"  "A spear!"

"A tree!" "A fan!"  "A rope!"

All the noise woke the prince.

He had been taking his midday nap.

"Quiet!" he called.  " I am trying to sleep!"

"We are sorry," said the first blind man.

"But we cannot agree on what an elephant is like. We each touched the same animal.But to each of us the animal is completely different."

The prince spoke gently.

"The elephant is a very large animal. Its side is like a wall.

Its trunk is like a snake. Its tusks are like spears.

Its legs are like trees. Its ears are like fans.

And its tail is like a rope.

" So you are all right. But you are all wrong, too.

For each of you touched only one part of the animal.

To know what an elephant is really like, you must put all those parts together."

The blind men thought about the prince's words. They realized that he was very wise.  " I will tell you something else about the elephant,"  said the prince.

"It is very good to ride on. Now you will ride on it all the way home."

So they did.

And they all agreed that was the best part of all.