Five blind men, walking abreast of each other, had come upon an elephant.
Since they cannot see, each began to feel around to determine what it is that they had bumped into.
The first remarked, having gotten hold of the tail, "It is like a vine... or a short rope.".
The second had put his arms around a leg and said, "No... it is more like a tree.".
The third blind man had walked right into the side of the elephant. "It is much more like a wall, than a tree or a rope," he countered.
The fourth had ahold of the ear. "But, maybe it is a tree... for I feel a thing very like a broad leaf," he offered.
The fifth declared, having encountered the trunk "It is very clearly a large snake!"
Each one of the men was attempting to make sense of something far larger than themselves by examining a very small part of this very big thing with severely limited perceptions.
The mistake to avoid is reasoning that the part of which one has ahold is the only right part and that it is all there is.
The 5 blind men and the elephant, part Duex…
ReplyDelete“I know!” the Leg Holder suddenly announced. “Why don’t we all check what each other felt and see if we can determine who is right?” They all agreed this was a good plan of action, and each moved about the elephant, feeling what the other felt and comparing it to the structures they felt. To their surprise, they found that while each one of them was accurate in feeling their one part, when comparing, discussing, and checking each other, they had a greater understanding of the reality of the whole beast!
“I believe the only explanation that fits the facts we have discovered is that this creature is an elephant!” said Trunk Holder. The rest excitedly agreed, and they began to care for their elephant.
One day as they worked around their elephant, the blind men heard a new voice. “Pish tosh,” it said. “Do you really think you understand the _whole_ elephant? Why, I bet you never noticed that your elephant has wings!” Side Toucher rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Now, I know I am not as tall as an elephant, but I reached very high on the elephant’s back and I never felt any wings.” “Well,” said the voice, reasonably, “You _are_ blind. And as someone who can see more than any of you, I tell you that your elephant has wings.” Then the voice leaned in closer. “And more than that, the wings are of the finest gossamer, very beautiful. You might not be able to detect them with your senses. But you can tell they are there; feel the breeze stirred by the wings.” And indeed, a small breeze stirred over their faces, as they imagined their elephant’s beautiful wings.
The strange voice had many other wonderful things to tell them. The five blind men noticed that the stranger never helped with the elephant, but still ate a share of all the food they earned for its care; however he gave much good advice, and told wonderful stories of a sky realm filled with men on flying elephants with their beautiful gossamer wings. Sadly, one had to die to reach it, so far above this gross world as it was, but there it was for those with eyes to see it. Oh, it was beyond the blind, but to hear of it! Of course, there were many rules for the blind men to follow, and about twice as many for women to follow, especially about their conduct and dress, but since there weren’t any about at the time, the blind men gave it little thought. And since the advice was often agreeable, and for the most part they thought they were lucky to have found someone to tell them of the Realm of Flying Elephants, they thought the stranger was worth keeping around even though his expense sometimes left them hungry. Tail Holder was not always as pleased as his friends, though. Instead of hearing more tales of the Sky Realm, he wished his compatriots would spend more time discussing what worth they could make of their elephant… perhaps it could be ridden to a destination, or its strength be used to earn a better living for their families. The stranger discouraged such ideas, though; he reminded the blind men to concentrate mainly on the sky realm to come. “Hmmm” said tail holder, getting out his broad shovel. “In real life, I know there is a lot of s*** that needs taking care of. Somehow, I can always smell when there is some s*** being spread around — and it isn’t all coming out of this elephant.”
But his friends all shouted him down and were angry at him for insulting their Prophet, as they now called him, and for sullying the beauty of their Sky Realm.
And so on they went. One day they may go to the glorious Realm of Flying Elephants, but perhaps not. They are blind, so they can only believe what they discover among themselves, or what they are told by others. The End.