The Blind Man and the Elephant: A Moral Story

In an ancient village lived six blind men who were famous for their intelligence. One day an elephant was brought to the village. Since they had never seen such an animal before, they decided to go up to the elephant and try to understand what an elephant is like by touching it.
The first man stretched out his hand and touched the elephant’s side (belly). He exclaimed: “How smooth and smooth it is! The elephant is just like a wall.”
The second man felt the elephant’s tusk. He found something sharp and smooth. He argued: “No, no, the elephant is very sharp and dangerous. It is just like a spear.”
The third man got the elephant’s trunk in his hand, which was shaking. He said: “You are both wrong. The elephant is long and flexible. It is like a huge snake.”
The fourth man stretched out his hand and held the elephant’s leg. He said: “It is thick, round and stands firmly. An elephant is like a tree trunk.”
The fifth man, who was quite tall, touched the elephant’s ear. “It is thin and moves back and forth. An elephant is like a big fan,” he said.
The sixth man grabbed the elephant’s tail. He shouted: “None of you know what you are talking about. An elephant is thin and wiry. It is just like a piece of rope.”
A heated argument broke out between the men. Each one was sure that he was right, and they began to curse each other, thinking that everyone else was lying or stupid. A wise king passing by heard the noise and asked what was the matter. After listening to their argument, the king smiled and said:
“You are all right in your place and you are all wrong. Each of you has touched only one part of the animal. To know the whole truth, you have to put all these parts together and see them.”
Lesson learned:
Personal experience vs. total truth: Everyone sees the world through the lens of their own experiences. If someone sees something differently than you, it doesn’t mean they are wrong; they may be seeing “a different side of the elephant.”
The total truth: Conflicts often arise when we take a small part of our truth for granted. To find a real solution to a problem, we must listen to others and combine our knowledge.
Avoid arrogance: Being “right” in your experience does not mean you know the whole truth. Humility is what enables us to see the bigger truth.