Quigly
04-04-05, 04:01 PM
Blind men and the elephant
An elephant once came to a small town. People had read and heard of elephants but no one in the town had ever seen an elephant. So a big crowd gathered around the elephant.
Five blind men also lived in that town. They had never seen an elephant. When they heard that an elephant was in town, they wanted to find out what an elephant looked like. They could not see the elephant and hence they were sad. A small child said that they could touch and feel the elephant. Thus, they could get some idea of what an elephant looked like.
The five blind men went to the place where the elephant was. People stepped aside so that they could go near the elephant and touch him. They were happy to have touched the elephant.
Later, they sat down to discuss what they ‘saw’ with their hands.
One blind who had touched the trunk of the elephant, said that the elephant was like a branch of a tree.
The second blind who had touched the tail of the elephant, said that the elephant was like a snake or a rope.
The third blind had felt a leg of the elephant. He said the elephant was like a pillar.
The fourth blind had touched an ear. He said the elephant was a huge fan.
The fifth blind who had touched the side of the elephant, said that the elephant was like a wall.
They talked and talked. Each man thought that what he had felt was correct. They could not decide what the elephant really looked like. Finally, they decided to go to a wise man in the village who had seen the elephant with his own eyes.
The man said, “Gentlemen, all five of you have touched only one part of the
body of the elephant. So you have only a partial VIEW of the elephant. If you put together your partial views in proper order, you will get an idea of what an elephant looks like.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The blind men represent a large majority of humanity and the Elephant represents religion or God. It can't be fully understood through one perspective. Odds are that your small perception of God is not enough to even scrape the surface of his vastness.
An elephant once came to a small town. People had read and heard of elephants but no one in the town had ever seen an elephant. So a big crowd gathered around the elephant.
Five blind men also lived in that town. They had never seen an elephant. When they heard that an elephant was in town, they wanted to find out what an elephant looked like. They could not see the elephant and hence they were sad. A small child said that they could touch and feel the elephant. Thus, they could get some idea of what an elephant looked like.
The five blind men went to the place where the elephant was. People stepped aside so that they could go near the elephant and touch him. They were happy to have touched the elephant.
Later, they sat down to discuss what they ‘saw’ with their hands.
One blind who had touched the trunk of the elephant, said that the elephant was like a branch of a tree.
The second blind who had touched the tail of the elephant, said that the elephant was like a snake or a rope.
The third blind had felt a leg of the elephant. He said the elephant was like a pillar.
The fourth blind had touched an ear. He said the elephant was a huge fan.
The fifth blind who had touched the side of the elephant, said that the elephant was like a wall.
They talked and talked. Each man thought that what he had felt was correct. They could not decide what the elephant really looked like. Finally, they decided to go to a wise man in the village who had seen the elephant with his own eyes.
The man said, “Gentlemen, all five of you have touched only one part of the
body of the elephant. So you have only a partial VIEW of the elephant. If you put together your partial views in proper order, you will get an idea of what an elephant looks like.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The blind men represent a large majority of humanity and the Elephant represents religion or God. It can't be fully understood through one perspective. Odds are that your small perception of God is not enough to even scrape the surface of his vastness.