Three important questions
Once there lived a king who sought wisdom. He was told that there was a hermit who knew answers to all questions. The king came to him to see a senile old man, digging a garden bed. The king dismounted and bowed to the old man.
– I came to get the answer to three questions: who is the most important person on earth, what is the most important thing in life, what day is most important of all.
The hermit did not say a word and continued to dig. The king got down to work to help the old man.
Suddenly he saw a man walking along the road, his face covered with blood. The king stopped him, said a word of comfort to him, brought some water from the creek, cleaned and dressed the wounds of the traveller. Then he took him to the shack of the hermit and put him to bed. In the morning he saw the hermit sowing the garden bed.
– Hermit, – begged the king. – Can’t you answer my questions?
– You yourself have answered them, – he said.
– How? – asked the king in amazement.
– Seeing my old age and infirmity, you took pity on me and offered to help, – said the hermit.
– While you were digging up the garden bed, I was the most important person for you, and helping me was the most important thing for you. Once appeared the wounded, his need turned out to be more urgent than mine. And he became the main man for you, and your help to him – the most important thing. So, the most important person is the one who needs your help. And the most important thing is the good that you are doing to him.
– Now I can answer my third question: what day in human’s life is more important than the rest, – said the king. – The most important day is today.
Read also
Saints who did not shoot: The mystery of Boris and Gleb's feat
They could have taken Kyiv by force. They had swords, money, and the best retinues. But they chose death. We analyze the strangest political refusal in the history of Rus'.
A throne made of old wood: The story of Bethlehem manger
On New Year’s night, the world worships gold and glitter, yet Rome’s chief shrine consists of five rough boards from an animal feeding trough. An investigation into the history of the Sacra Culla.
Scrooge syndrome: Why "A Christmas Carol" is a book about us
We are used to thinking of Scrooge as a villain, but Dickens was writing about the tragedy of loneliness. How an icy heart learns to beat again – and what repentance has to do with it.
Four notes of immortality: How the author of “Shchedryk” died and why he won
The whole world sings this melody at Christmas – but few know the tragedy of its author. The story of Mykola Leontovych, a genius murdered in his father’s home for a pair of boots.
Byzantium: Game of Thrones with a censer in hand and 1000 years of grandeur
Imagine a state where the throne rose to the ceiling, and forks were used at the table when Europe still ate with hands. This is a story of faith, power, and gold.
Holy Family’s golden reserve: How Magi's Gifts saved them from poverty
An investigation into the fate of the Gifts of the Magi: what the actual objects brought to the Infant Christ look like, and by what miracle they survived the fall of three empires.