The Blind Men and the Elephant by John Godfrey Saxe
It was six men of Indostan
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
That each by observation
Might satisfy his mind
The First approached the Elephant,
And happening to fall
Against his broad and sturdy side,
At once began to bawl:
God bless me! but the Elephant
Is very like a wall!
The Second, feeling of the tusk,
Cried, Ho! what have we here
So very round and smooth and sharp?
To me tis mighty clear
This wonder of an Elephant
Is very like a spear!
The Third approached the animal,
And happening to take
The squirming trunk within his hands,
Thus boldly up and spake:
I see, quoth he, the Elephant
Is very like a snake!
The Fourth reached out an eager hand,
And felt about the knee.
What most this wondrous beast is like
Is mighty plain, quoth he;
'Tis clear enough the Elephant
Is very like a tree!
The Fifth, who chanced to touch the ear,
Said: Even the blindest man
Can tell what this resembles most;
Deny the fact who can
This marvel of an Elephant
Is very like a fan!?
The Sixth no sooner had begun
About the beast to grope,
Than, seizing on the swinging tail
That fell within his scope,
I see, quoth he, the Elephant
Is very like a rope!
And so these men of Indostan
Disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
Exceeding stiff and strong,
Though each was partly in the right,
And all were in the wrong!
Moral:
So oft in theologic wars,
The disputants, I ween,
Rail on in utter ignorance
Of what each other mean,
And prate about an Elephant
Not one of them has seen!
Theists and non-theists: What do you think about this poem?
Why can't I give a question more than one star?
Oh well, you get the one I can give you.
:-)
Reply:''And prate about an Elephant
Not one of them has seen''
Love it! That about sums it all. We're so silly to argue over something which really will never be able to be proven/disproven.
None is right.
~lived happily ever after~ Well ... I have high hopes.
Reply:So we can't understand God by our sense perception. nor by mental speculation. One can only know God or the Absolute truth by one who has seen God Face to face. Otherwise we will be baffled by our false sense of perception. God can be seen. Don't believe the foolish rascals so say differently, because they have not yet seen. They can go on arguing the different aspects of God. but until one sees Him in full then their knowledge will not be complete. There are three features of God and some religions or paths may know one or another. Krishna says "Out of millions among men who are seeking out the Absolute truth hardly one knows Me in Truth."
Reply:I have liked it since I was a child. But I think there is more to the moral.
Kena Upanishad Chapter II
1 The teacher said: If you think: "I know Brahman well," then surely you know but little of Its form; you know only Its form as conditioned by man or by the gods. Therefore Brahman, even now, is worthy of your inquiry.
2 The disciple said: I think I know Brahman. The disciple said: I do not think I know It well, nor do I think I do not know It. He among us who knows the meaning of "Neither do I not know, nor do I know"—knows Brahman.
3 He by whom Brahman is not known, knows It; he by whom It is known, knows It not. It is not known by those who know It; It is known by those who do not know It.
4 Brahman is known when It is realised in every state of mind; for by such Knowledge one attains Immortality. By Atman one obtains strength; by Knowledge, Immortality
5 If a man knows Atman here, he then attains the true goal of life. If he does not know It here, a great destruction awaits him. Having realised the Self in every being, the wise relinquish the world and become immortal.
Reply:well i dont know about explaing the deep stuff about it but if has cheered me up thanks
Reply:Nothing new to me.
I have always looked at the whole elephant.
You would think scientists would get a clue and start doing the same thing.
Here's a hint.
The sciences should not be separated.
Reply:its gud but dont know wht to say bout it....but it's true n gud also......
Reply:I think up untill the moral it had the correct idea, because even though none of them where accurate with their descriptions they knew there was an elephant, and there was.
You have to concede the existence of a God for the moral to have any application whatsoever.
Nice peom though, variation of a story I have read many times before.
Reply:Only the elephant can understand its' true nature.
(Understanding comes from BEING not REASONING!)
Reply:Nice poem, nothing to do with what is going on with religion. Religion hasn't agreed there is an elephant.
Reply:I've always liked that poem! Its moral is so true, too: Debating the qualities and directives of a thing nobody has ever truly seen or experienced, despite their personal beliefs to the contrary, is always going to leave everybody in the wrong.
Reply:I always think "those must be the dumbest blind men ever, that they don't notice all these elephant-y bits are connected and never think to move to a different place to feel it".
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