Three Questions (Tolstoy)
Short summary
A king sought wisdom about three questions: when to act, whom to listen to, and what was most important. He offered rewards for answers.
Learned men gave conflicting answers, so the king visited a hermit in the woods.
The hermit said nothing but dug his garden. The king helped him dig. A wounded man appeared - the king's enemy seeking revenge. The king saved his life, and they reconciled. The enemy had planned to kill the king but was wounded by guards.
The hermit then revealed the answers: the most important time was when helping him dig, preventing the attack; then when saving the enemy. The hermit explained:
there is only one time that is important—Now! It is the most important time because it is the only time when we have any power.
Detailed summary
Division into chapters is editorial.
The kings three questions and the contradictory answers of the learned men
A certain king became convinced that if he always knew the right time to begin everything, knew who were the right people to listen to and whom to avoid, and above all, if he always knew what was the most important thing to do, he would never fail in anything he might undertake. This thought consumed him so deeply that he proclaimed throughout his kingdom that he would give a great reward to anyone who could teach him these three essential truths.
Many learned men came to answer his questions, but their responses varied dramatically. Regarding the first question about timing, some insisted he must create detailed schedules and live strictly by them. Others argued that one should simply stay alert to current events and respond to what seemed most necessary. Still others claimed he needed a council of wise advisors to help determine proper timing, while some declared that only magicians could predict the future well enough to know the right moment for action.
The answers to the second and third questions proved equally diverse. Some said councillors were most necessary, others claimed priests, doctors, or warriors held that distinction. As for the most important occupation, opinions ranged from science to warfare to religious worship.
All the answers being different, the King agreed with none of them, and gave the reward to none. But still wishing to find the right answers to his questions, he decided to consult a hermit
The journey to the wise hermit in the forest
The hermit lived in a wood which he never left and received only common folk.
To visit him, the king put on simple clothes, dismounted from his horse before reaching the hermit's cell, and left his bodyguard behind to go on alone. When he approached, the hermit was digging the ground in front of his hut. Despite being frail and weak, breathing heavily with each thrust of his spade, the hermit greeted the king and continued working.
The king presented his three questions directly, asking how he could learn to do the right thing at the right time, who were the people he most needed, and what affairs required his first attention.
The hermit listened to the King, but answered nothing. He just spat on his hand and recommenced digging.
The wounded enemy and the act of compassion
Seeing the hermit's exhaustion, the king offered to take the spade and work for him. The hermit accepted gratefully, and the king began digging. When he had completed two beds and repeated his questions, the hermit still gave no answer but asked to resume the work. The king refused to return the spade and continued digging for hours until the sun began to set behind the trees.
Just as the king was about to leave in frustration, the hermit pointed out a bearded man running from the woods. The man held his hands pressed against his stomach, with blood flowing from beneath them. When he reached them, he collapsed fainting on the ground. The king and hermit immediately unfastened his clothing, revealing a large stomach wound. The king washed and bandaged it with his handkerchief and the hermit's towel, repeatedly changing the blood-soaked bandages until the bleeding finally stopped.
When the man revived and asked for water, the king brought him fresh water to drink. As night fell and the air grew cool, they carried the wounded man into the hut and laid him on the bed. Exhausted from his walk and work, the king fell asleep on the threshold and slept soundly through the short summer night. Upon awakening, he found the bearded man gazing at him with shining eyes.
The man revealed his identity as the king's enemy who had sworn revenge because the king had executed his brother and seized his property. He had planned to ambush and kill the king on his return journey, but when the king didn't return, he went searching and encountered the royal bodyguard, who wounded him.
I wished to kill you, and you have saved my life. Now, if I live, and if you wish it, I will serve you as your most faithful slave, and will bid my sons do the same. Forgive me!
The king gladly made peace with his former enemy, not only forgiving him but promising to send his own physician and servants to care for him and to restore his property.
The hermits revelation: the true answers to lifes questions
Before departing, the king found the hermit outside sowing seeds in the beds they had dug the previous day. When the king made one final plea for answers to his questions, the hermit looked up and declared that he had already been answered. The hermit explained that if the king had not helped with the digging but had gone his way, the enemy would have attacked him, and he would have regretted not staying.
So the most important time was when you were digging the beds; and I was the most important man; and to do me good was your most important business.
Similarly, when the wounded man appeared, that became the most important time, he became the most important person, and caring for him became the most important task. The hermit concluded with the fundamental truth: there is only one important time—Now, because it is the only time when we have power.
The most necessary man is he with whom you are, for no man knows whether he will ever have dealings with anyone else