Four Priest Friends
The Four Indian Priests
This is the story of four Indian priest friends: Som, Vesh, Given, and Bud. They lived together in a small village. All four were students of the wise man who lived in a forest.
The wise man was a simple, yet learned man. The Indian priests respected their teacher. Every day, they listened to their teacher with great attention.
— My children, anyone can become wise, but just some skills won't get you anywhere. You must learn to use them wisely.
Som, Vesh, and Given learned many skills. Vesh could heal a wound without touching it. Som could fix a broken pot. Given could pick up a fallen dead leaf and attach it back to the tree. But Bud was the slowest of them all. He couldn't do any of these things.
The three friends always made fun of Bud.
— Come on, pot! Pot, fix yourself! — Bud has learned a new skill. He can talk to the broken pieces of the pot. — Oh, yes, but the broken pieces haven't learned the skill of fixing themselves. — Poor broken pot! — Ha ha ha! — Ha ha ha! — Ha ha ha! — Ha ha ha!
But Bud never complained.
— Guruji, what do you mean by common sense? — It's simple. Common sense is when we think before we act.
The Journey and the Challenge
One day, Som, Vesh, and Given decided to travel outside the village.
— This village is too small. We will never be the most learned people if we live here for the rest of our lives. We must travel to learn as much as we can. — I agree. I have gathered all possible skills. Now we must move on. — What about Bud? Should we talk to him too? — Oh, he is foolish and useless. He will only be a burden to us. — No, Vesh. We are stronger than him. It is our duty to protect him. We must invite him to join us.
They all gathered their clothes and food and prepared for the journey.
— Remember, children. A wise man always thinks before he acts. — We will remember, Guruji! — We will remember, Guruji! — We will remember, Guruji! — We will remember, Guruji!
The four Indian priests said goodbye to their teacher. After walking for half a day, they were tired and wanted to rest.
— Let's have lunch here. — Wise men always conserve their energy for the adventures to come.
As they were about to sit on a boulder, Bud saw something lying on the ground.
— Mmm, what is this? — Oh, Bud, are you afraid of a few bones now? — I wonder whose bones these are. — I can guarantee they belong to a lion. It must have died of hunger. — A lion? — Yes. Look at the bone structure. I'm sure these are a lion's bones. Oh, wait. Why don't I test my skills on it? What a good way to practice! I will rearrange this pile into a lion's skeleton. — What?
Before any of them could say anything, Som began to utter some words. Suddenly, a bright light fell upon the pile of bones and rearranged them into the shape of a lion's skeleton. The other three were surprised.
— See? Didn't I tell you? You have to be as wise as me to be able to do this. — Do you think your skill is the best? I can put flesh back on this lion. It will have fur, skin, claws, teeth, everything in just a few minutes. — Claws? Teeth? Vesh, no!
But Vesh didn't listen. He uttered some words. Suddenly, the skeleton had eyes, skin, fur, claws, and much more. Now it was a whole lion lying dead on the ground.
— Isn't it beautiful? — It's terrifying! Why did you do that? — Because only I can. With my skill, I can bring anything back to life. The lion lost its skin and body. I brought them back. Isn't it the greatest skill? — Ha ha ha! — Do you think only you can bring something back to life? You don't know what skill I have learned. I can bring this dead lion back to life. — What? — Yes, Bud. So who do you think is the wisest? — It cannot be decided just by your words, Given. Do it and show him, and then he will decide who is the wisest. — I don't know what to say about the wisest, but I know who is the strongest! The lion! Don't do that, Given! Please, listen to me! — Ah! While all my friends have tested their skills, you don't want me to test mine? Would you call yourself a good friend? — Vesh was right. We should have left you back in the village. — But Guruji said... — Will you teach us what Guruji said? You? You, who haven't learned any skill? You don't trust your friends, do you? — You're right, Given. I haven't learned any skill. How would he know the importance of practice? — Bud, just because you have no skill to show, you don't want us to test ours either? Are you envious of us? — Uh, uh, I have only one skill that is enough to save my life. Common sense is when we think before we act. — Uh, uh! Don't be so upset, friends! I won't stop you now, but before you start, let me climb a tree. If the lion eats me, how will I be able to tell you which of you is the wisest? — Ha ha ha! — You are a coward! You must be brave in any situation. — I won't lie to you, friends, but I cannot fight a lion, and I will have a better view from the tree. Then I can clearly decide who is the wisest.
Bud quickly climbed the nearest tree, while Given began to utter some words. In just a few minutes, a bright light appeared above the dead lion, and it opened its eyes. The three Indian priests jumped up with joy. Now they had proven their skills. But soon, the smile vanished from their faces. The lion curiously stood up and began to roar.
— Run! The lion is alive! Save yourselves!
But the Indian priests were so scared that they couldn't move. The hungry lion rushed at them immediately. The poor Indian priests couldn't do anything to save themselves. The lion ate all three of them, one by one.
Bud was in the tree, watching everything. After the lion left, Bud climbed down from the tree. He saw that only the bones of his friends remained.
— You were all wise, but if you had remembered Guruji's last message, you would not have met this fate.
The Moral of the Story
Remember, children, wise is the man who thinks before he acts.
