The Blind Men and The Elephant: A Short Story about Perspective

BY KYLE KOWALSKI

The parable of the blind men and the elephant dates back to Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain writings.

Apparently, the Buddhist text Udana 6.4 contains one of the earliest versions of the story—dated all the way back to around c. 500 BCE. (1)

Sloww Blind Men Elephant Story

The Blind Men and The Elephant: A Short Story about Perspective

While there have been a variety of versions over the centuries, one poem in particular seems to be responsible for popularizing it in modern times.

John Godfrey Saxe Version

American poet John Godfrey Saxe wrote his version of “The Blind Men and the Elephant” in the mid-nineteenth century.

I’ve included this version below in video, image, and text forms so you can listen and/or read. Enjoy!

"The Blind Men and the Elephant" by John G. Saxe (read by Tom O'Bedlam)

Sloww The Blind Men And The Elephant by John Godfrey Saxe

I.

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.

There is so much more to moral of the story after the video To continue reading, please go to the original article here: https://www.sloww.co/blind-men-elephant/