THE SCHOLAR AND THE BOATMAN
There was a poor boatman in a village. He was illiterate. He used to row a boat from morning till evening only to meet his both ends. There was no use of knowledge to him. It was the month of Baishakh. A scholar got into his boat. He was enjoying his journey very much because the weather was very fine. It was almost dark. He was gossiping with the boatman.
“Did you have any knowledge about the creation of the universe?” the scholar asked the boatman. “No,” replied the boatman. The scholar got astonished and told him, “Without the knowledge of astronomy half of your life is spoiled. The boatman was sad and thought of the uselessness of his life. He again asked the boatman, “Do you know about the history of human civilization?” The reply of the boatman was the same as before. This time the scholar told the boatman that he had already spoilt three-fourths of his life and he could not come to any use to society. The boatman kept silent and went on to row the boat in a sad mood.
Suddenly, the weather became gusty. The sky was overcast with clouds. There was darkness all around. There were also heavy showers with lightning. The boat was about to capsize. The scholar was trembling with fear. But the boatman was very quiet because he was used to this weather. He asked the scholar. “Sir, do you know how to swim?” The scholar replied crying, “No”. Now the boatman said, “Alas! Your life is totally spoilt. Pray to Allah for your safety. Very soon you are going to drown. At least my life is not totally spoilt like yours. “
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