You see, what saved us was your strength and my wisdom. Separately, we would not have survived—this is how Dmitriy Leo’s parable ended.
I Am for You, You Are for Me
Once, a wise man was returning to his native village, but robbers encountered him on the way, robbed and beat him, and threw him into a deep pit. After getting to his feet and dusting himself off, the wise man saw another man in the pit. As it turned out, the same thing had happened to him several days earlier.
The man said to the wise man, “I have been trying to get out of here for several days, but without success. The pit is too deep and steep.” Then the wise man replied, “I see that you are physically strong, and here is what I propose: if you help me get out, then we will escape together.” The man answered, “How can I help you? If I knew how to get out, I would have escaped long ago.”
The wise man replied, “Let me stand on your shoulders, and then I will reach the edge of the pit.” The man answered, “No, I do not agree. What if you deceive me, climb out, and leave me here to die? Let me stand on your shoulders instead and climb out first; then I will help you. I do not have enough strength to hold you and lift you up,” replied the wise man. “We need your strength and my wisdom, and then we will escape. There is no other way.”
After these words, the man agreed. He positioned himself against the wall of the pit and, using all his strength, lifted the wise man up and helped him climb out. The wise man looked around at the top and found nothing near the pit except a shovel. Then he threw the shovel down and said, “Dig.” The man in the pit shouted, “I knew you would deceive me! Where am I supposed to dig? The pit is already deep enough. Are you out of your mind?”
“You are laughing at me.” Then the wise man jumped into the pit and said to him, “My friend, I will not deceive you. Here I am with you again. Just as you helped me get out, I will now help you get out.”
The wise man began cutting away the wall of the pit with the shovel from top to bottom, leaving a step-like ledge at the bottom. Very quickly, he made one step after another, ascending in a spiral. When they climbed out of the pit effortlessly, the wise man said to the man:
“You see, what saved us was your strength and my wisdom. Separately, we would not have survived, but by helping each other with what we have, we are now free.” They said goodbye, and each went his own way home.
Author: Dmitriy Leo
