The Three Dolls

Once upon a time, there was a king who was very intelligent and wise. His name and fame spread to all the kingdoms in the country and several people skilled in different arts flocked to his court seeking rewards and recognition to few of them came to exhibit their own learning and to test the king's famed wisdom.

One day an artist came to the durbar of the king. He had brought three beautiful dolls made by him. All the dolls looked exactly alike . He placed them in front of the king and asked, "O King, please examine these dolls well and tell us which of them is best, which the worst and which one between and the best."

The king took the dolls in his hand and carfully examined them. They were the same in height, weight and feature too . There seemed to be no difference between them. Then the king looked at them more closely. He found that one of the dolls had holes in both the ears and moved the doll . The king inserted a small stick in one of the ears and moved the doll. The stick came out of the other ear.

In the next doll , the king found a hole in one of the ears and a hole in the mouth. When the stick was inserted in the hole of the ear , it came out of the mouth. The third doll had a whole in one ear only and nowhere else. When the stick was inserted in the hole of the ear it went in and remained there. The king thought deeply for some time and then said, "Sir, you are a very clever artist. I am glad that you are teaching profound wisdom to the people through your art. These doll represent three types of friend. The first doll represents the worst friend. If you pour out your thoughts to such a friend, He pretends to listen to you. But he does not. The second doll represents the second- rate friend. He may listen to you , but he can be dangerous, because he tells your secrets to others. The third doll is the best. Whatever you tell such a friend you are sure to get patient ear. He will never divulge it to others. "

The artist was happy with the king's explanations and praised his wisdom.