NCERT Class 7th Chapter 1: Three Questions by Leo Tolstoy

Once upon a time, there was a king who had a fascination to know the answers of the following three questions:

1) What is the right time to begin something?

2) Which people should the king listen to?

3) What is the most important thing for him to do?

The king made an announcement that whoever would answer his questions, would get a large sum of money.

Many people offered various answers. But the king was not satisfied. He heard about a worldly-wise hermit, so he undertook a journey to the woods where the hermit lived. But there was a catch, the hermit used to meet only common men, so the king went there disguised as a plain man.

He saw him digging in front of his hut. The king met him and asked him his questions. He ignored as he was digging the ground. The hermit, being old and weak, tired out soon. The king offered him help and he obliged and gave him his spade. The king worked continuously through the evening. Done with the work, he blurted out the reason why he came to visit him in the first place. He told him that he would return if the hermit didn't know the answers.

Suddenly, a bearded man approached them. He was stabbed and the blood was trickling from his stomach, soon he fainted. They instantly rushed to help him. The king began to wash his wound and stopped the bleeding.

The man was thirsty. The king brought him fresh water. With the hermit's help, the king carried the wounded man to his hut and laid him on the bed. It was a day of toiling for the king as he had dug the ground and saved a man's life. He laid down on the floor wearingly and dozed off there through the night.

Next morning, the bearded man, finding the king awoke, asked to forgive him. Not knowing the man, the king shrugged off the remarks. The man told him that he knew the king. He told the king that he was his enemy as the king sentenced his brother to death and also confiscated his property. The wounded man told him that he knew that he would visit the hermit, so he went there to kill him while his return to home.

When he came to kill him, he met the king's bodyguard who recognized the bearded man and instantly attacked him. But he escaped and then met the king in this dire condition. On the contrary, the king saved his life oblivious to the fact that he wanted to kill him. This melted the bearded man's heart and to show his repentance, he said he would serve the king if he would remain alive. The king was content as he had made peace with his old enemy, he forgave him and promised to return his property. Moreover, he provided medical support to him.

The king, then, went to the hermit and tried to get his answers for the last time. The hermit replied that he had already answered his questions. The king was perplexed. The hermit explained that earlier when the king met him, he was digging the ground and the king helped him in his chore. If he hadn't dug the ground, he would have been killed by the bearded man who was waiting for the right moment to have his revenge back. So, the most important time for the king was when he was digging the ground. And the hermit was the most important man for the king at the moment. But the bearded man came to them, he became the most important man and saving him became the most crucial task for the king. This also indirectly helped the king to make peace with his old enemy.

To conclude, the hermit summed up:

Remember then, there is only one time that is important and that time is 'now'. It is the most important time because it is the only time we have any power to act. The most necessary person is the person you are with at a particular moment, for no one knows what will happen in the future and whether we will meet anyone else. The most important business is to that person good, because we were sent into this world for that purpose alone.