The Tsar sought answers to three pressing issues and approached many learned men for assistance; unfortunately, he was dissatisfied with their replies.
He decided to meet a hermit renowned for their wisdom. To accomplish this task, he donned simple clothing, dismounted his horse, left its bodyguard behind, and traveled alone to reach his hut.
Why did the Tsar decide to meet the hermit?
A Tsar had three pressing questions that needed answers, which he posed to many learned men, all of whom gave conflicting responses. Unsatisfied with their replies, he decided to consult an esteemed hermit known for their wisdom; donning simple clothes, he left his bodyguard at home before traveling through a forest towards their residence, where the hermit resided.
When the Tsar arrived, he observed a hermit who was slowly digging in front of his hut, appearing weak. When asked to answer his queries, he declined but continued digging the ground instead. Just then, an enemy of the Tsar arrived in pursuit and began running towards them with his bearded enemy chasing behind.
The hermit greeted the man covered with blood who lay unconscious on the ground. Washing his wound and bandaging it repeatedly until all blood stopped flowing was his mission until bloody wounds stopped bleeding out.
The hermit reminded the Tsar that life’s most significant value lies in living fully in the present, where one avoids death and finds happiness. Additionally, he said the most essential person is oneself – so much so that when hearing his reply to this hermit’s advice, the Tsar did good to both enemies of his and received their forgiveness as he returned home while continuing work at his hut.
How did the Tsar dress to meet the hermit?
The Tsar was eager to gain answers to his three crucial queries – when to start each job, who are the most significant people, and which affairs require his immediate consideration. Consulting several learned men, he was unable to give the proper responses, so he turned to an esteemed hermit for advice; upon reaching his cottage, he saw him digging away at some dirt near his hut before greeting him while continuing with his work.
The Tsar requested the hermit to answer his three questions, but he refused. Instead, the hermit responded that experience is the best teacher and wanted to teach the Tsar from his own experiences. For instance, while digging his seedbed for his garden at one time, it was considered his most urgent job at that moment; later, when tending to injured men requiring care as they battled illness, it became his main priority.
The hermit also advised the Tsar that one must always focus on living in the present and avoid becoming obsessed with past or future events. According to him, saving a person’s life is always preferable to amassing power or wealth at another’s expense. He stressed the importance of helping those in need and performing good deeds. Furthermore, the hermit emphasized that man was brought to earth to do good deeds rather than fight with each other. The Tsar grasped the message from the hermit’s words and took appropriate actions in response. Soon enough, the hermit became his friend and loyal servant, never forgetting to express his thanks for the teachings or assistance provided – even offering to become his slave in return!
How did the Tsar assist the hermit in his work?
The Tsar had three pertinent queries for which he needed answers, including when the appropriate time and place to launch his work should be, who the ideal people were to deal with, and what should be his top priority. After seeking counsel from various learned men, he felt dissatisfied with their responses; therefore, he decided to visit a hermit known for their innate wisdom for further advice.
The Tsar donned simple clothes and dismounted from his horse, leaving his bodyguard behind, to visit the hermit’s hut alone. There, he found himself frail, digging at the ground in front of it despite repeated requests by the Tsar for answers to his queries about him; instead, the hermit continued digging away without responding at all. Soon afterward, however, an unshaven bearded man ran up towards both of them – the hermit identified him as someone planning to murder him before inviting him into their hut – thus ending his investigation and took him inside with him into their house as soon as they knew who tried killing him would go unanswered!
While tending to the hermit, Tsar Ferdinand found an opportunity to quiz him. The hermit shared that what matters most in life is using what resources you have now to do good to everyone – this was, according to him, why he had come into existence.
The Tsar asked the hermit again whether it was confirmed that he should not get angry with those who had wronged him and instead try to correct them as quickly as possible. The hermit advised against it because angering wrongdoers was just a waste of energy; instead, forgive them, live life to its fullest, enjoy every moment, and appreciate every second as life unfolded around him – which the Tsar promised he would do. Over time, he became loyal servant to him assisting with daily tasks, family needs as well as receiving benefits – wound care treatment from him during illness recovery from which he needed help recovering faster from illness than before.
What was the hermit widely renowned for?
The hermit was revered for his wisdom. Living alone in the woods where he never left, receiving only ordinary folk who came his way, the Tsar wanted to consult him on three questions related to when was an appropriate time and place to begin something, listening to important people, and conducting essential affairs – the Tsar believed the hermit would give him the answers necessary. So he dressed casually, dismounted from his horse, left his bodyguard behind, and went directly to meet up with him.
The Tsar entered a hermit’s hut as an ordinary citizen, knowing that this particular hermit only accepted commoners as visitors. Upon approaching, however, he heard someone running towards him from inside: it was a wounded bearded man yelling for help!
At first, the hermit did not answer Tsar’s queries directly but continued digging soil outside his hut. Tsar requested several times, but the hermit seemed disinterested in answering his inquiries; eventually, he told Tsar that after finishing up the seedbed excavation, he would answer his questions in the evening.
As evening approached, the Tsar began helping the hermit in his work of digging beds together for hours until sunset. Although tired from searching for so long, he wanted to please and please him in order to obtain answers to his many questions from him. So he grabbed his spade from him and continued digging.
After some hours, the hermit stopped digging and approached the Tsar for assistance with his work. The Tsar agreed, taking great care to avoid hurting the hermit in any way while digging beds without difficulty for the remainder of the day. Delighted at having found such excellent assistance from such an unexpected source, the hermit promised his most loyal service as his slave and asked that all Tsar’s sons follow suit and help dig.