The Story of the Camel and the Magical Rope

Story

Once upon a time, there was a merchant who used to travel to different cities to sell his goods with his three camels. One night, he was very tired after a long day’s work. He thought, “Today, I should rest at an inn.”

He reached an inn and began tying up his camels outside. He managed to tie two camels with a rope, but for the third one, he didn’t have enough rope left. The merchant grew worried. He tried to make the third camel sit down several times, but it wouldn’t move.

Just then, a sage happened to pass by. Seeing the worried merchant, he asked, “Brother, why do you look so troubled? What’s the matter?”

The merchant replied, “Baba, I have three camels. I’ve tied two of them, but I don’t have a rope for the third. How can I leave it untied like this?”

The sage laughed and said, “Oh! That’s no problem. Just tie this one the same way you tied the others.”

The merchant was puzzled. “But Baba,” he said, “I don’t have a rope at all!”

Smiling, the sage said, “You don’t need a rope. Just pretend to tie it. The camel will believe it’s tied.”

The merchant found it strange but did as the sage said. He acted as if he were tying the camel to a peg without any rope. To his surprise, the camel immediately sat down quietly and stayed still. The merchant went inside and slept peacefully.

The next morning, when he came out to untie the camels, the two tied camels got up right away, but the third camel didn’t move at all. The merchant tried hard to get the camel up, but it stayed where it was.

Just then, the same sage passed by again. He laughed and said, “Last night, you tied it, didn’t you? Now, if you want it to get up, you must untie it first!”

The merchant said, “Baba, I never actually tied it; I just pretended.”

The sage smiled and replied, “Then do the same now—pretend to untie it.”

The merchant acted as if he were untying the imaginary rope. And to his amazement, the camel immediately stood up and began walking with the other camels.

Just like the camel, which believed in an imaginary rope because it didn’t understand the truth, we too often mistake falsehood for truth due to ignorance. That’s why we must seek true knowledge—to understand and reach the real truth.