{"id":"01KG8AKMHFHSEARPCK3HHRG06F","cid":"bafkreigppgj4hs4vaewnytqutvkpf2fp76dyrpfcvefgd52j4el7jcrrne","type":"chunk","properties":{"end_line":1431,"extracted_at":"2026-01-30T20:48:09.927Z","extracted_by":"structure-extraction-lambda","label":"Chunk 1","source_file":"01KG89J1954N2G0NAERBNJXEX9","start_line":1365,"text":"CHAPTER XI.\r\nA Nursery-Tale Of Babbalanja’s\r\n\r\n\r\nHaving taken to our canoes once again, we were silently sailing along,\r\nwhen Media observed, “Babbalanja; though I seldom trouble myself with\r\nsuch thoughts, I have just been thinking, how difficult it must be, for\r\nthe more ignorant sort of people, to decide upon what particular image\r\nto worship as a guardian deity, when in Maramma, it seems, there exists\r\nsuch a multitude of idols, and a thousand more are to be heard of.”\r\n\r\n“Not at all, your highness. The more ignorant the better. The multitude\r\nof images distracts them not. But I am in no mood for serious\r\ndiscourse; let me tell you a story.”\r\n\r\n“A story! hear him: the solemn philosopher is desirous of regaling us\r\nwith a tale! But pray, begin.”\r\n\r\n“Once upon a time, then,” said Babbalanja, indifferently adjusting his\r\ngirdle, “nine blind men, with uncommonly long noses, set out on their\r\ntravels to see the great island on which they were born.”\r\n\r\n“A precious beginning,” muttered Mohi. “Nine blind men setting out to\r\nsee sights.”\r\n\r\nContinued Babbalanja, “Staff in hand, they traveled; one in advance of\r\nthe other; each man with his palm upon the shoulder next him; and he\r\nwith the longest nose took the lead of the file. Journeying on in this\r\nmanner, they came to a valley, in which reigned a king called Tammaro.\r\nNow, in a certain inclosure toward the head of the valley, there stood\r\nan immense wild banian tree; all over moss, and many centuries old, and\r\nforming quite a wood in itself: its thousand boughs striking into the\r\nearth, and fixing there as many gigantic trunks. With Tammaro, it had\r\nlong been a question, which of those many trunks was the original and\r\ntrue one; a matter that had puzzled the wisest heads among his\r\nsubjects; and in vain had a reward been offered for the solution of the\r\nperplexity. But the tree was so vast, and its fabric so complex; and\r\nits rooted branches so similar in appearance; and so numerous, from the\r\ncircumstance that every year had added to them, that it was quite\r\nimpossible to determine the point. Nevertheless, no sooner did the nine\r\nblind men hear that there was a reward offered for discovering the\r\ntrunk of a tree, standing all by itself, than, one and all, they\r\nassured Tammaro, that they would quickly settle that little difficulty\r\nof his; and loudly inveighed against the stupidity of his sages, who\r\nhad been so easily posed. So, being conducted into the inclosure, and\r\nassured that the tree was somewhere within, they separated their\r\nforces, so as at wide intervals to surround it at a distance; when\r\nfeeling their way, with their staves and their noses, they advanced to\r\nthe search, crying out—‘Pshaw! make room there; let us wise men feel of\r\nthe mystery.’ Presently, striking with his nose one of the rooted\r\nbranches, the foremost blind man quickly knelt down; and feeling that\r\nit struck into the earth, gleefully shouted: Here it is! here it is!’\r\nBut almost in the same breath, his companions, also, each striking a\r\nbranch with his staff or his nose, cried out in like manner, ‘Here it\r\nis! here it is!’ Whereupon they were all confounded: but directly, the\r\nman who first cried out, thus addressed the rest: Good friends, surely\r\nyou’re mistaken. There is but one tree in the place, and here it is.’\r\n‘Very true,’ said the others, ‘all together; there is only _one_ tree;\r\nbut _here_ it is.’ ‘Nay,’ said the others, ‘it is _here!_’ and so\r\nsaying, each blind man triumphantly felt of the branch, where it\r\npenetrated into the earth. Then again said the first speaker: Good\r\nfriends, if you will not believe what I say, come hither, and feel for\r\nyourselves.’ ‘Nay, nay,’ replied they, why seek further? _here_ it is;\r\nand nowhere else can it be.’ ‘You blind fools, you, you contradict\r\nyourselves,’ continued the first speaker, waxing wroth; ‘how can you\r\neach have hold of a separate trunk, when there is but one in the\r\nplace?’ Whereupon, they redoubled their cries, calling each other all\r","title":"Chunk 1"},"relationships":[{"peer":"01KG8AJQ1AP6NKPVQG3HCNYE4M","peer_type":"chapter","predicate":"in"},{"peer":"01KG89J1954N2G0NAERBNJXEX9","peer_type":"file","predicate":"extractedFrom"},{"peer":"01KG89HMDZKNY753EZE1CJ8HZW","peer_type":"collection","predicate":"collection"},{"peer":"01KG8AKMH9WHRNXFK4DVX1Y8GK","peer_type":"chunk","predicate":"next"}],"ver":2,"created_at":"2026-01-30T20:48:10.799Z","ts":"2026-01-30T20:48:20.125Z","edited_by":{"method":"manual","user_id":"01KFF0H3YRP9ZSM033AM0QJ47H"}}