Harry Terhanian.com

My name is Harry (Hampartzoum) Terhanian. What has prompted me to publish this collection of Armenian proverbs is to create a web gathering of Armenians and other interested persons. As the Armenians are spread all over the world, there is a need to gather in a forum to live, share, and evolve our culture. Culture is something that is handed from generation to generation. Due to the tragedy of massacres, modern living, intermarriage, isolation, etc. there has been an erosion of transmission of Armenian culture. I want to make a small step at reversing this trend by sharing with all interested parties what I have learned from my parents and my travels. I hope that interested readers make available their knowledge of Armenian proverbs, stories, and wisdom so that I can swell the treasure of these pages for the enrichment of all. I will gradually add more pages as we progress. I hope to have a section of Armenian folk music, cooking, health, spirituality, marriage advice, and literary comment. Imagine learning culture by proverbs, stories, cooking lessons, music, poetry, discussion, and downright good old time one on one exchanges. Please join in the fun, open your heart and mind to share and embrace this wonderful culture.

If you are interested in submitting proverbs or stories, see possible errors that you want to correct, want to ask a question, or just want to send an email, please contact me at harry@uncleharrys.com. You can also call me at 425-558-4251.

megh gah hazar gahrzeh - Hazar gah megh chahrzehr
One is worth a thousand - a thousand is not worth one
There is a story that illustrates this Armenian proverb.

A guru who had many disciples was getting old. Due to his fame as an honest, humble and very merciful holy man, many persons flocked to him to become his disciple. He was concerned about teaching his disciples humility and the importance of cooperating amongst themselves to follow his instructions. He could see, however, that ambition for power was manifesting in some of his disciples who realized that the guru could die at any time. These prominent disciples began to ask him questions about the succession of his movement and the management structure of the future.

The undercurrents of a power struggle were beginning to manifest. This caused the guru great discomfort. He devised a plan test the insincere disciples who were self- motivated by personal ambition rather than sincere obedience to his instructions. Human nature has the seeds of good and potential evil. Although by nature people are good, they have a tendency to be corrupted by bad association and eventually lose control of their better sense. Anyone that has been corrupted may be corrected if they submit to proper training and avoid bad company and influences. Progressive acts of evil that increase in horror may so corrupt a person that it may be impossible to correct in this life. The guru did not want an escalation of competition of his ambitious disciples that could end with envy or violence.

The guru was prepared to lose most or even all his disciples if they did not pass his test.
He wanted to only keep the genuinely sincere and dedicated ones. They didn’t know the guru was going to test their obedience and sincerity.

One day he called his eight prominent disciples and revealed to them that he had a valuable jewel. He asked them to guess its worth. The disciples were all of the opinion that it was priceless. He handed it to the first disciple and ordered him to smash it to pieces. He refused claiming that he did not want to destroy the property of his guru. The guru handed it to the next. The first seven disciples refused to break the diamond to pieces. The guru praised each disciple and rewarded them with a gift. They all felt they made the right decision.

The last disciple looked carefully at the guru who handed him the jewel and deeply considered his order to smash it. He remembered the guru’s words about following his instructions. He shrugged off the desire to follow the other leading disciples and didn’t consider the peer pressure of conforming to them. He immediately smashed the precious jewel to pieces. He held the guru’s order sacrosanct. As a disciple, he could not refuse his guru’s explicit order. Although the other disciples were rewarded by the guru, the last disciple was determined to follow the guru’s order. He didn’t try to imitate the others, but by remembering the guru’s previous instructions, he understood that the disciple must always carry out the guru’s order.

The others were shocked by the violence he manifested in smashing the valuable jewel. The guru was not alarmed. He asked the others to leave the room. When they exited, he addressed the one that followed his order. He said,

“My son, you have understood my teaching. Please remain loyal to me and do not waver in your determination to follow my instructions. Pleasing your teacher by obedient and thoughtful service will be to your eternal credit. Throughout life we receive theoretical knowledge. Life presents us with many challenging situations to apply that knowledge either correctly or wrongly. A disciple is not a robot. He must be able to correctly apply the knowledge to practical situations with outcomes that make people happy and satisfied to remain on the spiritual path. Personal ambition for accumulating power, prestige and material assets can destroy one’s ability to act correctly for the welfare of all. Always remain humble, respect the service of others, and strictly follow my instructions for spiritual advancement.”

The disciple was overwhelmed by the powerful words of his guru. He fell at his feet and begged him to always correct his faults and guide him to act properly so that he could serve him in his mission.

The guru called an assembly of all his disciples and announced that he would visit a large city that was a long distance from his ashram in the mountains. All the disciples were perplexed because the guru had spoken strongly about avoiding large cities which were places of sin. He had never left his mountain retreat which was so peaceful and spiritual.
They left the next day on foot. The disciples carried the guru in a palanquin. It took them two weeks to reach the city. They stopped in villages on the way. The guru was honored and lodged in each village along with his disciples. When they reached the city, the guru asked top be taken to the red light district. He stopped in front of the house of the most famous courtesan of the city. He descended from the palanquin and proceed to knock on the door. A servant of the courtesan opened the door and asked what he wanted. The guru asked for the Madam. She came and fell at his feet with tears in her eyes. He walked past her into the house and asked that she close the door. Inside, he waited until she calmed down. She was the daughter of one of his disciples who had passed away. She was very fond of him, but was ashamed of her livelihood. She never expected that he would visit her. She cried and begged for his mercy. The guru asked her if he could stay the night in her house. He requested that she not conduct any activity in the house and retire early.

She was not sure what to make of it. Then he requested that she fetch a bottle of wine and two glasses. When she came back with the wine, he walked toward the window looking out on the street where his disciples were waiting. He asked her to open the curtain and stand with him near the window in view of street so that his disciples could observe them.
She was holding a plate with the glasses and the bottle. He held one side of the plate and motioned that she pour the wine into the two glasses. Then he closed the curtain. She was perplexed but dared not say anything. The guru asked her to show him his room. He thanked her for her hospitality and requested that she close all the lights of the house and retire for the night.

Outside, the disciples were in complete disarray. They couldn’t understand the guru’s strange behavior. Some spoke openly that the guru had misled them to believe he was a genuine person. Now it was apparent that he was a fallen debauchee who was bereft of morals and shame. Arguments broke out and the disciples divided into groups of those who refused to hear criticism of the guru and those who were convinced he was a charlatan. The were many heated exchanges with each side trying to convince the other that they were wrong. But, as the night was long, the number of disciples who rejected the guru grew. By morning, all of the disciples except one left in disgust. They were convinced that a genuine guru would not stay in the house of a famous prostitute and drink her wine.

Later, in the morning, the guru thanked the courtesan for her hospitality. She begged him for his mercy. He instructed her to immediately stop her sinful profession and take up spiritual life seriously. He gave her specific instructions how to live and at the same time perform spiritual practices to purify her heart and mind. Because she considered him like a loving father, she took his advice seriously and changed her life. She became a saintly woman. When the guru stepped out of the house, he noticed that only one disciple remained. He looked at him and asked, “Why did you not leave with the rest of them?”

The disciple’s eyes were red with fatigue and wet. He began to cry and spoke softly. He said, “Dear Master, If I leave your shelter, I have no where to go. I have accepted you as my life’s guide. I love you like a father. You have instructed me to serve you and God rather than serve my own lust and greed. I have always been happy and satisfied following your instructions. You have never misled me nor in any way given me false information about spiritual life and practice. I may not understand the reasons why you stayed in this house last night. It is not my position to question your motives. There is some mystery that you will reveal to me when the time in right. For now, I am content to wait patiently and pray that you engage me always in your service. You are the representative of God in this world of illusion who has the grave responsibility to lead fallen souls like me back to God. My only prayer is that you never reject me and always keep me close to you so that I may render service to you. By serving you, I am sure that my offering is directed to pleasing God. Without you I have no connection to God. Therefore, I will always wait patiently for your instructions, without which I am completely lost in this world.”

The guru was very pleased by the sincere words of his disciple. He said, “Come my son, we have many tasks to perform together in the service of God.”

A family of poor farmers were blessed to have a baby boy. They had prayed together for three years to have such a blessing. God graced them with a wonderful child. The boy unexpectedly died while asleep in his crib. Early the next morning, the mother and father discovered the dead boy. They were overwhelmed with grief. They carried the child’s body to a field where the dead were buried. They sat together looking at the lifeless boy and cried their eyes out.

A vulture that lived nearby approached them and said, “Everyone in this world has a share of happiness and distress. You should not consider your grief as unique. All of us are born with a mixed destiny that is a result of the choices and activities of our previous lives. We suffer or enjoy today due to our actions in past lives. There is not much we can do to change that. Man is the architect of his destiny. But, we can act now to secure and improve our future. What we do now determines who we will be in the future life. Don’t waste a minute lamenting for the dead. You cannot bring your dead child back to life. The child’s destiny was to die today. You cannot change it. Leave the child for burial and go home to work for a brighter future. Learn to forbear your present and future in this life. But, act in such a way as to construct a better destiny for your next life.
No one can restore life for one who has died. Go home now and renounce your love for this dead child that you only knew for a very short time.”

The grief of the poor couple abated with the sobering words of the vulture. They heeded the advice and left the child’s dead body in the field. As they walked toward their cottage a jackal appeared and began to speak.

“God is all merciful. You are a poor family with an only son. Alas, he has died unexpectedly. Your love for him has no bounds. Stay with him and grieve. The tears of love will fall on the earth and purify it. God will hear your sincere pleas to bring him back to life. The sun is shining brilliantly and can heal even the worst of illnesses. Pray to God for mercy. Pray under the light of the healing sun. Your child may regain his life. The power of faith and prayer can move God to spare your child from cold death. God hears the prayers of His faithful servants.”

The jackal’s words touched the hearts of the parents and gave them new hope to renew their faith and offer prayers for the child’s recovery from death by the intervention of a miracle from God.

As the couple walked back to the burial ground, the vulture appeared again and spoke.
“Why are you listening to this treacherous jackal. Learned persons with spiritual knowledge lament neither for the living or the dead. They know that the temporary body is destined to die, but the soul lives forever. Therefore, we should preoccupy ourselves during life to doing work for the benefit of God and all beings. Such meritorious work
will help us to always remember God in our daily lives. We purify our life and thought by pious activities. We should live in such a way as to minimize our material needs and maximize our unselfish service to God. Go home now and engage in acts of goodness. At the same time, in your personal life, perform acts of penance because by voluntary self sacrifice one can attain all desirable things in life and at the time of death remember God.
We suffer or enjoy because of our own actions either good or bad. We are all subject to the laws of karma that reward or punish us. Concentrate now on making a bright future by your present acts. Don’t waste a moment here lamenting.”

As the couple turned to leave, the jackal spoke up with passion. “How can you leave your beloved son when hope is not exhausted? God can reverse the destiny of anyone. His mercy and will are all powerful. Put your faith entirely in God and pray for His mercy. He can work a miracle by His will.”

The vulture spoke again. “Don’t be misled by that dull-witted jackal! He has a hidden purpose behind his innocent sounding words. For all my years, I have never seen a person revive from death. Our lifespan is determined before our birth in this world by higher authorities such as the superintendent of death. You can not do anything to bring this child back to life. But you can act effectively to work for your salvation while you have heat and breathe in your bodies. This child’s fate is sealed but yours is still to be determined by your works.”

The mother and father became convinced by the words of the vulture and turned to leave.
The jackal spoke loud and clear again. “The vulture is purposely trying to dishearten you about the possibility of a miraculous revival of your son through faith and prayer. Don’t be fooled by him. Faith can move mountains. Faith in God is the foundation of holy life. Your love for your son and your faith in God should go hand in hand. Didn’t Jesus bring Lazarus back from the dead? Jesus is the one who gives life. We must put our faith in God’s love, even in the midst of adversity that we must endure by our sincere prayers and patience. Lord Krishna saved his friend Arjuna from certain death by helping him bring back from the dead the eight sons of the brahmana-priest. Never forsake your faith and hope in the mercy of God.”

The mother held her dead child in her arms and prayed with ardent tears along with her husband. The jackal and the vulture continued expressing their contrary points of view. They both based their statements on scripture. The vulture resorted to trying to scare the parents by talking of the wild, carnivorous beasts that would infest the burial ground after the fall of darkness to feast on any dead bodies not yet buried.

God heard the sincere prayers of the frightened mother and father. He took pity on them by bringing their son back from the dead and blessing him with long life. The parents were thrilled to see their boy open his eyes. They praised God and hurriedly left the burial ground.

The jackal was one of the carnivorous beasts who wanted to feast on the boy’s dead body after sunset. With the darkness of night the vulture would be obliged to leave. But as long as there was light, the vulture could feast on the dead body if the parents left. Both the vulture and the jackal were disappointed when the boy came back to life. They both spoke truthful words backed by scripture but for attaining their selfish purpose of eating the dead body of the boy. Sometimes good counsel is given with selfish motives. How can we know who is genuine and who is false?

It is said that the “The devil can cite scripture for his own purpose! An evil soul producing holy witness is like a villain with a smiling cheek.” (Shakespeare) But there must be a way to know if someone is speaking the truth for a vested interest rather than the pure purpose of helping others? There is a Vedic aphorism that says, phalena paricyate – judge from the result. This is a full proof method but if we wait for the result the damage will be done. Can we discern before it is too late if someone is genuine or not when speaking truthful statements?

The most trustworthy criterion for testing someone is the Vedic triangle of verification. There are three points of the Vedic triangle of verification: the sastra (scripture), previous recognized saints (Sadhu) and the present bona fide teacher (guru). Sastra refers to the original statements of God or His prophets in the holy scriptures. Sadhus refers to the recognized saints in the line of parampara or disciplic succession coming from Lord Krishna. Guru refers to the present teacher in the disciplic succession who repeats the words of sastra and sadhu without any change.

If the present teacher such as the vulture or the jackal contradicts the statements of the previous authorities or the scriptures then they can be rejected. However, they may sometimes repeat the words correctly but for a vested interest like the vulture and the jackal. We must also consider the qualifications of the bona fide teacher that we may accept in the present. They are the following.

The bona fide teacher simply repeats without any change to the original words of Lord Krishna spoken to Arjuna. His purpose as a teacher is to enlighten the disciple in the original words of Krishna so that the disciple can use the Vedic triangle of verification (statements of Guru, Sadhu and Sastras) to validate every point of knowledge.

The bona fide teacher strictly follows the teaching himself. He cannot say “don’t smoke” and then smoke himself. Just as in Christianity there are the Ten Commandments that every good Christian must follow. In the Vedic path, there are four regulative principles: no intoxication, no meat eating, no gambling or philosophical speculation and no illicit sex. Every teacher of the Vedas must follow these basic rules in order to have the purity to teach properly. Beside the four things one should not do, there are four things one should do which are also regulative principles for daily practice. They are: chant and meditate a prescribed number of names of God, read and discuss the revealed word of God in the holy scriptures, eat only sanctified food that has first been offered to God and visit a temple of worship and offer unselfish prayer and service in the company of other rightfully striving devotees.

Using the above criterion we can understand that the vulture and jackal were meat eaters. They spoke the truth, but did not visibly practice the truth as described above. Therefore, they did not back their words up with genuine practice of the teaching, nor did they have sincere and unmotivated faith in the teaching. They were adept at using the teaching to achieve a selfish purpose.

What is interesting in this story is that the mother and father listened carefully to the words of the vulture and jackal with faith. They became convinced that they should pray ardently for their son. Their sincere prayers were heard by God and by a miraculous intervention the son came back to life. Although the vulture and jackal were impure in their motives, they still were instrumental in helping the parents. By accepting the words of scripture with faith and sincerely praying, the parents were blessed by God. The vulture and jackal, however, were disappointed in achieving their selfish purpose. Therefore, faith in God’s words and working with the unique intent to please God is the best course for the genuine seeker. Even if one is surrounded by insincere individuals like the vulture and the jackal, God will protect and deliver his sincere devotee.

One day the mosquitoes spoke with God, “Lord, you have given us a stinger nose to suck blood. You have created man with fresh blood. You gave us little bodies with wings so we can fly away when we are in danger. We can quickly fly from one man to another to bite and suck blood as much as we want. We have been truly blessed by you. But we have a terrible enemy. Why did you ever create the cruel wind. For no reason, the wind blows us away when we are drinking the tasty blood. We are pushed away helplessly. We are no match for the wind. Please eliminate the wind so that we can live peacefully.”

God said, “All my creation is dear to Me. I cannot eliminate the wind without giving him a chance to defend himself. I’ll call him to come and explain his actions. Perhaps, we can find a solution to suit everyone.”

As the wind approached God, all the mosquitoes were blown away. God could not make a decision because now the mosquitoes were not present. God told the wind that the mosquitoes complained about him. However, He could not proceed with the case until they came back. The mosquitoes could not come back as long as the wind was with God.

An elder mosquito organized a meeting with other bugs and flies to find a way to destroy the wind. When they all assembled, the mosquitoes spoke first.

“Dear brothers, thank you for assembling together today to discuss our common interest.
We each have our strengths and weaknesses. It is in our interest to help each other to overcome our weaknesses so that we can thrive in the face of life’s challenges. We mosquitoes have an enemy, the wind. We need your help to get rid of the wind. We can’t peacefully suck the blood of man without the wind blowing us away. Please make your suggestions how we can eliminate this wind.”

The bugs spoke. This life is full of illusions due to our imperfect senses. The distant sound of a drum seems pleasant only because it is far away. The grass is always greener on the far hill. A businessman thinks that the life of a teacher is better than his because the teacher has several months vacation. And our brother mosquitoes think that we bed bugs are better off. Actually we are much more miserable. Listen to our tale. We don’t have a stinger like you. We have many sneaky tricks so that we suck man’s blood without causing any pain. Man sleeps soundly as we quietly suck his blood. We hide in holes and cracks, in the mattress, under the sheets, wherever we are unseen.. If we are seen or caught, we remain motionless and pretend to be dead. But cruel man crushes us. There is no way for us to escape. You mosquitoes are fortunate to have wings to fly away to safety. If we talk to God, we will ask him either to give us bugs wings or make man without eyes. Then we will be happy and have no more complaints.”

The flies spoke up next. “Brothers, in our opinion you are much more fortunate than we are. The mosquitoes hardly make any noise when they land on man’s skin to suck blood and the bed bugs move about unseen and unheard. But, God has made us flies with strong wings and sturdy bodies that make noise. When we land on man’s body to get a taste, he drives us away with a good slap. If we are fast enough to get away, we may go for many days without even a drop of blood. Let us pray to God to create man without hands.”

Imagine how difficult it is to be God. So many prayers and requests are directed to God that benefit one and disadvantage another. God must make hard decisions based on the ultimate welfare of each entity. There are lessons to be learned and blessings for which we can thank God. The lessons are just as valuable as the blessings. In fact, the lessons are blessings in disguise. We can be thankful for both the lessons and the blessings. Then we will be on the fast track to return to the eternal kingdom of God.

Our life on this earth has some conveniences and inconveniences. Good and bad are always present as day and night, happiness and distress, riches and poverty. When one is
not content with his destiny, he becomes restless and considers himself misfortunate like the mosquitoes, bugs and flies. As hard as we try, we cannot escape our allotted happiness and distress in life. We have earned both by our actions in previous lives. The most materially successful person and the most destitute both suffer and enjoy based on their actions from previous lives and in this life. We determine our own destiny by the choices we make and the actions we choose to perform. Whatever I decide to do today, I will receive the reaction some time in the future either in this life or a future life. Similarly, whatever I am experiencing today in terms of happiness and distress, I can understand as the reactions to acts I performed in the past either in this life or previous lives. The Vedas affirm the individual soul has full eternality before birth in a material body and after death. There was never a time that the soul did not exist, nor will it ever cease to exist. Therefore, the soul can be either eternally liberated or eternally in the material world of birth and death. This is the reason why it can transmigrate from one body to another in this material world and be subject to the laws of karma until it awakens and does the necessary to escape from this vicious cycle.

I may complain about my fate, but I must understand that I am the cause of my happiness and distress. No one else can be blamed. But how do I know this is true? It is confirmed by the Bible and the ancient Vedic scriptures and, in particular the Bhagavad-gita.

The Bible says, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” (Galatians 6:7 KJV); “and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.” (Revelation 2:23c KJV)

BG 13.20: “Material nature and the living entities should be understood to be beginningless. Their transformations and the modes of matter are products of material nature.”

The Bhagavad-gita (Bg) gives very detailed information about causes of the suffering and enjoyment of the living entities. In verse Bg 13.20, it says that both living entities meaning everything that lives including plants, insects, birds, reptiles, mammals and human beings have an eternal and individual soul that is temporarily covered by a material body. All the souls are equal in their potential to achieve love of God and return to the eternal spiritual world. However, the temporary material body limits their potential. It is only in the human form that the soul can liberate itself from material entanglement. All living entities gradually move up to the human form by the process of evolution of consciousness. There is no evolution of bodies like Darwin theorized. All the different species of material bodies are created with the creation of the universe. The evolutionary process occurs when the living entity transmigrates from one species to another according to the type of consciousness for enjoying the material sense pleasures. Among the species lower than human beings the evolutionary process is systematic elevation or progression to the human form. It is only in the human form that limited free will is exercised and one can go up or down according to the type of consciousness developed and the merits or demerits one accumulates by his actions during the lifetime.

The material nature and the living entity are both eternal. They existed before the creation. The material nature goes through two stages, manifestation and non -manifestation. It continues to exist even when it is not manifest but it goes into a dormant stage wherein the time factor and the modes of material nature do not interact. At the same time, the living entity continues to exist. As long as the living entity maintains material attachments at the moment of death, it must remain in the material creation in a dormant stage waiting for the next manifestation to continue its entanglement. Every manifestation is a chance for the living entity in the human form to free itself from material entanglement and return to the eternal spiritual world. The destiny of the living entity is to understand that it does not belong in the material world where there is illusory happiness and much suffering.

The living entity is originally the spiritual part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, but due to his rebellious nature, he is conditioned within material nature. One can fall even from the spiritual world due to the living entity’s limited free will. It is possible that the living entity becomes attracted by the allure of the material world. The allegorical story of the Adam and Eve gives an indication how such a thing is possible. Eve was convinced by the Devil that God was hiding a greater pleasure than she had ever known before. He convinced her to disobey God’s instruction and eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge and evil. Once she did so, she became ashamed and then convinced Adam to do the same. God expelled Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden to suffer in the material world. Later, Jesus came to redeem mankind by teaching them to resist the temptations of the Devil and submit to the will of God by following His instructions. Thus, they can again return to the heavenly paradise of eternal life without suffering.

All the transformations that we see in the material world such as the changing of our body from youth to old age, or the changing of seasons, etc. are produced by the material nature and its three modes of goodness, passion and ignorance under the influence of the time factor. Everything in the material world is a mixture or blend of these three modes. A man may be good with his children. Then, he may become passionate with his wife. Later, he may become addicted to ignorant activities like drinking and drugs. At every moment these modes are influencing us to act in one way or another which binds us to material life. It is only under the influence of the mode of goodness that one can understand what is happening and attempt to free oneself from the cyclical chain of birth and death. Our soul is eternal but it is chained by the illusory allure of the material world very similar to a thirsty man seeing water in the desert and walking into the desert seeking water. There is no real water in the desert but he sees a mirage and walks into the hot sands to his death.

Once we come to the material world, we receive a material body which is controlled by the forces of nature. We think we are the controller, but the truth is that we are forced to do everything by the laws of nature acting on our material body. For example, we get hungry. Did we choose to get hungry? No. Then we are forced to eat and drink water not because we want to eat and drink but because we are forced. We are forced to sleep, to work, to get old, get sick and die. All the time we believe falsely that we are the doer. The truth is that the body we have and the destiny attributed to the particular body by our previous karma forces us to enjoy and suffe. Enjoyments and suffering come by the force of destiny.

Our free will is limited to either accepting the instructions of God and living by them and eventually attain liberation or rejecting them and becoming entrapped by the laws of material nature of action and reaction until we come to our senses. Adam and Eve similarly remained in the Garden of Eden as long as they voluntarily chose to follow God’s instructions. When they disobeyed, they were forced to leave and come under the laws of nature which are controlled by God. Jesus, the son of God, according to the Christian belief, gives a chance for humankind to free themselves from this entrapment by again following the instructions of God and believing in the redeeming power of Jesus. I use the example of Adam and Eve and Jesus Christ because most people in the Judeo-Christian and Islamic tradition know the Biblical history.

The Bhagavad-gita continues,
BG 13.21: Nature is said to be the cause of all material causes and effects, whereas the living entity is the cause of the various sufferings and enjoyments in this world.
Birth in a particular body, disease, old age, and death during our life are all caused by material nature which is acting under the control of God. However, the happiness and distress we experience is caused by our desires and acts. God is not responsible for the happiness and distress we encounter. We have the free will to accept or reject God’s instructions. If we accept, we are protected by God. If we reject, we are put under the control of the laws of action and reaction in nature until we realize our folly and rectify our behavior.
In the material world, everyone is struggling hard to acquire different kinds of pleasure for the body. One receives a body and senses which are instruments for gratifying desire. The living entity is blessed or damned according to past desire and activity (karma). Once one is placed in a particular body he receives suffering and enjoyment due to his past deeds and desires. If one is put into the body of a dog, he must act like a dog. That is the law of nature. For example, if I buy a plane ticket to go somewhere and board the plane. My destiny is tied up with that of the plane. If it goes down, I go down with it.
God always accompanies the soul of the living entity as the friend and overseer. If we decide to surrender to God, He takes care to help us break our unwholesome attachment to temporary material pleasures and suffering and free ourselves from the cycle of birth and death.
The Bhagavad-gita continues,
BG 13.22: The living entity in material nature thus follows the ways of life, enjoying the three modes of nature. This is due to his association with that material nature. Thus he meets with good and evil among various species.
During our lifetime, we experience an amazing mysterious transformation. We change our body dramatically from a tiny embryo in the womb of our mother to a baby, then childhood, adolescence, adulthood, middle age, old age and death. We change our body but remain the same person witnessing all the changes. This is a mystery. Where is the body we had when we were in the womb of our mother. Where is our body during our childhood. In truth, we have had many different bodies in this lifetime while remaining the same person. This is a mystery that we do not reflect upon seriously. What does it mean? It means that the witness is different than the body. The witness is remaining the same while the body is changing. This is one fundamental indication that the witness is an eternal soul represented by consciousness and the body is like a material covering that is constantly changing. The last change is death during which the soul discards a used and wasted body.
The Vedas explain death in the following way. There is no death for the soul just as there is no birth for the soul. It is a part and parcel of God and is fully eternal. (This is affirmed in the BG 2.20) What appears as death pertains only to the body. However, there are two material bodies that cover the soul’s eternal spiritual body. The gross material body is made up of the five primary gross material elements: earth, water, fire, air and ether or space. The subtle material body which is the second covering of the soul is made up of mind, intelligence and false ego.
At the time of death, only the gross material body dies. The subtle material body, which is the repository of the soul’s material desires and memories of past deeds, is much more durable than the gross material body. It will last as long as the soul remains attached to dominating and enjoying the material nature. The goal of Vedic education is to purify the mind, intelligence and the false ego from the misconceptions that keep the soul bound up to the unnecessary cycle of birth and death.

The subtle body carries the soul at the point of death to its next material body which is determined by higher authorities according to the actions one has performed during life and the reactions one deserves as well as the unfinished desires one has at the moment of death. One receives a suitable body to continue the quest for illusory sense enjoyment and its concomitant sufferings. Therefore, the change of gross material body is due to attachment to material existence. As long as one remains captivated by the illusory allurements of material happiness, one continues to transmigrate from one temporary body to another. Because the soul is eternal, this transmigration can continue eternally if the individual does not wake up and understand the reality of his situation.

The false ego that drives the individual in his folly of illusion is the desire to dominate or lord it over material nature and enjoy it.The more he enjoys the more he becomes attached to temporary material pleasures. Thus, he is placed in various circumstances that invariably end up as misery under the influence of material desire. The eternal soul is sometimes a heavenly being, sometimes an earthly member of mankind, sometimes a beast, a bird, a worm, an aquatic, a saintly man or a bug. In every incarnation or birth in a gross material body the soul thinks himself to be the master of his circumstances, yet, the truth is, he is being controlled by the forces or laws of nature. These laws are created by God just as a government has penal laws and builds a jail for the small percentage of criminal types in society. The laws of karma are the penal laws and the material body full of material desires is the jail.
The entrapment of the soul is explained in this verse BG 13.22. It is due to association with the modes of nature: goodness, passion and ignorance. For example, a child is born seemingly innocent. He or she does not manifest peculiar behavior immediately that can be classified as anti-social, psychopathic, murderous, drug addiction, thievery, sexual addiction, bi-polar, suicidal, etc. However, as the child grows older, he or she associates with the different modes of nature in the environment of the home, school, church,etc. This association can be real or virtual. For example, the child may become addicted to video games. Each game creates an environment of goodness, passion or ignorance, Usually, it is passion and ignorance. The child lives in that virtual environment and becomes seriously affected by it.

The purpose of Vedic education is to rise above the influence of the modes of nature and become transcendental to them or unaffected by them. Just as Jesus was able to resist the temptations of the Devil, so every person must learn to resist the temptations of the false material pleasures and dedicate oneself to the higher purpose of life.

There is no real pleasure in this world unless one is freed from the vicious cycle of birth and death. We can all admit that our hope is that modern science can stop inevitable death. That is the ultimate goal of science. Along the way to achieving this goal, science offers us increased facilities for temporary pleasures. This appears as a sort of incentive to keep our hopes up that science will one day stop old age and death which is our real enemy as seekers of sense enjoyment.

Vedic education teaches us to transfer our mental preoccupation from enjoying temporary pleasures and temporary objects of pleasure to the eternal reality of spiritual life and truth. This is called God consciousness or Krishna consciousness. Christians call it Christ consciousness. Becoming fully conscious of Jesus Christ, the son of God, and His ultimate sacrifice for the redemption of mankind is the meditative means for a Christian to rise above the influence of the modes of nature. Similarly, in the Vedic path, one meditates on Lord Krishna, the father of Christ, and the eternal instructions given by Himself and His representatives for elevating oneself from the cycle of birth and death. There are two operative elements, one’s personal endeavor and the causeless mercy of Lord Krishna and His representatives. The mercy of God prevails but one must still endeavor to follow because we have limited free will that we exercise at every moment to either follow or not. This is called Krishna consciousness.

Unless one is Krishna conscious, his material consciousness will oblige him to transfer from one temporary material body to another because of material desires. But such desires can be changed to transcendental desires to please Lord Krishna. That crucial change can only be effected by continually hearing this transcendental knowledge explained by genuine and authoritative persons who can repeat the words of Lord Krishna without adulteration. The paradigmatic example is Arjuna who hears the science of God from Krishna. Arjuna accepts Krishna as his teacher and submits himself to humbly hear the Vedic knowledge. Lord Krishna is the original teacher or guru of the Vedic knowledge. Anyone who claims to be a teacher of Vedic knowledge must precisely repeat the original words of the Lord without any change for the knowledge to be effective.

The result of hearing from Lord Krishna or His bona fide representative is one loses the immemorial desire to dominate material nature, and gradually and proportionately, as he reduces his desire to dominate, he comes to enjoy spiritual happiness. This is the real destiny of man. Not that he should rot forever in the cycle of birth and death chasing illusory happiness and suffering untold distress. His destiny is to be with God and his saintly servants and enjoy unending happiness in the spiritual world where there is no birth, old age disease and death.

The king’s secret agent reported to the him, “I can’t find out anything from the Armenians.”

“Why not?” asked the king.

They communicate without speaking,” said the secret agent. “When they speak out loud, they only talk about the weather or business and mislead us with false statements. But when they remain silent, they communicate secretly and we can’t understand what they say. They understand each other by giving a quick glance.”

“I think you are exaggerating. This may be true of a few but not all the Armenians,” said the king.
“I am speaking of all of them,” the informant said. “They all communicate without words in a mysterious way.”

“Let me see for myself,” said the king. “Pick out two Armenians randomly. Choose a barber and a shoemaker.”

The informant went to Hagop the barber. He said, “Hagop sir, the king requests your presence tomorrow at his royal palace.” The barber thought to himself, “Why does the king want to see me, a lowly barber?” He promised to see the king the next day. A shoemaker named Bedros also agreed to see the king.

The next day, the two Armenians arrived separately at the palace. Hagop was shown into the king’s throne room first. The king carefully observed him. Hagop greeted the king and then looked down at the floor. When Bedros entered, he quickly glanced at Hagop and understood he was Armenian. Hagop looked at Bedros as he walked toward the king to say hello.

The king whispered to his informant, “Let’s see if they communicate in non verbal ways such as a raised eyebrow, grimace, biting of the lips, scratching of the ear, raising a finger, a side glance.”

“Sire,” they have already spoken.” said the informant.

“What have they said?” asked the king.

” My guess is they recognize they are both Armenian and that they have been called to the palace to talk. The cleaver barber has enough education and experience to inform the shoemaker that whatever they say will be held against them and their countrymen. The shoemaker most probably replied that they should mislead us with useless platitudes about the weather and their trades.

The king said, “What should I say?”

“Ask them why they have come,’ said the secret agent.

“Why have you come?” said the king.

“The weather is so bad that our customers stay at home. Business is down,” said the barber.

The king looked at the secret agent and nodded in approval. He was convinced that the Armenians could communicate without words.

The Armenians saw the king look at the secret agent and nod. They decided to remain more secretive than ever.

Once upon a time, the king’s counselor informed him that there was a con artist who was cheating people by fast talking them to give him money.

“How does he do that?” the king asked.

“Oh, he is so tricky,” the counselor said. “He seems so sincere and humble. He is able to say things quickly that get you involved with his lies. Then, before you realize it, you give him money and he goes away on a pretext. You expect him to come back, but he never does. He has tricked even experienced and wise men.”

“It is hard to believe that people are so foolish as to be duped by such a knave,” said the king.

“Believe me sire, he has cheated our best people.” said the counselor.
“Bring him here,” said the king. He can’t fool me. Your head will roll if he doesn’t.”

The next day, the counselor fetched the con artist to meet the king with the following words.

“The king challenges you to con him.”

“What,” said the tricky man. “How can I mislead the king? It is not possible!”

“If you fail,” the counselor said, your head will roll and so will mine.”

‘May God help us,” said the slick talker.

The counselor introduced the con artist to the king who said,

“I have been advised that you befuddle honest men and take their money. I have seen every trick in the book. Fool me if you dare.”

“Oh noble King, may your days be long and prosperous. I must admit that it is impossible. I have left all my tools in the hock shop. You see I am not what everyone trumps me up to be. I needed money so desperately that I put my working tools for deception in the pawn shop. Without them I cannot fool anyone, not even the most gullible villager. If I can get my tools out of hock, I can come back and try. Your mercy, my sire.”

“I order you to fetch your tools,” the king said.

“But I don’t have a penny,” the fast talker said.

“How much did you put the tools in hock for?” said the king.

“Two hundred gold coins,” said the con artist.

“Give him two hundred gold coins,” said the king. “Get your tools and come back. I doubt you can fool me.”

The counselor gave the con artist the gold coins. The fast talker bowed humbly before the king and promised to come back quickly. After the man left, the counselor looked at the king and smiled.

“Why do have the stupid smile on your face?” said the king.

“Dear king, his tools are his tongue. You will never see him again.”

All good qualities awaken in one who serves God faithfully.
keedoutiahn pohlohr pahree hahdgoutiounnehruh zahrkahnoum yehn nuhrah mohd, ohv hahsehl eh hahvahdahreem dzahraiyoutiahn ahsteejahnuh

There was and there wasn’t a poor Armenian family. The father’s name was Hampar (short for Hampartzoum which means the resurrection of Christ in Armenian). The mother’s name was Vehanouh which means the sweetest person you can meet. Their only son was named Krikor. He was named after the most famous saint of Armenia, Krikor Lousahvoritch (Krikor or Saint Gregory the Illuminator). They were loyal members of their church and attended the mass every Sunday. They prayed that Lord Jesus bless their child and also give them health to work hard and earn an honest living.

The father and mother toiled long hours on hand looms making kilims or oriental rugs. When Krikor was five years old, they also taught him how to work a small child’s loom. It would take three to six months to finish a rug and then Hampar had to struggle to sell it. After tens years, the family was able to save an adequate amount of money to build a small house on a plot of land in their ancestral village.

Hampar slowly built the house with the help of relatives. He used what little spare time he had to work on it. It took three years to finish it. The day the family moved into their new house, Vehanoush had an eerie premonition. That night she dreamed that the house would burn down. The dream reoccurred for three days. She discussed her dream with Hampar. He was horrified. They had struggled so hard and long to have their own house. What to do? His wife was very worried and her anxiety affected Hampar. He went to a village fortune teller. An old woman who was expert at reading the coffee grinds left over in a cup after drinking Turkish coffee. She concurred that the house would soon burn down.

Hampar decided to sell the house. It took one month to find a buyer and agree on a fair price. He was able to get back the money he spent to build it. The family moved out of the house and back into the small rented cottage they lived in before. Soon after a group of marauding thieves robbed the new inhabitants of the house and set it on fire. It burned to the ground. It was a shock to everyone except Hampar and Vehanoush.

Although they felt relieved at selling the house and retrieving their hard earned money, they both became anxious. They locked the door and closed all the windows of their cottage. They were frightened that the thieves might come to rob and maybe kill them because they had all the cash from the sale of their house hidden in the cottage. What if the family that purchased their house told the thieves that Hampar and Vehanoush had the cash from the recent sale? They couldn’t sleep all night. The next day, they both went to a wealthy local merchant who was known as an honest man. His name was Hrant Agha. They explained their fear of being robbed. Hrant Agha reassured them of his trustworthiness. They entrusted their savings with him and he issued them a receipt. They returned home feeling safe and relieved of their anxiety.

Several days later, during the darkness of night, the same group of thieves attacked the compound of Hrant Agha and forced him to open his safe and robbed him of all his money. Hearing this devastating news the next day, Hampar and Vehanoush ran to Hrant Agha’s house to find out about their money. The Agha had been beaten and was in no condition to see them. They worried about their money day and night. After a few days they were able to meet with Hrant Agha. He spoke slowly and gravely. He told them that they were very fortunate because he did not put their money in his safe. He had another safe in a secret place. He offered to return the money. Hampar and Vehanoush nearly fainted when they heard the good news.

Hrant Agha gave them their money back. The two thanked him and left to return to their cottage. Again they felt anxiety and fear carrying the money. What to do? Perhaps they were next on the robbers’ list of victims. The next day, Hampar went to see the Armenian priest Haiyr Gomidas. When Hampar explained how much he was experiencing fear and anxiety about having his cash savings hidden in his cottage, the priest comforted him with the following words.

“Hampar jahn, listen to me. We Armenians have always worked hard and stayed true to our Lord Jesus, our apostolic church, our forefathers, our mother tongue and its beautiful alphabet, our ancestral land and our honor. We have suffered many hardships as a conquered nation at the hands of the Romans, Greeks, Persians, Arabs, Turks, Kurds and others who have all done horrible things to our people. Yet, we have somehow persevered and maintained our identity and self respect. Just as bad people are known by their cruelty, good people are known by their honorable and kind acts. We are born of the earth and we shall return to the earth, but our honor and good deeds will remain long after we are gone. Hampar jahn, you have always been an honest hard-working man. You have never been rich but yet, you have managed to live honorably and God has provided your minimum needs. Try to understand that your personal honor earned from years of honest work and good behavior is your real wealth.

There was once a bird of prey that swooped down and caught a fish with its claws and started to fly back to its nest. A flock of wild crows pursued the bird which tried to escape their harassment. But everywhere the bird flew it was followed by the flock of crows that cawed and screeched. The bird became exhausted and let go of the fish. The crows forgot the bird of prey and flew toward the fish. The bird lost the fish, but felt relieved that it was no longer followed by the disturbing crows. It realized that the crows were interested in the fish above all.

Hampar jahn, there is safety in humble living as long as you are able to secure the minimum needs for your family. We all have a certain destiny that we must understand realistically. Tigran the Great had the destiny to conquer and manage the great Armenian empire from the Caspian to the Black sea to Jerusalem. We also have our destiny which is given by our Lord Jesus and His Father. Regardless of the greatness or smallness of that destiny in material terms, we can still leave a lasting legacy by developing our character of self discipline, love, charity, kindness, and compassion. Think of our Lord Jesus Christ. He was mocked, dishonored, crucified. He died on the cross seemingly a poor and destitute prisoner of the great Roman empire. He was labeled by the priests of his own people as a fraud and an object of mockery. Yet, due to his faithfulness to determination to follow the Will of His Father, He resurrected from the dead and rose to heaven to the right side of His Father for eternal glory. He died to wash our sins. He is our Savior by His humility and faithfulness to His Father.

Hampar jahn, this is the real destiny of our people. We must follow the example of Jesus. We must not be afraid of living a humble life with just our minimum needs. God Almighty is the friend of the poor and the savior of the meek. Whatever we have over and above our minimum needs we should use in the service of the Lord. You are a father and your son lives with you fed everyday by your good wife and cared for and loved. Hampar Jahn, we have too many young children you don’t have a father or mother or whose parents are too poor to provide for them. Our village church needs to build a small orphanage for these poor children so that we can educate them, care for them and love them.”

Hampar and Vehanoush donated their savings to the church. A small but needed orphanage building was constructed and their names were posted on the building as recognition for their donation. By giving the donation, they no longer felt any fear or anxiety. They received respect and friendly esteem for their kindness. Hampar and Vehanoush also continued to make small but regular donations whenever they could for the maintenance of the orphanage. Sometimes one or two orphans would visit them and sometimes stay overnight in their small cottage. Haiyr Gomidas had taught them to say certain prayers before sleeping at night. They prayed to Lord Jesus,

“Dear Lord, thank you for your kindness and protection. We are orphans living in your house and feel safe and happy. May we always remain your humble servants. Also Lord, please protect and comfort Hampar haiyrik and Vehanoush Maiyrik and Krikor aghparig. Bless them in their goodness and humility.”

Hampar and Vehanoush had tears in their eyes hearing these innocent and sincere prayers. They thanked Lord Jesus that Haiyr Gomidas helped them to understand their real destiny. They understood how undue attachment to material things brings anxiety, fear and grief. They thanked the Lord that they were able to have the faith to do the Lord’s work without hesitation or resentment. They felt fulfilled and safe in their humble life of prayer, hard work and faithfulness to God and each other.

The man who always said, “Glory to God and His Wisdom
Pahrk kehz Der Ahstvahdz yehv ko eemahstoutioun.”

There was and there wasn’t a humble man whose faith in God was staunch. He was never bewildered or shaken in his faith regardless of what happened to him or his family. He had a wife and two children. They lived in a small cottage. He earned his living by transporting goods on his donkey. He took good care of the donkey treating it like a member of the family.

Whatever he did, he first would give praise to God:
“Pahrk kez Der Ahstvahdz yehv ko eemahstoutioun.”

After completing his work he would repeat the same. When someone said hello to him, he would give praise to God. In fact, he would repeat his praise of God every opportunity he had. It was second nature for him to praise God.

He was a happy man who was satisfied with what God gave him. He never forgot to thank God for his meager existence with his family. His wife and children were poor but happy. They always had their minimum needs and enjoyed their family life.

The friends and co-workers of the humble man decided to test his sincerity. One day they stole his donkey and took it deep into the forest. They tied the animal near a basin of water and left him. When they returned, it was time to work. They all assembled with their donkeys. The humble man came on foot. They asked:

“Where is your donkey, brother? The humble man said:

“Pahrk kehz Der Ahstvahdz yehv ko eemahstoutioun,” I think someone has stolen away my donkey.” His friends said:

“Ask your God to find the donkey!” They went on their way toward a neighboring village where there was work. The humble man prayed that day and stayed with his family.

That evening there were loud cries and noises coming from the village. The humble man went toward the commotion. He saw his friends who had returned from the day’s work. But, they were very distraught. He asked one of them, “What happened?”

“On the way to the next village, we were stopped by a large group of bandits. They made us dismount our donkeys. They whipped us and took whatever possession we had along with all the donkeys.”

“Parhk kehz Der Ahstvahdz yehv ko eemahstoutioun, Glory to God and His wisdom.
tzahvut dahnem May I take your suffering on me.
Ahstvahdzuh vohghohrmeh tzehz mugheetahroutian yehv bahstbahnoutian meechohtznehrov uhntmeest.” …… May God bless you by consoling you and protecting you always,” said the humble man.

The victims looked at the humble man and said:

“You have nothing to worry about because Your God has blessed and protected you. We stole your donkey and hid it in the forest as a joke. We’ll show you where it is. The joke is on us.”

Along with my mother’s milk came Armenian Proverbs

I was told when turtles climb trees, I won’t need any training or education. But have you ever seen a turtle climb a tree?

guhreeahn dzahruh gehleh? Does the turtle climb a tree?

gahrehlee pahn eh? Is it possible?

ahngahrehlee eh! It is not possible!

To ask a question with an impossible outcome begs an obvious answer. Of course, turtle’s don’t climb trees. Therefore, children need education and training. Their education comes first from their parents and close family members such as grandparents, uncles and aunties. The elders are the first and most important source of education for children when it comes to values that will stay with the child throughout life. They naturally love the child and hope and pray the child will grow up to be an honest and responsible member of the family. It is said:

ahnchour deghuh chee lohghatzvee - You can’t bathe in a place where there is no water.

A child cannot be educated where there is no wisdom. The elders must educate the child in the generational wisdom handed down from antiquity which has been tested in time to be true and practical. If the elders are themselves lacking in wisdom, then all is lost. It is said:

Kahrehn dzagheek guh poueesnee? Does a flower grow out of a rock? It is very unlikely.

ahnkhehlk kuhlougheen yehrehssehn eench guh kahsseh khehjuh nehrpahnuh - Due to the ignorance of the head, the soles of the feet suffer untold miseries.

Children need guidance through love, example and experience under watchful eyes. A child cannot grow up without such careful and persistent instruction and protection. If such education is lacking, then the children lack the discrimination to avoid unnecessary suffering. It is said:

chouruh bahduhn ee vehr gehleh? Does water go up a wall? It is not possible. You cannot expect the children to educate themselves without proper and loving guidance from adult loved ones.

Wisdom is taught by love. It is said:

seerdeh seerd jahnpah gah - From one heart to another, there is a path. There is a connection between two loving hearts. The relationship of love opens all the channels of communication. This is necessary because the learning process takes time and effort and the relationship of love and respect for elders sustains a child’s ability and perseverance to learn. It is said:

gahmatz gahmatz pahmbhaguh guhlah mahnadz - slowly, slowly the cotton fibers are spun into thread.

The most fruitful years for learning wisdom and getting practical training is between 5 and 12 years old. It is said:

yehrgahtuh dahk- dahk guh dzehdzehn - when the iron is hot, it is pounded into shape. The five to seven years before puberty are the years when the mind of the child can accept discipline and readily assimilate knowledge. If the child is protected and nurtured by the parents, he can learn with amazing speed and accuracy during these formative years when he is not yet exposed to bad habits such as intoxication, gambling, sex. If the parents protect the child from different kinds of exploitation, bad association, and degrading influences, the child will have a clear mind to learn and also develop discipline and moral values to withstand negative influences. An example of a child’s discriminative powers is given in the following story.

A hustler walked along the banks of stream on the outskirts of a village looking for someone to swindle. He saw a young Armenian boy playing with a gold coin. The hustler’s eyes lit up with greed. He pulled out a furry toy from his shoulder sack. He said:

“I’ll give you this toy if you give me your imitation gold coin.”

The Armenian boy said: “I don’t need your toy. But, if you imitate the braying of an ass,
I’ll give you my coin.”

The hustler looked around to make sure no one else was witnessing what he was about to do. He took a deep breathe and brayed like a dumb ass in heat. The Armenian boy was very amused. He said:

“You believe I am so stupid to think this is an imitation gold coin? Although you are dumb as an ass, you know it is a real gold coin.”

The young boy was astute enough to recognize that the stranger was a cheat. He was not fooled by the hustler. In fact, he made a fool of the hustler.

When a young person who is not properly trained tries to separate from loved ones, protectors and elders, he or she becomes easy prey for unclean persons. Youth and white paper take any impression. It is said:

Hahmuhrvadz votchkhahruh kailuh chee ouhdehr – The lamb that has been counted will not be eaten by the wolf. (In other words, the lamb that is watched and always accounted for will not be eaten by the wolf)

Ahndehr votchkahruh kaiyluh goudeh – the lamb without the shepherd will be eaten by the wolf.

It is necessary to educate children to recognize the difference between a good and bad person. But it takes one to know one. The child needs to be trained to be honest and respectful. If he knows how to be honest and simple, he will be able to recognize honest people and distinguish them from dishonest or deceitful persons.

Ahmehn pahrehv dvogh pahrehgahm cheh – everyone who says hello to you is not a friend.

Ahmehn paiyd sehrep chee leenee, ahmehn sahruh massis – Every piece of wood is not a spoon, nor every mountain Mount Ararat

A dishonest person can only cheat someone who has weaknesses such as greed, lust, jealousy, etc. He will exploit that weakness to his advantage. It is said:

Aiyees dahkeen tzouyeen guh teemahnah ? Can the snow last in this awful heat?

Without proper training from loving parents and good teachers, can a child withstand the temptations and exhortations of unscrupulous persons? Such persons have long term strategies to subvert the child’s power of discriminations and lead the young minds and bodies to be exploited. For example, how do child pornography films or pictures become available for depraved individuals? Obviously, innocent children have been exploited by unscrupulous persons.

Beware of persons who covet and cheat
Who’ll rob your honor and gold by deceit
Leading you down to frustration and defeat
Their hearts are bitter but they smile so sweet

It is said:

Chee koushahtzvahdz ahckeen metch paiydee guhdohr guh muhdneh
A splinter of wood can enter into the incautious eye

We suffer in life due to our own inattentiveness, weaknesses and mistakes. It is said:

Ahmehn votchkhahruh eehr vohdkehn guh gahghvehn
Every lamb is hung by its own feet.

This proverb indicates that every individual is responsible for his own actions. One suffers the negative results of engaging in bad habits. It is said:

Choureen goujuh choureen jahmpah guh gohdree

The clay pitcher of water is broken en route to its destination. This proverb implies that one gets what he deserves for engaging in bad habits. (It also implies one may suffer in the course of doing his duty.)

Learning good habits is the subject of many Armenian proverbs. It is said:

Tzehrkehrut luhvah gehrahgourehn ahratch ahroghjuhtihamp hahmahr, gehrahgourehn vehrch mahkrutiahamp hahmar – wash your hands before eating for your health and after eating for cleanliness

One needs to know basic hygiene. Today, washing one’s hands frequently is recommended to avoid catching viral and bacterial diseases. It is said:

Tzehrkuh tzehrk guh luhvah, yehrgou tzehrkuh yehresshuh – one hand washes the other and both hands the face. This proverb indicates the value of mutual dependence and mutual endeavor. Cooperation is the basis of happiness. Patience is another valuable quality.

Hahmpehreh, maiyrig kehzee pahn pehreh – Be patient, mother will bring you everything you need. Hahmpehroutiounuh giahnk eh – patience is necessary for a fruitful life.

Asking questions and listening carefully to the answers is another desirable quality.

Hahrtznohghuh guhlah kidtzoghuh – The one who asks questions, is the one who will understand. Serious inquiries from and elder will lead to receiving answers and knowledge and save much time and trouble. Humility, respect, offering service and asking important questions creates the right atmosphere for a fruitful exchange of questions and answers.

Hahrtznehlov baghdahd gehrtzatzvee - By asking one can reach Baghdad. (Baghdad was considered a very far off place from traditional Armenia. In other words, by asking questions and listening carefully to the answers one can reach the faraway (desired) goal

Hahrtznehluh ahmoht chuhlah, chuhhahskuhnahluh ahmoht eh – Asking is not shameful, not
understanding is.

Receiving good advice or a second opinion from a trusted friend has always been esteemed. It is said:

Mehg khehlk lahv eh, yehrgoossen ahvehli – one head is good, two is better (one brain is good, two is better).

After living under the yoke of the Ottoman Empire, the Armenians appreciated the value of not talking too much. It is said:

Yeteh dahssuh pahn keedehss, meguh uhseh, eennuh bahheh – If you know ten things, reveal one and keep nine to yourself.

Yehrp hahmodzvadz ches vor khohsskut pahnee muh degh gahntznee, lahv eh chee khohssehs
If you are not sure your opinion will accomplish a specific goal, better not say anything.

Mehg khohseer dahssuh luhsseer – For every one time you speak, listen ten times (literally this proverb says –speak once, listen ten times)

The Armenians have always put their emphasis on working hard and becoming expert in their trade or vocation. It is said:

Tuhchoun tehvohv eh tuhrchoum, mahrtou hahmpahvuh kohrdzohv - the bird flies with its wings and man achieves reputation (personal honor) by his work

Lahv ahskhahdogheen lahv ahbroust – the good worker earns a good living

Lahv huhntzvohruh tahsdoum ehl guh huntzee, sahroum ehl - the good farmer plows the fields expertly and even a mountain

Khuhpuh ahskhahdelohv eh paiheeloum – the plough share shines by working it (in the fields).

toun kehzee ohkneh vor ahstduhvadz kehzee ohkneh - help yourself so that God will also help you

There are many proverbs in Armenian extolling the benefits of hard and honest labor. At the same time, there are just as many that look on laziness as a vice.

Ahmahruh vor bahrgehs hohvehruh, tzuhmehruh guh sahdgehn gohveruh
Passing your summer sleeping comfortably soothed by the soft breeze, your cows will drop dead of starvation during the harsh winter ( literally If you sleep by the breezes of summer, your cows will drop dead during the winter)

Dzahreen dahguh bahrgehlohv pehrahnut dahndz chee uhnguhnee – a pear will not fall into your mouth if you sleep under a tree

yehteh khoshgohv peelahv gehpvee, dzohvou chahp yough eendzmeh - if you can cook rice with words alone, then I’ll give you an ocean of oil for taste.

yehrguhrahchahpoutioun guhneh - he is measuring the earth meaning he is walking around uselessly without work

Patience and self control is another virtue emphasized by Armenian proverbs.

Seerdut laiyn puhrneh, hahmpehreh, mee paghgahnahr
Keep your heart calm, be patient, don’t get angry

Keeshehr cheghehl vor chee louyeesahtzehl
There has never been a night that didn’t become day

But if one is impatient, the following is said.

mohrut pohruh eenuh ahmees eenchbes muhahtzeer
How did you stay nine months in your mother’s womb.

Armenians value an honest and decent person and they consider these qualities necessary for success.

eehrahv mahz vor uhllah chee guhduhree, souhd kehrahn ahl uhllah guh gohduhree

A truthful and decent hair cannot be cut, but a false or fake, imitation beam will easily be broken in pieces. This proverb implies that a person who is decent and honest will be successful and cheaters will fail.

Tzouguh chouroum ahrehvdour chen ahnoum

You don’t sell the fish while it is still swimming in the river (You don’t sell the fish before you catch it)
Another way to say this is judehruh ahsnahnuh guh hahmrehn – count your chicks in the fall (this has the same meaning as don’t count your chickens before they hatch)

There is a short story by Hohvhaness Toumanian that illustrates this proverb

The travelers

One day a red rooster flew up on the roof of the farmer’s house to have a panoramic view of the world. He stretched his neck as long as he could, but couldn’t see much. There was a vast mountain nearby that hindered the view.

“Dog brother, ‘maybe you know what lies on the other side of the big mountain’ “? asked the rooster to the dog resting below in the farmhouse yard.

“I don’t know either!” said the dog.

“For heavens sake, how long should we live without knowing what’s beyond our little world. Come on, let’s go and see what’s what in this vast world.” The farm dog agreed. On the spur of the moment, they both left on their adventure.

They walked and walked until the sun set. They reached a forest where they decided to take rest. The dog brother curled up under a bush. The rooster flew up a nearby tree and landed on a branch. They both closed their eyes for rest.

At dawn, the rooster called out, Cocka-doodle-doo.

“Good God, where did that come from? My lucky day, a good breakfast.”, thought the fox who ran as fast as he could toward the rooster.

“Good morning, cousin rooster. What are you up to in these parts?”

“I have come here to see the world,” said the rooster.

“Oh, what a wonderful adventure you have embarked on,” said the fox. For me, it has been such a long time that I am trying to find a good friend. It is my luck that we have met today. So let’s join together, come down we’ll go quickly,” said the fox.

“I agree,” said the rooster. “Wait, perhaps my friend wants to come to. I’ll come down and we’ll go.”

“Where is your friend, rooster cousin?”

“He’s under that bush over there.”

The fox thought to himself, “His friend must be a rooster like him. I’ll eat him first since he is already on the ground.” The fox ran to the bush. Suddenly the dog came out from under the bush. Seeing the dog scared the hell out of the fox, who high tailed it as fast as he could away from the dog.

“Wait a minute, fox brother, don’t run so fast. We want to go with you. How can we be friends and travel partners if you run away?” called out the rooster as loud as he could.

Ahratch ahsseghuh kez khuhreer, hehdoh mahkhatuh ouhreeseen

First pierce yourself with a pin before you stick a packing needle into someone else
(a packing needle is a very heavy duty needle used for sewing canvas sacs)

There is an instructive story that illustrates this proverb. There was and there was not a king who was gifted a powerful pair of binoculars. He enjoyed peering through the high power binoculars from his palace balcony. One day he noticed a temporary tent of nomads in the distance. He saw a nomadic woman step outside the tent. She was pregnant. After a few moments she stepped inside. After two hours she stepped outside again. She had a little baby in her arms. She gave birth to the baby and was around and about already. He was impressed.

He thought about his own wife also was also pregnant. She was expecting to give birth in one month. One day his wife seemed disturbed. She began to complain to her husband about some issues with her pregnancy that made her anxious. The king became impatient. He said:

“Stop complaining. Why can’t you go to the tent of the nomads and have your baby like their women. Don’t complain, just do it!” He told her about the nomad women he saw who gave birth to a child in the tent and then two hours later was walking with her child in her arms.

The queen didn’t say anything. She was offended by what the king said, but realized he needed to learn the difference between herself and the nomad woman.

She spoke privately with the king’s royal gardener who took special care of his heirloom rose garden. She told him that she and the king did not want him to water the roses anymore. They wanted to see if the roses could last a month without watering. The gardener was perplexed, but he didn’t say anything knowing well the quick temper of the royal couple. After two weeks, the roses wilted and began to fade away. Seeing the sad state of the roses, the king was convinced that the gardener was insubordinate. He ordered the gardener be hanged for disobeying his command to care for the royal roses.

The gardener protested that he was ordered by the queen not to water the roses. He claimed that the queen insisted that the king himself did not want the roses to be watered. The king immediately called the queen for an explanation.

The queen spoke to her husband:

“Dear husband, you know very well that there are so many wild rose bushes in nature that grow without having a gardener to water them. So I thought we could dispense with our gardener watering our rose bushes too. Similarly, you want me to have our baby in the tent of the nomads by myself instead of in our palace with the royal doctors and nurses. If I am obliged to give birth like the nomads, why can’t our roses thrive like the wild ones in nature?”

The king excused the gardener and kept silent. It is rightly said:

First pierce yourself with a pin before you stick a packing needle in someone else.

This is a story by Hohvahness Toumanian
(chakh chakh is an approximation of the sound that the wheel of a grain mill makes when turning)

There was and there was not a poor miller. He wore a torn sheep skin and wool coat, a flour dusty bandana covered his hair. He lived on the bank of a river in a dilapidated mill. He had an ashen, unleavened loaf of bread and a piece of cheese.

One day he went outside to release some water from the mill. When he returned, his cheese was missing. Another time, he went outside to let more water run into his mill. When he returned, the bread was gone. He thought, “Is there someone or is there not someone doing this mischief?” He thought and thought. Then he set a trap inside the mill and went to sleep. The next morning, he woke up to find a fox caught in the trap.

“Hey, you foul thief, you ate my cheese and bread. Hey, now I’ll show you what it is like to be a piece of stolen cheese. Saying this, the miller picked up a metal bar to smash to death the fox. The fox began to beg and plead: “Please don’t kill me for a little piece of cheese. Get me out of this trap and I’ll do many good things for you.”

The miller listened attentively and finally let the fox out of the trap.

The fox went away to a trash dump. It happened to be the dump where the palace waste of that country’s king was deposited. The fox walked and rummaged in the waste piles. The wily animal found a gold piece. He quickly ran toward the palace to talk to the king.

The fox addressed the king: “May the king live long (takavoruhn ahbradz gehnah), please loan me your large weighing bowl (gohduh – a large bowl of specific size used for weighing large quantities of gold and other precious items of value). The hammermill king has a certain quantity of gold. I’ll weigh it and bring back to you.

“Tell me, who is this hammermill king?” asked the local king who appeared perplexed and surprised.

“You don’t know him yet,” answered the fox. The hammermill king is a very wealthy monarch and I am his vizer (chief minister). Please give me the bowl. I’ll go weigh the gold, then you’ll know who he is.

The fox took the weighing bowl. He devised a clever plan. He stuck the gold coin he found in the dump into a crevice of the bowl. The fox came back that evening to return the weighing bowl.

“Oh,” said the fox. “We had a hard time weighing all that gold.”

“It’s hard to believe this fox needs such a big weighing bowl to measure the hammermill king’s gold,’ thought the king. He struck the bowl with his hand. It made a hallow sound and the gold coin fell out of the crevice of the bowl. The king picked it up.

A couple of days later, the fox came back to ask another favor of the king. He said, “My hammermill king has a quantity of precious jewels and natural pearls. Please loan me your weighing bowl again and I’ll bring it back tonight after weighing them. The fox picked up the large bowl and went away. The fox was able to find a pearl. He stuck it into another crevice of the weighing bowl. He brought it back that evening.

“Oh,” said the fox. “We nearly died weighing all those precious jewels.”

Later, the king slapped the bowl and a precious pearl fell out of one of the crevices.
The king was stunned. He thought to himself. “How much wealth must this hammermill king have? He needs such a big weighing bowl to measure his gold, precious jewels and pearls.”

Several days passed. One day the fox came to see the king to arrange a marriage. The fox: “The hammermill king has a desire to marry. He would like to marry your daughter.”

The king became very pleased. He felt like the whole world belonged to him.

“Go right away,” he said. “Go quickly. See that all the preparations are made for the wedding.” The king’s place was turned upside down in the excitement of preparation for the marriage. Everything down to the finest detail was made ready. The fox rushed back to the hammermill king. He wanted to give him the good news (the way to announce good news in Armenian is to say “may your eyes light up” - ahckuht louyees).

The fox said, “Well, well, my friend, I asked the king to let you marry his daughter. He agreed. Get ready. You are going to get married now.

“My God,” exclaimed the hammermill king. “”May your house crumble to the ground, you crazy fox.”(kou dounut kahntvee – may your house crumble to the ground is a phrase of disapproval in Armenian).

“What have you done,” said the frightened miller. “Who am I to merit marrying the king’s daughter.” (when making a comparison of two unequal things or persons in Armenian, one says: yes ohv, tahkavoreen aghckuh ohv – who am I and who is the king’s daughter).

“I have no income, no house or property, and no decent clothes… Now tell me, what am I to do?” (votch ahbrusst ounehm, votch dounn ou degh, votch mee tzehrk shohr…heemee yes inch ahnehm?)

“Don’t be afraid, I’ll make all the necessary arrangement,” said the fox. He tried to allay the anxiety of the destitute miller. The fox ran back to the king’s palace. He spoke with the king. “Oh my god, the hammermill king organized a grand procession to come here for the marriage. On the road, a large number of enemy soldiers suddenly surrounded the king’s procession, killed many of the king’s guards and stole everything of value. Fortunately, the king escaped unharmed and is hiding in an abandoned mill on the bank of a creek. He sent me to give you the bad news and also fetch some clean clothes to get married. After the marriage, he wants to get revenge for such an insult by giving hot pursuit of the perpetrators. The king immediately got everything ready for the fox to deliver to the hammermill king. He ordered a large contingent of his mounted soldiers to accompany the fox so that his future son-in-law could be escorted with royal pomp and honor to be married.

The fox and the soldiers arrived at the door of the dilapidated mill. The poor miller quickly took off his rough sheepskin coat and put on the royal clothes. He mounted a
stately horse . He was surrounded by the mounted honor guard. Ahead of him were the mounted soldiers and behind as well. The procession parted toward his future father-in-law’s palace. They arrived at the richly endowed palace. The poor miller had never seen such dazzling opulence. He stared at all four corners of the palace with an air of confusion, his mouth open and at times touching and looking at his royal clothing in disbelief and astonished beyond his wits.

“Brother fox, why is your king staring at everything as if he has never seen a royal house,” asked the king? “It seems as if your king has never seen a palace before nor worn royal robes.”

“No sire, it is not that at all,” replied the wily fox. “He is observing carefully and comparing your palace and possessions to his and thinking how extensive his opulent possessions are compared to yours.” (teh eehr ounehtzadzuh vohr degh, ehss vor degh - my opulence is so much and this king’s seems so little)

They sat down for a royal dinner. Many different types of foods were served. The simple miller couldn’t choose which one to eat, nor how to eat it.

“Why is he not eating, brother fox,” asked the king?

“He is sadly reflecting on the robbery that took place when he began he was coming here. You can’t even imagine, my dear sire, how valuable were the things that were stolen, and how nasty and demeaning is was for my king. How can he eat in peace now,” said the fox with a sigh of frustration.

“Don’t fret for that, leave your worries aside, my dear son-in-law. This is the way of the world. Sometimes these things happen.” The king tried to console his son-in-law. “This is your wedding! Let us be happy. Let’s have a good time now.”

They began to regale with joy. They ate, drank, play musical instruments and dance. They continued the marriage festivities for seven days and seven nights. The fox became the best man for the hammermill king.

After the wedding festivities, the king gave a huge dowry for his daughter to his son-in-law. With great pomp and merriment the king accompanied the newly weds to the palace of the hammermill king.

“All of you proceed together. Take your time and enjoy the scenery. I’ll go ahead and get everything ready at my king’s palace for your grand reception there,” said the best man. The fox ran as fast as he could until he reached a pasture where a large herd of cows were grazing. He asked the cow herders, “Who owns these cows?” They answered, “Shah Mar.”

“Don’t you dare repeat Shah Mar’s name again!” said the fox. My king is very upset with him. He is coming behind me with a large army. Whoever repeats the name of Shah Mar will have his head cut off. If you are asked who these cows belong to, say the hammermill king. If you don’t, the devil will take you to hell.” (teh cheh, vahehn yegehl eh tehz dahrelh – if not, misery will be your lot (literally misery will take you)

The fox continued to ran faster and faster. He saw a flock of sheep mounting the steeps of a mountain.

He asked, “Who do these sheep belong to?” The sheepherders answered, “Shah Mar.” The fox instructed the sheepherders in the same way as the cowherds.

The fox continued to run and run He came upon vast cultivated agricultural fields with the farmers and laborers working.

“Who do these fields belong to?” asked the fox. They said, “Shah Maree.” The fox instructed the farmers in the same way.

He ran and ran. He encountered expansive fields of hay. “Who do these fields belong to?” asked the fox.

The hay gatherers said, Shah Mar’s.” He instructed them as he did the others.

The fox finally reached Shah Mar’s palace.

“Shah Mar, O Shah-Mar,” called the fox as he ran toward to king. “May your house not be destroyed. You are innocently unaware of the evil that is looming. The king is upset with you. He is approaching your palace with a large army bent of killing you and pillaging everything you have and leaving only desolation and despair. You may not remember, but once I ate a little chick in your company. I have never forgotten your generosity and the good taste of that meal. That is why I have come running in great haste to give you this dire news. You must quickly get out of here by any means before that terrible tyrant reaches your palace.”

“What can I do? Where will I go?” asked the frightened Shah Mar. He could see the rising cloud of dust of a large number of men and horses of the invading king in the horizon.

“Run, get away as fast as possible with a sturdy horse. Go far away from this doomed land, and don’t look back.

Shah Mar mounted his best horse and escaped as fast as he could from his domain

The wedding party and the troops approached the palace of Shah Mar. They were sounding off trumpets, banging on drums, singing as loud as possible while surrounded by a huge contingent of mounted and armed soldiers. The riflemen continually shot rounds of bullets into the air. There was am awful din of noise.

The hammermill king and his wife were riding in a gold-plated chariot There was a multitude of soldiers in front and back of their chariot. The troops reached a large field where they saw a herd of cows pasturing. The mounted troops asked the cowherd men: “Whose cows are these?”

“The hammermill king’s cows,” answered the cowherds.

They continued on their path. They arrived at a large area of cultivated land.

They asked the farmers: “ Who owns these abundant fields?”

“The hammermill king,” they replied.

They continued on and reached the vast fields of hay.

They asked the laborers: “Who is the owner of these fields?”

“The hammermill king,” they replied.

All were astonished. The hammermill king was on the verge of losing his mind. He couldn’t believe his ears.

The troops arrived Shah-Mar’s palace. The best man fox was already established as the master of the palace. He had made all the appropriate preparations and received the honored guests and newly found relatives. They all began the joyful festivities.

For seven days and seven nights they enjoyed themselves royally. After the festivities ended the guests returned to their kingdom. The hammermill king along with his wife and his best man, the fox, live now in Shah-Mar’s palace. Until this very day, Shah-Mar is still running frightened out of wits of the hammermill king.

The Pot of Gold

I heard from our elders, they in turn from their fathers, they in turn from their elders, that once upon a time there was a poor farmer who had a rented plot of land and a yoke for one bull. During the harsh winter the farmer’s bulls died. In the early spring when it was time to begin to plow and clear the fields, the farmer did not have any bulls to work the land. He rented the land to a neighbor to farm.

While the neighbor tilled the field, his hoe hit an object. He thought it was a big rock. When he unearthed it, he saw a clay water jug full of gold coins. He tied his bulls and ran to the village to his neighbor who rented him the land.

“Hey brother, may the sunlight brighten your eyes (ahchkut louyee), I just unearthed this pot full of gold on your land. Take it, it belongs to you.”

“No way, brother, it doesn’t belong to me,” said the farmer to his renter.

“You paid me rent for the land, you plowed the ground. Whatever comes out of the land belongs to you. If it is gold, so be it, it belongs to you.”

They began to argue back and forth. The renter said, “It is yours brother,” and the farmer said, “No, it is yours.” The argument heated up. They came to blows. Finally, they went before the king with their mutual differences of opinion. Then the king heard about the pot of gold, his eyes bulged from their sockets with greed. He spoke.

“It doesn’t belong either of you. The pot of gold came out of the plot of land that belongs to me. It’s mine!” The king proceeded with his guards to the farmer’s place to fetch the pot of gold for himself. When the king opened the lid of the pot, he was shocked to find that instead of gold, the pot was brimming with poisonous snakes!

The king became incensed with rage and rushed back to his palace. He ordered his men to severely punish these country bumpkins for daring to cheat him.

“May the king live long, we beg to differ,” said the two hapless prisoners. “Why are you going to execute us. There is some mistake. Maybe you didn’t look into the pot correctly. There aren’t any snakes. It is full of precious gold, so much gold, Sire.”

The king sent a group of his men to examine the pot again. When the men returned, they affirmed that the pot was full of gold.

“My God,” said the king is a burst of amazement. “I must not have looked carefully into the pot or, maybe, I looked into the wrong pot.” The king darted out again to see the pot of gold. He opened the lid and again he was shocked to find the pot full of poisonous snakes.

“What kind of magic is this. What does it mean. I don’t understand,” said the king.
He issued a royal order that all the sages and wise men in his kingdom come immediately to his palace for a consultation. He addressed them thus, “Please explain to me my dear wise men the origin and meaning of this strange event. These farmers unearthed a pot full of gold . When I went to examine it, I saw the same pot full of dangerous snakes. When they look, they see only precious gold. What does this mean?”
The wise men addressed the king, “If the honored king does not get upset, we can explain the meaning. The pot of gold was a gift sent to the poor farmers for their noble and honest work. When they looked into the pot, they saw their rightful reward of precious gold. But, when you looked into the pot, you intent was to usurp the fortune belonging to others. Because of that illicit desire, you saw dangerous snakes instead of gold.”

The king was shocked. He was speechless. He composed himself and spoke to the wise men: “I accept. But you must still determine which one of these two farmers owns the pot of gold.”

The farmer who unearthed the pot said, “It belongs to my neighbor who rented the plot to me.”

“It’s not true,” said the farmer who rented the plot. It belongs to my friend the renter.” The two farmers began to argue again.

“Stop this arguing right now,” said the wise men. Now tell us. Do you have children? If so, tell us whether they are girls or boys and what are their ages?”

It turned out that one farmer had a boy and the other a girl and both children were of marriageable age. The wise men decided that the one farmer’s son and the other’s daughter should get married. The pot of gold that was unearthed should be gifted to the newly married couple. The two honest farmers agreed.

Eight days and eight nights the humble villagers celebrated the marriage of the farmer’s children. The pot of gold that was unearthed and later revealed to be a gift to them in recognition of their noble and honest work throughout their lives was offered to their children. Blessing and goodness were with the humble, honest people. Bad behavior and greediness with the king.

The values that define the character of people are often preserved in proverbs, stories and words of wisdom handed down from generation to generation. Armenian proverbs and teaching stories have served as useful tools to educate new generations the accumulated wisdom of their ancestors. One can understand a people by their stories and words of wisdom.

There is one proverb that may summarize the learning experience: It says

Ahmehn pohrtzank mehg khuhrahd eh, votch pohrtzank guh vehrchanah, votch khuhraduh

“Every trying experience is a lesson. The experiences will never end, nor will the lessons to be learned.”

Life is full of experiences and lessons to be learned. For example, a child may play with matches. The fascination with striking a match and igniting a flame may seem irresistible to a curious child. For an inexperienced young child, playing with matches may be very dangerous. The child can burn himself or set fire to a house and cause damage or death or both. If an adult sees the child playing with matches, he may scold or spank the child or even dramatically show the child what happens when playing with matches. Out of a sense of tough love, the adult may light a match and bring it close enough to slightly burn the finger of the child. Once the child can understand how dangerous it is playing with matches, there is a good chance he will no longer want to play recklessly with them knowing well that he will be punished and perhaps burned again.

It is said:

Ahntzuhrehvuh eench ahnee kahreen, khuhraduh eench ahnee chahreen

What good is it if the rain falls on a rock? What good is advice for a bad or foolish person?

Because a child may not understand good advice, it may be necessary to scold, spank and punish to make the point. Spare the rod and spoil the child does not help the child to be well educated, disciplined and responsible. But one should not terrorize or scare the child.
One can be affectionate all the time, but still teach a child discipline and responsibility. It is said:

Ahrantz seerehl seerd chee gah

Without love or fondness, there is no heart to encourage and uplift.

Children need to be continually supervised because if they are left on their own, they may inadvertently do something that endangers them. It is said:

Yehrehkhaheen kohrtzee teer, yehdehvehn kuhnah

Give a child a task, but carefully observe his work.

It takes time and patience to train a child and repetition is necessary. In fact, it is said:

Khelokeen meg, ahnkhelkeen hahzahr ou mehg

One time is enough for a wise person, but a thousand and one times may be necessary for the uneducated.

Basic values of life are best learned in childhood with good training. It is said:

Gahtee hed muhdahdzuh, hohqou hed tuhrsuh

What is learned in childhood will remain until death (literally this proverb says – what enters while drinking milk, will exit with the soul).

Without learning lessons of wisdom, we may easily be discouraged by the difficulties we encounter in life such as sickness, old age, death, natural catastrophes, political events, etc. It is said:

Yes kez khuhrahd, ell chuh tzahness gudahvuhhahd

I will give you wisdom, so that you will not be discouraged and hopeless.

People become discouraged when they cannot see any way to improve their situation in life. They end up hopeless. Receiving wisdom, however, gives people a sense of empowerment by which they can understand the reasons for their difficulties and how to rectify the situation. It is said:

Muhdik uhreh mehdzeen khuhrad vor chee hasni portzank vuhrhat

Listen to the advice of elders so that misfortune does not come upon you.
(Listen to elder’s advice, so that you avoid misfortune and vice.)

Respect for elders especially father and mother and grandparents, uncle and aunties, and elders in general especially spiritual teachers is the beginning of the learning process. Without such respect, one will not be ready to accept knowledge from the accumulated wisdom of previous generations. Lacking respect for elders one will vacillate toward unqualified persons for inspiration and advice or example. It is said:

Lav eh eemashdoun marthoun karereh guhrrelh
Kahn teh unmuhdkeen kineen khuhmelh

It is better to carry the rocks of a wise man
Than to drink the wine of a fool

Fools rush in where angels fear to thread. Fools never take the time to think carefully about the consequences of their acts. They make quick decisions and often are attracted to immediate gratifications rather than long term benefits materially and spiritually. What the fool may do in the end, the wise man does in the beginning. Wise men will learn from other’s mistakes, but fools, by their own. It is said:

Kohar muh keen ounee, pari khuhradmuh uhnkeen eh

A precious jewel has a price, but good advice is priceless.

Good advice is priceless because it can save so much time, trouble, heartache and even death. Good advice can be accepted or rejected. If a man is drowning in a well and someone throws a rope down. He must take hold of the rope to be saved. It is said “He was slain that had warning, not he that took it.” If we want good advice but refuse to follow it, then we cannot expect good results. What use is it to see a doctor and get medicine for an ailment, then go home and throw it in the trash. It is said:
Jahnahchelh eemastoutioun yehv khuhrahd, eemahnahl ayn pahrehr vor gouhdahn hahsgatzoghoutioun
To know wisdom and instruction, and to perceive words of understanding.
This was the first sentence translated into Armenian from the Bible (Prov 1:1) soon after the invention of the Armenian alphabet in AD 405. To acquire understanding about the purpose of life and how to attain it while living a good life free of vice and unnecessary suffering brought on by ignorance is the purpose of knowledge and wisdom.
Real learning begins with humility. It is said:
hahmesht yegheer vor sohrvees - Be humble so that you can learn
huhnazahnt yegheer vor hedehvees - be obedient so you can follow
sahd luhsseh yehv keetch khosseh - listen much and talk little
hahrtz uhreh yehv badashkhan luhsseh - ask questions and listen to the answers
muhdahdzeh ou yertoum ehrreh - think deeply and make a vow
misht sheedak jahmpah hedeveh - always walk the straight path (the path of knowledge and virtue)
Seeking out a genuine knowledgeable person and humbly listening to his or her advice is the beginning of learning. It is said:
Yegheer keedounee kehree, mee leeneerh ahnkedeen seerehlee
Become the servant of the wise man rather than the sweetheart of the fool.
Learn to listen to the wise person attentively without any distraction. It is said:
Yehs kehz pahn yem ahsoum, eehssk tou pahmbak ehss kuhzoum
I am trying to tell you something, but you are combing raw cotton.
(To make conventional cotton wool or thread, the cotton is harvested, cleaned to remove dirt and seeds, and then carded. Carding separates the fibers and roughly lines them up, so that they all lie in the same direction. The cotton is divided into slivers, hanks of raw cotton which are spun into thread or wool. When cotton is combed, fine brushes are used to pull out any remaining impurities, along with short cotton fibers. Approximately 15% of the volume is removed, leaving behind only long, straight fibers which are even and aligned. The slivers of combed cotton are then spun into thread.)
If one remains always inattentive, there will never be any lessons learned. It is said:
Ehssuh kahrasoun ahnkam yehrusahlem eh kuhnatzehr, ehli ehs eh munatzehr
The donkey went to Jerusalem forty times, and still remained a (dumb) donkey
There is a saying: “Man is known to be mortal by two things, sleep and lust.” One can remain asleep to what is the real purpose of life even though awake and functioning as if normal. This is due to bad habits that divert the mind from self realization to self gratification. It is said:
Akhkadoutiyan badjaruh yerrek - Khoumarji, zennehji, keenovnahl
There are three causes of poverty: gambling, womanizing, and drinking.
One remains poor materially and spiritually. Material poverty is not a crime. As long as one maintains “bahdeev” or honor, self-respect and moral rectitude, they can function and by the grace of God they will somehow make ends meet.
It is said: Lahv eh keetch, kahn votch eench – better something than nothing
But, as soon as one becomes addicted to low class behavior such as intoxication, gambling and philandering, a steady downward spiral takes place. It is said: Women, wine, game and deceit, lowers one to shame and defeat. Bad habits and bad friends will cause one to lose good qualities such as honesty, self-control, patience, tolerance, compassion,etc.
It is said:
Halal mahzuh chee guhduhrvee, hahrahm kehrahnuh guh gohduhrvee
One single hair of a good person cannot be cut, but a thick column (belonging to a sinful person) can be easily broken (the literal translation of the Armenian is: righteous hair cannot be cut, a sinful column can be broken).
Mahrtuh shohrohv eh keghyeghcheek, khosskuhn ahradzoh
A man is handsome due to his clothes, speech with proverbs of wisdom

(This is another wonderful tale of Hovhaness Toumanian. It has a deep meaning and teachings that unravel as you read it. I will discuss what I think those meanings are. I think this is the first time this tale is translated into English from the original Armenian. I hope you enjoy it.)

The geese keeper girl

There was and there wasn’t a very old woman. This woman lived in a small cottage nestled in a thickly forested slope of a mountain. She kept a flock of geese as her loyal companions. She treated them like her own children. Her cottage was surrounded by an old growth forest. She lived in a lonely mountainous area as if isolated from civilization.

Every day the old woman held fast to her walking stick. She habitually talked to herself as she walked through the dark forest. She went searching for green grass for her geese. She also picked wild fruits and anything that was eatable in her sight. She tied the herbs and fruits in a cloth that she shouldered on her back for the trek back to her cottage. Whoever saw the old woman gritting her teeth and struggling with the heavy weight of her bundle understood how difficult it was in her old age to eke out a meager subsistence. However, she always was able to make it back to her mountain cottage.

If the old woman encountered a stranger on her path, she always offered a happy and warm greeting.

“Good day, dear brother. God has blessed us with good weather today. Oh, don’t be so shocked that an old woman like me can carry such a heavy bundle. What can I do? Everyone must work hard for an honest living and tolerate the destiny God has allotted to them.”

To tell the truth, no traveler in the forest wanted to encounter the old woman on the pathways. If they saw her in the distance, they would stray away from the pathway and remain hidden. If by chance a father and son passed her on a forest path, the father would stop his son and caution him: “You see this woman, stay far away from her. Yes, far away, she is a witch…”

One morning, a handsome young man was wandering in the vicinity of the old woman’s wild picking haunts. The sun was hot and brilliantly shining. The birds were chirping to their heart’s content. Their was a pleasant breeze wafting through the forest and rustling the leaves to produce a soothing sound. The young man was enjoying the pleasant summer day in the mountain forest. He had not seen anyone meandering on the pathways of the forest that day. Then he espied a very old lady on her knees collecting forest greens and grass growing near the trees. Her apron was full of grasses and herbs and she was had two baskets full of forest fruits on the ground near her. She lifted the heavy burden on her back.

“Granny, where are you going with such a heavy bundle?” asked the young man.

“Whether I want to or not, I am forced to carry this bundle, my dear boy. What else can I do? The rich, of course, are not obliged to do such hard labor, but for the country folk like me it is said,

‘Do not look back or lament
Your spine is crooked and bent’ ”

The old woman was hunched over carrying her bundle and spoke without seeing the young man. When she approached him, he was standing on one side of the path and she caught a glimpse of his attractive features. She spoke,

“Perhaps you might want to help me. You’re back is still straight and strong, your legs stout and steady. This bundle will be no match for your strength. My little cottage is in a small open area surrounded by the dense forest on this side of the mountain. With you’re help, we’ll quickly reach it.”

“No problem”, he said, “My father is not a villager. I am the son of a wealthy king. I will still lift your heavy bundle. I’ll show you that villagers are not the only ones who can lift heavy bundles and carry them.”

“Then come and lift this off my back. May you live long, my son. As the crow flies, we have about one hour’s journey. This will be a piece of cake for you. And don’t forget these two baskets of apples and pears.”

When the young prince heard “one hour’s journey”, he began to hesitate. The old woman didn’t let him shirk away from the task. She heaved her load on his back, secured it with a tight belt and handed him the two baskets.

“Can you feel how light it is”, she said.

“”How can you say it is light”, pouted the prince. “Your bundle is so heavy, I think you put rocks in it. And your two baskets of apples and pears seem to be burdened with lead and are bearing down on my arms and legs…I am having difficulty breathing!”

He tried to relieve himself of the unbearable load, but the old woman taunted him.

“Just see, just see, I am an old, wizened woman who daily carries this same heavy bundle all alone. You are a young and nimble youth and you are hesitating already after a few seconds…it is always like this…..people like you make so many boastful claims of being hard workers, but when it comes time to really work, you backpedal with crybaby excuses. Why are you just standing there young man, start moving your feet forward. No one else is going to help you now.”

They started on the trek. While on the straight and level pathways the young man was able to hold his own. But, when they started up the mountain, the path was strewn with rocks. As the prince stepped on rocks with the weight of the bundle on his shoulders, some of the rocks ricocheted from the edges of his boots. The prince felt he couldn’t continue any longer carrying such a heavy burden. His brow was full of beads of sweat, some hot and some cold dripped down his back.

He said in a pleading voice:

“Granny, I can’t go any further. I need to catch my breath and rest.”

“No way,” answered the old woman. “When arrive at my cottage, you can rest all you want.. Who knows, maybe one day you will realize that something wonderful resulted from this day’s work…. Now, keep going.”

“You really don’t have any pity, Granny,” said the prince whose temper began to heat up. He tried to slide the bundle off his back. But to no avail because the devilish old woman had tied it so tightly that it seemed to be part and parcel of his body as if he was born with it. The prince was not able to shake it off his back. He almost lost his balance. The old woman mocked him while poking the bundle from one side and the other to keep it steady on the prince’s back.

She said: “Why are you getting so riled up my dear boy? You’re all red like a turkey. Just carry the bundle and don’t make any waves. When we arrive at my cottage, I am going to reward you so handsomely, you’ll be amazed.”

What could the young prince do? Whether he wanted to or not, he had to resign himself to his fate and follow the old woman come hell or high water.

The more they climbed the difficult mountain paths, the more the old woman quickened the pace. It seemed as if the bundle became heavier and heavier for the prince. As if the prince’s troubles were not enough, the old woman stepped up on a large rock and suddenly jumped on the shoulders of the prince. She firmly crossed her legs on his chest.. On the ground, the old woman looked like a gaunt wisp. But, she felt more heavy than a stout peasant women perched on his shoulders.

The prince’s legs began to shiver. To add insult to injury, the old woman repeatedly whipped the prince’s boots with a bunch of long stalks of nettles. The exhausted prince huffed and puffed and groaned with pangs of agony as he mounted the steep trail. Finally, he reached the old woman’s cottage where he collapsed on the ground as if he was about to give up his ghost.

When the geese saw the old woman, they started to excitedly flap their wings and stretch their long necks. They ran toward her making a loud crescendo of honks that echoed through the loneliness of the secluded mountain. The geese were happy. Another old woman followed the geese. She was tall and heavy set and walked with a branch of a tree for a cane. She had an eerie look about her and appeared to have an unnatural ugliness suggesting a strange fate. She said:

“We were worried about you, mother dear. Why are you so late? Did something happen?”

“Nothing at all, my dear girl”, said the granny. “I didn’t have any problem. On the contrary, I met this young gentleman on the forest trails. He was so kind to shoulder my heavy bundle and baskets and bring them here for me. And what’s more, when I got tired, he insisted that I mount his shoulders so that he could relieve my fatigue by straddling him. I know it wasn’t easy for him. The trek seemed to pass so fast that we hardly noticed the time passing. We were telling jokes and laughing so much. It was so much fun.”

The old woman impishly stood up from squatting on the exhausted prince’s shoulders. She loosened the ties holding the bundle on the prince’s back and removed it. She took the baskets from his hands and spoke to him in a motherly tone of affection.

“Now you sit here on these door steps and rest up, my dear boy. You deserve a precious reward for you hard work. I am going to give you a gift you’ll never forget.”

She looked at the other woman. “You go in the house sweetie. You are standing too near this young man. It is not proper. You don’t throw butter on a fire. The young man might fall in love with you.”

When the prince heard the old woman’s words, he was not sure whether he should laugh derisively or cry. He thought to himself:

“Oh yes, my pretty wench, even if you were thirty years younger, you would still leave my heart cold and somber. What to speak of now!”

Meanwhile the granny turned her attention to caressing and taking care of her geese as if they were her children. Then she and the other woman stepped into the cottage.

The prince was exhausted. He found an old bench under the shade of wild apple trees and dropped down on it. The air was warm and scented with the fragrance of wild flowers. On all sides of the shaded grove were beautiful meadows in full bloom with yellow and blue wild flowers. Running through the meadow was a limpid stream glittering like bright silver under the brilliant sun. The pure white geese waded back and forth in the stream.

The prince exclaims to himself: “What a beautiful place. But I am so tired my eyes are tearing. Let me close my eyes and rest a little. But I feel so light-headed that I fear the wind will carry me off like a feather. I feel so bereft of strength so much so that I feel like strands of weightless cotton.”

He slept for a short while until the granny came and shook him to wake up. She said:

“Get up! It is not possible for you to stay here. It’s true that I troubled you greatly by carrying my heavy bundle and baskets. But you made it here and you’re still alive. I’m going to reward you. I won’t give you some money or other precious treasure because you don’t need money or treasure. I’ll give you something that is worth much more than money or treasure.”

With those words, she handed him a small box made entirely of precious pearls.

“Take this and keep it like you would the very light of your eyes. It will bestow upon you continual happiness.”

Suddenly, the young prince felt a lively surge of energy. He stood up refreshed and accepted the box. He thanked the granny and began his trek back home without even a thought of the woman staying with the granny. He hurriedly went down the mountain a considerable way but he could still hear the happy honking of the geese.

The prince wandered the pathways of the mountain forests for three days until he was able to find his way to a large town. He had never been there before. He walked through the town a total stranger. The townsfolk, learning of his royal lineage, took him to their king’s palace. When the prince entered the throne room, the prince fell to his knees and offered his respects to the king and queen. He took the pearl studded small box out of his pocket and placed it at the feet of the queen. The queen ordered him to stand up and hand the precious gift box to her. She opened the box and looked inside. Immediately, tears flowed from her eyes. She swooned and fainted. The guards grabbed the prince and began to hustle him to the palace jail. The queen was revived by her attendants. She gathered her wits and ordered the guards to let the prince free and instructed them to leave the throne room so that she could speak to him alone.

The three were now alone. The queen began to cry again. She spoke to the prince and weeped intermittently at the same time.

“What good is all my opulence and glory, when every morning I wake up with tears and every night I go to sleep with tears. I had three girls. My youngest was so sweet. Whoever saw her said she wasn’t just a girl, but a miraculous creature of beauty and grace. Her beautiful face was a mixture of pure white snow and the delicate rosy color of spring apple blossoms. Her cheeks and hair glistened like the rays of the sun. When her eyes shed tears, they seemed like a stream of precious pearls. When the youngest was fifteen, her royal father summoned all three sisters to appear before him. It was an amazing sight. Everyone looked on with enchanted eyes when my youngest entered the room. Her charm and beauty was so alluring, it seemed as if the sun just rose in the horizon.

“My dear children,” said the King, “I don’t know when I will reach my last breath. For this reason I want to decide this very day how to portion off my kingdom to each of you after my death. I know you love me very much. I want, however, to hear which one of you loves me the most. The one who loves me the most will get the largest part of my kingdom. Now tell me how much each of you loves me so that I can measure how great is your love. The oldest daughter said:

“I love you as much as the sweetest sugar in this world.” The second said:

“I love you as much as my most favorite dress.” The youngest remained silent.

“And you, my most dear youngest daughter. How much do you love me?”, said the king.

“I don’t know father.”, said the girl. “I can’t compare my love for you to anything I know.”

The king insisted that his youngest daughter make a statement. The girl felt obliged to say something.

“The best food has no real taste for me without a sprinkling of salt. I love you like salt in my food.”

When the king heard the girl’s answer, he was seized by a rash feeling of rage. He railed at her.

“So it is like that….if you like me as much as salt, then I will leave you an inheritance of salt.”

“Later, the king divided his kingdom among his two older daughters. He ordered that the youngest receive a belt laden with a bag of salt. He ordered two servants to accompany her to a remote dense forest area and abandon her. I and all the others begged, pleaded, implored the king to relent from such a harsh decision. But it was to no avail. We could not soften the king’s wrath.”

“Oh, if you could only have seen how much we wailed when she was forced to leave. Her tears fell like rain from her eyes. Each tear became a pearl that glistened like fresh dew on a blade of grass. Soon after her departure, the king began to feel remorse due to his hard-hearted decision. His anger subsided and gave way to compassion. He became conscientious of his wrong decision. He ordered his soldiers to search everywhere possible to find our unfortunate child. But no one was able to find her.

Whenever my mind thinks of my poor child’s fate, I imagine she might have been eaten by predator animals. The pain of such thoughts drives me into a forlorn frenzy. I lose my self composure by feeling so pained and disturbed. I get disoriented and feel devastated. Sometimes my attendants console me with glimmers of hope that my child might still be alive by remaining hidden in a cave or perhaps she had found refuge with kind-hearted people who are sheltering her.

But, when I opened your little pearl-studded box, I was shocked to see the same tear-shaped pearls that fell from my child’s eyes as she left crying that fateful day. You have to tell me where you laid hands on this little box.”

The young prince recounted his story. He explained how a very old granny gave him this emerald studded box. He was sure the old lady was a witch. He told her how much the old witch made him work so hard and suffer. But, he assured her, he did not see such a beautiful young girl, nor did he hear anything about her.

The king and queen decided that whatever may come of it, they must find the old witch. They were convinced that whoever had possession of these tear-like pearls would have some information about the whereabouts of their daughter.

Let’s leave the king and queen and the young prince commence their journey of discovery. Let us go back to the old woman and her daughter in their lonely mountain cottage.

The old woman was alone in the deep silence of her forest cottage. She was using her spindle to spin thread. Night had already fallen. The logs of pine in the fireplace were reduced to cinders and about to go out. Outside, there was a commotion and loud noises. The geese were returning to the cottage from foraging. She could hear their cacophony of deafening honking sounds.

The old woman’s daughter entered the house. The granny motioned to her with a slight movement of her head to come close to her. The daughter sat close to her mother. She took up the spindle and started to spin more thread. She was zippy at it just like a young girl. For two quiet hours the two sat close to each other without talking as if their tongues were tied. A murmuring sound from outside the window broke the silence. They both looked up and saw two fiery eyes peering at them. It was an old owl that hauntingly called out three times phou-poul, phou-poul, phou-poul and disappeared in the dark night.

The granny looked at her daughter and said: “Its time now my daughter, go and do what you have to do.”

Without a peep the daughter went out into the darkness of the forest. She walked through the eerie night quite a distance until she reached a secluded glen. She went straight to a well where there were three oak trees on one side. Once out of the dense forest, there was a full moon appearing over the mountain tops that lighted the darkness so much that if a pin was lost you would see it shining on the ground. Under the silvery light of the moon, the woman took off her course frock, wet it and began to pound it against the rock wall of a well as she washed it. She rinsed and squeeze dried the frock. She spread it to dry under the white light of the full moon. At the same time, the clumsy woman mysteriously transformed from an ugly old woman into a young woman of unimaginable beauty. She stood in the bright moonlight with her beauty that could be described as never seen before and not comparable to anyone else. A man beholding such a beauty would be dumbstruck and incapable of eating, drinking, or anything else but just gaze at her other-worldly charm.

Her white hair fell down as if a wig and under it was revealed brilliant golden blond hair that descended to her sides like a bundle of sun rays falling from the heavens that engulfed her body. Her eyes twinkled like twin stars through her hair strands and her cheeks were pink like the spring flowers of an apple tree.

She still was sad, so sad. She fell to the ground and began to shed hot tears of grief. Her tears flowed one after the other wetting the ground. She cried so much that she would have stayed immobile for a very long time had she not heard the rustling of the leaves close by and the crackling sound of a broken branch. She jumped up frightened like a deer that just heard a gunshot. Quickly she put on her mysterious old frock and in one second she disappeared as if she never existed like blowing out a candle so that the darkness envelops everything. She was frightened by the sound so much that she shivered with fear all the way back to the granny’s cottage. She saw the old woman waiting for her at the door of the cottage. She was about to explain what happened when the old woman softly said:

“Don’t fret my dearest, I understand everything.” She took her hand and led her into the cottage.

The granny lit the fire. She left off spinning her thread and took up a broom and started to sweep the cottage. She said:

“Everything has to be orderly and clean.”

“Mother, why do you have to clean the house at this late hour? Are you expecting guests? What’s happening?”

“My dearest, don’t you know that your time has come?”, asked the old woman.
“The night is not even half over, you need to get ready before the sunrise. Didn’t it occur to you that it is exactly three years to the day that you came to me. When this night is over, it will not be possible to ever live together.”

The daughter became pale. She asked:

“Mommy, do you want me to leave your home? Where will I go? I don’t have any friends. I have no where to go. Whatever you say, I will do. I have always tried my best to please you. Why are you throwing me to the dogs?”

The old woman did not want to reveal all that she knew would come to pass so she changed the subject.

“I also do not want to live in this cottage any longer. I want to go far away from this lonely place, but I can’t leave it looking like a mess. Leave me in peace to clean it. Please do not fret anymore. You are going to return to your father’s hearth and you will be pleasantly surprised by the gift I will give you.”

“But, mommy, tell me what is going to happen to me.”

“I’ll tell you for the last time, do not disturb me. Let me sweep and clean. Go to your room without any more words. Take that old frock off and put on your lovely silk dress that you wore when you first came here. Wear that and wait in your room until I call you.”

Now let us find out about the king and queen. They engaged the young prince to help them locate the old woman. Finding the secluded cottage in the deep mountain forest was not so easy. At one point, the young prince fell behind the king and queen’s party. He continued alone. The next day, the prince realized he had strayed from the right trail. He walked the entire day. As night fell, he climbed a tree to pass the night until the next morning. During the night, he noticed an old woman walking down the mountain under the white rays on the full moon. He recognized her as the ugly woman who lived with the old granny in the mountain forest. He had seen her feeding the granny’s geese and leading them with a walking stick. She was strangely alone on this full moon night without her stick or the geese.

“What luck,” he thought to himself. “I am seeing this one now. If I can keep my eye on her, I’ll soon find the old granny too.”

But he was in for the shock of his life. The strange woman approached a well. She took off her old frock and began to wash it. He was amazed to see that she had golden hair that fell to her shoulders. Now he could see her bewitchingly gorgeous beauty. He couldn’t believe his eyes. She was more beautiful than any woman he had ever seen or even heard of. He held his breath and poked his head through the tree branches with his eyes bulging in silent admiration of the girl’s stunning looks and body. He pressed his head forward to see her better when he accidentally broke a branch of the tree with a crackling sound. The girl heard the sound and grabbed her frock and put in on in haste. She ran off like a frightened deer as fast as she could into the dense forest.

The girl made haste back to the granny’s cottage. The prince jumped down from the tree and followed her. He followed her for a distance. He espied two moving shadow-like forms in the forest. It was the king and queen. He joined them and they continued their search together for the granny’s cottage. They saw the granny’s outdoor flaming torch light through the thick forest. They used the torch’s light to guide their walk through the forest toward the cottage. The prince described the amazing sight he had of the granny’s daughter near the forest well. In his words, what he saw was a miracle. He was absolutely sure that the woman he saw earlier in the forest was the king and queen’s lost daughter. They continued toward the torch light and finally reached the granny’s cottage. They saw the large flock of geese standing all over the yard of the cottage. Their heads were buried under the soft feathers of their wings in deep sleep. Not one of the geese made a noise or moved at all.

The three looked stealthily through the window.
They could see the granny sitting and spinning thread on her spindle.

They noticed how impeccably clean and orderly the cottage was. It was as if it was clean enough for angelic spirits of the forest to be dwelling there. Such spirits know neither dirt nor dust in their immaculate lives. They saw everything but their dear daughter. She wasn’t there. They tried to hear any noise or notice any sign that would give them hope. After a while they mustered up the courage and tapped on the window. The granny appeared to be waiting for them. Hearing their tapping on the window, she got up quickly and called out in a sweet voice.

“Come in, come in, I know who you are.”

All three entered the small cottage.

The granny said, “May the king live a long life. You were not meant to make such a long and difficult journey today. If only you didn’t throw your daughter out under such cruel and unjust pretexts three years ago. She is a sweet and virtuous innocent girl. I can’t understand why you did it. But I must tell you that she has been spared any stain on her purity these last three years. I gave her the responsibility to care for my geese, feed them and keep her eye on them so that they avoid any harm. I can promise you that she has not learned anything bad. Her heart and soul have been spared of any unsavory influence and she has remained pure. But you have received your well earned punishment by living in continual fear and anxiety for her safety during her three year absence.

The granny sidled close to the bedroom door and called out: “Please come out now, my dear girl.”

The door opened and the stunning girl appeared in her golden silk dress. Her golden blond hair fell down her shoulders to her lower back. Her eyes were shining like bright stars. She seemed like a heavenly angel that had miraculously descended on this earth.

She came running out and wrapped her arms around her mother and father’s necks. She began to kiss them. The king and queen were so overwhelmed with joy that they shed tears. The young prince looked on as a stunned bystander. The girl noticed the prince and began to blush rosy pink and red like a fresh rose in bloom. The king spoke:

“My precious daughter, what can I give you now. I have already divided my kingdom and gifted it to your sisters.”

The granny spoke on behalf of the princess. “She doesn’t need anything from you. I have gifted her the ability to cry tears that are more precious than the most costly pearls extracted from the oceans. They are so valuable that they make the wealth of your entire kingdom pale in comparison. Further, in return for the humble and sincere service she rendered me these three years, I am giving her my humble cottage in this forest.”

As soon as she finished her benevolent words, the granny mysteriously disappeared. The others experienced an incredible event. The walls of the little cottage began to squeak as they expanded and transformed. The humble cottage became an opulent palace with a banquet hall garnished with delectable food and numerous servants quickly walking here and there attending to every need of the king and queen and other guests. There were also beautiful young ladies dressed in pearly white gowns standing in attendance around the king and queen, the prince and the princess.

It became more than apparent that the granny was not an evil witch, but a genuinely pure-hearted well-wisher. She blessed the king’s daughter with the power to cry tears that turned into precious pearls. This guaranteed that she would weather through her days of adversity and need. The granny also saved many other young girls who were the subject of cruel destiny. She turned them into white geese so that no unscrupulous men disturb them. Now they were again transformed back to their original beautiful youthful human forms. She also arranged for the young and handsome prince to meet the innocent and pure princess who suffered such injustice from her father.

After the revelation of all these amazing happenings, the prince and princess were married. They lived happily. The princess forgot about all the suffering of her earlier dark days. They lived together joyfully and in peaceful harmony in the splendid palace that was formerly a humble cottage in the dense mountain forest.