Four Brothers and the Little Bird

Four brothers lived beside a lake in Kashmir. One was good at planning, one at building, one at remembering paths, and one at noticing small things.

Each believed his own skill was the most important.

One autumn morning, they set out to find work in another village. Before long they began to argue.

"We should take the mountain path," said the planner.

"The lakeside road is easier," said the builder.

"I remember a shorter way," said the pathfinder.

The youngest pointed at dark clouds, but nobody paused to hear him.

Cold rain swept across the road. The brothers hurried beneath a broad tree, tired, wet, and annoyed with one another.

A little bird watched them from a branch.

"Four brothers," she chirped, "yet each travels as if he were alone."

"We are together," said the eldest.

"Your feet are together," replied the bird. "Your ears are not."

The bird told them that an old wooden chest lay beneath a nearby stone. It could help them on their journey, but reaching it would require all four of their gifts.

This time, the brothers agreed to listen.

The pathfinder recalled an overgrown trail leading toward the stone. The youngest noticed bent grass showing where the ground was firm. The planner chose a safe route around a muddy hollow. The builder used a fallen branch as a lever to move the heavy stone.

Beneath it they found the chest.

Inside were no jewels. There were strong tools, packets of seed, a coil of rope, and four warm woollen shawls.

"This is useful treasure," said the builder.

"But how will we divide it?" asked the pathfinder.

The brothers nearly began another argument. Then the youngest spoke.

"Why must we divide everything? We can use the tools together, plant the seed together, share the rope, and each wear one shawl."

The others smiled. It was the wisest plan of all.

They returned to their village and repaired an abandoned storehouse. With the tools they built shelves and mended the roof. With the rope they helped neighbours carry wood. When spring arrived, they planted the seed in a shared garden.

Every person contributed a different skill. No one gave every order, and no one was left unheard.

The little bird later visited the garden and found the brothers working side by side.

"Now your ears are travelling together too," she chirped.

The brothers saved a handful of seed for her and all the other birds who had helped teach them how a community grows.