Three Questions by Leo Tolstoy. Short summary

5 seconds

The king wanted to know when to start things, what people to know, and how to set priorities. The hermit showed him by example.

1 minute

The king decided that he would be fortunate in everything if he knew: when to start things, which people to know, and which things were the most important and which were not. He sent messengers all over his land, promising a reward to the one who answers three questions.

Men of learning came to the palace, but they all said different things. The king decided to ask the hermit for advice. He disguised himself in ordinary clothes and came to the hermitage. The hermit was digging beds. The king asked him three questions, but he answered nothing.

Seeing that the old man was weak, the king took his shovel and was digging the garden himself until evening. Then a wounded man ran out of the forest. The king washed his wounds and bandaged them. With the help of a hermit, he brought the man to his cell.

In the morning, the wounded man repented: he had plotted to kill the king to avenge his brother. But since the king did not come, he went out of ambush. The guards saw him and wounded him. The hermit said that the king had the answers to his questions: one should start a business when it appears; the right person is the one with whom one is dealing now; and most important of all, to do good.