Question

Why did the king change his clothes and leave behind his bodyguards and horse before meeting the hermit?

Answer 1

Hint: The context of the above question is given in the chapter ‘Three Questions’. It's a story of a king who was determined to find out the answers to three questions because he believed that if he knew those 3 answers he would never fail in life. It’s written by Leo Tolstoy.

Complete answer:
The king had asked his messengers to spread the word that whoever answered his three questions correctly would get rewarded with a large sum of money. After the announcement was made several wise men visited the court to answer those questions. But, none of them could give the answers that could satisfy the king. All wise men had different answers.

For the first question, some told the king to have a timetable in order to take the right action at the right time, some said he must have a good council of ministers, some said it's impossible to know the future and some others said that he must visit a magician to know the future. For the second question some wise men said that the most important people to the king are his councillors, some said soldiers, some said priests, doctors etc. For the third question, some wise men said science was a good occupation, some said religious worship and some others said fighting.

Unsatisfied with all the answers, the king decided to visit the hermit in the woods who was believed to be a very wise man. The hermit never left the woods and would only meet simple people. Therefore, the king changed his clothes and left behind his bodyguards and horse before meeting the hermit.

Note: The theme of the story is central to ‘living in the present moment’. The hermit made the king realize that the present moment is the right time to take any action, people who are there with you in the present are important to you and the good done to others in the present moment is the best occupation.