① The first blind man approached the beast and felt the animal's firm flat side. "It seems to me that the elephant is just like a wall," he said to his friends.

② The second blind man reached out and touched one of the elephant's tusks. "No, this is round and smooth and sharp - the elephant is like a spear."

③ Intrigued, the third blind man stepped up to the elephant and touched its trunk. "Well, I can't agree with either of you; I feel a squirming writhing thing – surely the elephant is just like a snake."

④ The fourth blind man was of course by now quite puzzled. So he reached out, and felt the elephant's leg. "You are all talking complete nonsense," he said, "because clearly the elephant is just like a tree."

⑤ Utterly confused, the fifth blind man stepped forward and grabbed one of the elephant's ears. "You must all be mad – an elephant is exactly like a fan."

⑥ Duly, the sixth man approached, and, holding the beast's tail, disagreed again. "It's nothing like any of your descriptions – the elephant is just like a rope."

And all six blind men continued to argue, based on their own particular experiences, as to what they thought an elephant was like.