One day, a king asked his court scholar,
“Tell me, wise man — what is ignorance?”
The scholar thought for a moment and replied,
“Your Majesty, to answer that question properly, I need seven days’ leave. When I return, I will give you your answer.”
The king agreed and granted him seven days off.
The scholar left the palace and went straight to the best cobbler in the kingdom.
He said, “Make me a pair of shoes.”
The cobbler asked politely, “Certainly, sir. Please give me your measurements.”
The scholar snapped, “Forget about measurements! Just make them one arm’s length long and a handspan wide. Decorate them with diamonds, rubies, and precious stones. Stitch them with golden thread. Don’t worry about the cost — whatever it is, I’ll pay it. No bargaining.”
The cobbler was delighted. “Very well, sir! Please give me an advance, and you can collect the shoes tomorrow.”
The next day, when the scholar came to pick up the shoes, he made the cobbler swear never to tell anyone about them before paying in full. Then, he took one shoe home and secretly placed the other one in front of a temple.
That evening, when the priest came to the temple, he discovered the huge, glittering shoe and was astonished.
He thought, No human could possibly wear such a large shoe! And it’s covered in jewels — it must belong to the Lord Himself, who must have visited the temple last night and accidentally left it behind!
The priest reverently touched the shoe to his forehead and kissed it again and again.
The next morning, when the temple was crowded, he told everyone about finding the shoe of God.
The crowd immediately agreed — “Yes! This must be divine! No human foot could fit in it, and since it was found outside the temple, it can’t belong to any devil either!”
Everyone began to touch the shoe to their foreheads, kiss it, and worship it.
Soon, news of the miraculous shoe spread throughout the kingdom.
Eventually, the story reached the king himself, who ordered that the shoe be brought to the
royal court.
After seeing it, the king declared,
“This shoe must belong to God!”
He too touched it to his forehead, kissed it, and said,
“Keep this sacred shoe safely in a temple where it can be worshiped.”
Thousands of people began visiting daily to see the shoe.
Many prayed for healing and blessings, and a donation box was soon placed nearby. Money started pouring in — the “shoe of God” became the center of a thriving shrine!
Seven days later, the scholar returned to court, bowed before the king, and sat quietly.
The king asked, “What’s the matter, scholar? Why do you look so gloomy?”
The scholar sighed, “Your Majesty, one of my shoes has been stolen from my house. I’m upset.”
“One shoe?” The king looked puzzled.
“Yes — it belonged to my great-grandfather. The thief dropped the other one while fleeing.”
The king leaned forward eagerly. “Do you still have that shoe with you?”
“Not at home, but right here!” said the scholar, pulling a jeweled shoe out of his bag.
The king’s jaw dropped — it was the same shoe!
He slapped his forehead and cried out,
“Bring the other shoe from the temple immediately! Oh, what have we done? We’ve been worshiping your great-grandfather’s shoe — kissing it, bowing to it, and polishing it with our own devotion!”
The scholar smiled gently and said,
“Your Majesty, that is what ignorance is.
This entire kingdom will one day be filled with such ignorance —
people will lose their reason, become blind with
superstition and
fanaticism, unable to tell right from wrong, truth from falsehood.
And when that day comes, the Creator Himself will regret ever creating mankind.”
