Dopo averlo un po' palpato
dalla parte del costato
disse il primo: son sicuro;
è all'incirca come un muro.

Il secondo che tastò
una zanna, sentenziò:
non lo trovo eccezionale;
è una lancia tale e quale

Ed il terzo che per caso
si trovò tra mano il naso
disse: ah ma certamente
è una specie di serpente

Accertata l'estensione
della zampa del bestione
disse il quarto ch'era giusto
di chiamarlo un alto fusto

Un orecchio strinse il quinto
e restò presto convinto
ch'era cosa assai vicina
al soffietto da fucina

Quando infine ebbe sentita
la sua coda fra le dita
disse il sesto: oh l'elefante
è una fune come tante.

Once upon a time, six blind men lived together in India. They had often heard about elephants, but because they were blind, they had never seen one.

The Rajah had many elephants. So, the blind men went to the Rajah’s palace to “see” an elephant first-hand. They traveled together, walking one behind the other, communicating with each other so they wouldn’t fall down.

Each man put his hand on the shoulder of the man in front. An elephant was standing in the court-yard of the palace. The blind men touched the elephant with their hands.

The first blind man touched the side of the elephant. “an elephant is like a wall”, he said.

The second blind man touched the elephant’s trunk and jumped back. “An elephant is like a snake!”, he said.

The third blind man reached out and touched the tusk. “Sharp! An elephant is like a spear,” he said.

The fourth blind man touched the leg of the elephant. “How thick and tall,” he said. “An elephant is like a tree.”

The fifth blind man touched the ear of the elephant. “An elephant is like a fan”, he said.

The sixth blind man reached out and touched the tail of the elephant. “It is thin and tough. An elephant is like a rope”.