What is ignorance?

One day, a king asked his court scholar, "Tell me, Scholar, what is ignorance?"

The Scholar thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, to find the answer to this question, I will need five days' leave. I will return and answer your question then!"

The king agreed and granted the Scholar five days' leave. The Scholar left the royal palace and went to the most skilled shoemaker in the kingdom. He said, "Make me a pair of shoes."

The craftsman asked with a questioning look, "Alright, sir, give me the measurements."

The Scholar scolded him, "Forget about measurements! Make one shoe a hand's length long and a span wide, and adorn it with diamonds, jewels, and gems! Sew it with gold-threaded yarn, and don't worry about the cost. Whatever the price, you'll get it; I won't haggle."

The craftsman readily agreed, "Very well, give me some money in advance, and you can come and take the shoes after one day."

The next day, while taking the shoes, the Scholar made the craftsman promise that he would not tell anyone about these shoes before paying the full amount.

Then, the Scholar kept one shoe with him and secretly left the other one in front of a temple.

In the evening, the priest came to the temple and discovered the single shoe. He became very excited. He thought, "Such a large shoe could never belong to a human foot, and with all the diamonds and jewels on it, surely the Lord himself came to the temple at night and mistakenly left this one shoe outside."

He first touched the shoe to his forehead, then repeatedly kissed it. The next day, when many people gathered at the temple, the priest told everyone the story of finding the Lord's shoe. Everyone unanimously agreed that the shoe must belong to God, as no human foot could be so large, and since it was found outside the temple, it certainly wasn't the devil's! Everyone repeatedly touched the shoe to their foreheads and kissed it.

In no time, the news of the shoe spread throughout the kingdom. Eventually, the story of the shoe reached the king's ears; he ordered the shoe to be brought to the royal court.

After seeing everything, the king also admitted, "This shoe must belong to God!" He repeatedly touched the shoe to his forehead and kissed it, saying, "This shoe should be carefully and securely preserved in a temple or a holy place."

Every day, thousands of people flocked to see the shoe. Many began to make vows in the hope of recovering from illness and obtaining various other things. Taking advantage of the opportunity, a group of people placed a donation box next to the shoe. A mountain of money accumulated around the shoe!

Five days later, the Scholar's leave ended. He entered the royal court, bowed to the king, and sat quietly.

The king asked, "What is it, Scholar? Why do you look so glum?"

The Scholar lowered his head and said, "Your Majesty, a shoe has been stolen from my house, that's why I am upset."

"A shoe?" the king was astonished.

"Yes, a shoe belonging to my great-grandfather has been stolen. The thief dropped one while fleeing!"

"Do you have that shoe with you?" the king asked quickly.

"Yes, I do!" The Scholar took out the shoe from his bag and showed it to everyone.

Seeing the shoe, the king's head began to spin. He struck his forehead and ordered the shoe to be brought back from the temple immediately. Then, in a loud voice, he began to say, "We considered this the Lord's shoe and touched it to our foreheads so many times, kissed it, and licked it clean!"

The Scholar then said softly, "Your Majesty, this is what is called ignorance. One day, this kingdom will be filled with such ignorance! Many people will lose their intellect. People will become so foolish, superstitious, and fanatical that they will not be able to distinguish between good and bad, right and wrong. And seeing all this, God, the creator, will regret creating humankind."