Difficult Problems, Creative Solutions

Once upon a time, in a small Indian village, a farmer was in a difficult situations - he owed a large sum of money to a local moneylender.

This moneylender was not a nice person. He was old and not very pleasant to look at, and he had his eyes set on the farmer's beautiful daughter.

So, he came up with a plan.

He told the farmer that he would forgive his debt if he could marry the farmer’s daughter. Both the farmer and his daughter were shocked and scared to hear this proposal.

So the cunning money-lender suggested leaving the decision to the divine will. He suggested that they let God decide the matter. 

He said he would put two stones, one black and one white, into a bag. Then the daughter would have to pick one stone without seeing it.

• If she picked the black stone, she would have to marry him, and the debt would be forgiven.

• If she picked the white one, she wouldn't have to marry him, and the debt would still be forgiven.

• But if she didn't pick a stone, the moneylender will report to the King and her father would be sent to jail.

The poor farmer didn’t have a choice and so he agreed.

As they stood on a path in the farmer's field, the moneylender slyly picked up two black stones and put them in the bag. The clever girl noticed this, but she didn't say anything.

The moneylender then asked the girl to pick a stone.

This was indeed a difficult situation for the girl.

Now, picture yourself standing in the field. What action would you take if you were the girl? If you were to offer advice, what guidance would you provide?

Upon careful consideration, three options emerge:

• The girl could opt not to select a stone.

• She could reveal the presence of two black stone in the bag, exposing the moneylender's as a cheat.

• She could choose a black stone, sacrificing herself to spare her father from debt and imprisonment.

Reflect on this tale for a moment. It is shared in the hopes that it will make us appreciate the difference between lateral and logical thinking.

The girl's dilemma cannot be resolved through conventional logic alone. Consider the consequences of each of the above choices.

What would you recommend to the Girl to do?

Well, here is what she did ...

The young woman reached into the moneybag and retrieved a stone. Without examining it, she pretended to fumble and dropped it onto the pebble-covered path, where it quickly got mixed with all the other stones.

"Oops, my mistake," she said. "But never mind. If you look in the bag, you'll know which stone I picked."

As the only stone left in the bag was black, it was assumed that she had chosen the white one. And since the money-lender dare not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed a hopeless situation into a highly favorable outcome.

Sometimes, we find ourselves in a hopeless situation. In these times, it is easy to make a mediocre choice. Or to give up.

But complex problems do have a solution. It is only that we don't Attempt to think.

As Oprah Winfrey says -"When you don't know what to do, get still. The answer will come”.