The Bamboo Bundle

An old Monk was in his chamber, withering away from his old age. He had 3 sons, Lui, Cho and Lang. Lui was a weakling, Cho was lazy and Lang was as strong as an ox. The old man called for his sons, knowing his end was near. He pulled out a bundle of 3 bamboo, handed it to Lui, and said, “Break it.” Lui gripped, and tugged and almost threw his back out. He’d had enough and gave it back to his father. The old man did not look pleased.

He next handed it to Cho who tugged once and gave up.

Then the old man handed it to Lui who was very confident and knew he’d break it with no trouble. He grasped, pulled, and wrenched until he was blue in the face. He was not successful.

Then the old man took the bundle, untied the string, and handed each of them a strand of bamboo. Then he said, “Break.” With little to no effort, the each son broke the bamboo strands. Very pleased, the old man said, “You three are all very different, all with strengths and weaknesses, but together, you can overcome anything. Remember that after I die.”