United we stand, Divided we fall

This, again, is not a forgotten tale. This story appears in the Aesop's Fables and is a very popular tale narrated to children to make them understand the importance of Unity. I am sure you have heard this earlier. Read it again and cherish your childhood memories ;)

United we stand, Divided we fall

A long time ago, there lived a farmer in a faraway village. He had seven sons. The sons neither engaged themselves in studies nor helped the old father with his work. They would quarrel with each other for no reason. 

The farmer realized that his sons could not live a peaceful life after his time. He felt that his life was about to move from dusk, further towards night and before the darkness encroached his life, he wanted his sons to understand the importance of unity.

Hence,one day, he decided to teach them a lesson. He collected seven strong sticks and tied them together with a rope. He called all his sons and said thus-"Dear sons, here you see a bundle of sticks. I want these sticks broken without the rope being untied. Whoever breaks it, will receive a special prize from me."

The sons looked at the bundle and at each other. They thought it would be an easy task and that they could easily take away the prize their father had just mentioned.

One after the other, each son tried to break the sticks in the bundle. They tried and tried and were unable to break it. The father observed this silently. When all the sons had tried and failed, they came to their father and told him it was impossible to break the sticks.

The father then told the sons to untie the bundle and asked each son to break a stick. The sons quickly untied the bundle and were able to break the sticks within seconds, with not much effort. They rushed to their father to claim the prize.The old farmer smiled at his sons and said-"These sticks are like you. If you stand united, like the bundle of sticks tied with a rope, nobody can ever break you. But if you quarrel among yourselves and stand divided, each one of you can be easily destroyed. This is the lesson each one of you has to learn and this knowledge is your biggest prize."

The sons understood the message and it is believed that they stayed united all their lives and prospered through out.