The King and the Weaver

Once upon a time, there was a land ruled by an old, cranky king. One day, a messenger from abroad approached him. The messenger didn’t say a word, however. Instead, he silently examined the king’s throne, took out a piece of white chalk, and drew a thick line around it.

It was a curious and very unsettling thing to do, and the king had no idea what to make of it.

“What in the world is the meaning of this?” the king asked, indignant. But he didn’t get an answer. The messenger just stood there, looking at the throne, completely silent.

The king was alarmed by his behaviour. He called for all of his most trusted advisors to counsel him and tell him what the circle around the throne could possibly mean. But none of the advisors had the faintest idea. Then the king got really angry. His face turned nearly purple with his rage.

“If you don’t know what it means, you’d better find someone who does! If you can’t find someone to explain this to me, I’ll have you all executed!” he threatened. And he meant it!

The advisors scattered and began searching the country inside and out for someone wise enough to explain the meaning of the mysterious circle around the throne. They knocked on doors in every house in every big and small town, but they couldn’t find anyone. Not anywhere.

They even roamed over mountains. Then one day, they chanced upon a cute little cottage hidden deep in the hills in the middle of nowhere.

The advisors knocked on the door, but nobody opened. After a short debate they decided to go in anyway, but when the advisors finally entered, they didn’t find a living soul inside. All that they saw…