In the highlands of Tigray, where rocky mountains rise above winding paths and small villages rest under the sun, there lived an elderly couple and their only son. They were simple people, but they loved their son deeply and worried about his future. The father looked at his wife one evening and said, “We are growing old. Let us find a wife for our boy before it is too late.”
The son listened quietly. He trusted his parents and respected their wisdom. Soon he was married, and his young wife bore him a child. Their home was filled with joy, yet the young man felt a heavy burden. He wished to provide more for his wife, his child, and his aging parents. With their blessing, he set out to find work in a larger town.
The Work with the Monks
The young man knocked at doors searching for employment. One householder said there was no work but pointed him toward another place. Following the direction, he came to a monastery where many monks lived.
The monks welcomed him and asked, “How long will you stay with us?”
He answered honestly, “Only four or five months, for I must return to care for my old father.”
The monks shook their heads. “We need someone for a longer time.”
The young man hesitated but agreed to remain. Then one monk asked, “Are you educated?”
“Yes,” he replied. “I have studied up to the seventh grade.”
Because of this, they gave him the important duty of sitting at the monastery gate and collecting their income and offerings. The young man performed this work faithfully. His honesty, respect, and patience soon gained their trust.
Months passed into years, and years became a full decade. After ten years of service, the young man said, “I must go home. My family has waited too long.”
The monks agreed and handed him four hundred birr for his service. Yet he noticed something unusual. “When others left you, you blessed them,” he said. “Why not me?”
The monks explained, “We blessed the others, but they each gave one hundred birr for every blessing.”
The young man thought carefully. The blessings sounded priceless, yet he also needed money for his family. “Then bless me also,” he said firmly, “but give me my rightful money.”
So they blessed him three times, each blessing costing one hundred birr. Only one hundred birr remained in his hand. They also gave him a sealed letter. “Open this only in front of your family,” they instructed.
The blessings were simple but powerful:
Go only by the road you know.
Do whatever you are asked on the way.
Do not get upset by anything you see or hear.
With the blessings and the sealed letter, he set out for home.
The Journey
On his way, the young man met two poor travelers. They shared the road until they reached a crossroads. The two urged him, “Come with us on this new road.”
But he remembered the first blessing. “I must follow the road I know.”
They mocked him and went their way. Later, from a hill, he looked down and saw the two beaten by bandits. He whispered, “If not for the monks’ blessing, I would be lying there too.”
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As he continued, he saw a strange light shining from a distance. It led him to a noble house. An old man greeted him kindly and offered water to wash his hands and feet. Out of humility, he refused, but then he remembered the second blessing. He allowed the old man to wash him.
Later the host brought out food. He accepted it gratefully. Then the old man brought a blind girl and asked him to feed her from his dish. Though puzzled, he obeyed, recalling the blessing. Afterward, the old man told him to sleep upon a bed placed over a grave. He did so without complaint.
In the morning the old man said, “Well done. Many disobeyed me and lie in that grave, but you accepted all I asked. The blind girl troubled me with her demands, and her blindness came as a burden to me. Yet you honored her without anger. For your obedience, take this gift.” He handed the young man ten thousand birr.
The Return
On his way home, the young man passed a church. There he saw two men praying naked, rolling on the ground. He nearly grew upset but remembered the third blessing and continued calmly. Later he learned these men were his own father and son. They had prayed for his return for ten years.
Finally, he reached his family. Before telling them all he had endured, he opened the monks’ sealed letter as instructed. Inside was four hundred birr, the same money he had paid for the blessings.
Thus, with blessings, wisdom, and great fortune, he and his family lived in peace.
Moral Lesson of The Monks’ Blessing
This Tigray Ethiopian folktale teaches that obedience, patience, and humility open the path to blessings greater than wealth. The young man honored instructions even when they seemed strange. His respect saved his life, brought him fortune, and reunited him with his family. The story reminds us that guidance from elders and spiritual leaders carries wisdom that can protect us when our own understanding fails.
Knowledge Check: The Monks’ Blessing
What decision did the young man make when his parents found him a wife?
He trusted their choice and married the woman they selected for him.Why did the young man agree to work with the monks?
He wanted to support his family, even though he had first planned to stay only a few months.What three blessings did the monks give the young man?
Go only by the road you know, do whatever you are asked on the way, and do not get upset by anything you see or hear.How did the first blessing save him?
By following the road he knew, he avoided bandits who attacked the men who chose the new path.What reward did the old man give him for his obedience?
The old man gave him ten thousand birr after he humbly accepted every task.What did the monks’ sealed letter contain at the end of the story?
It contained four hundred birr, the same money he had paid for the blessings.Source: Tigray folktale, Ethiopia
