What are parables and what are they

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

"Let me tell you a story about three butterflies who wanted to know what fire is. The first of them approached him at a safe distance and, returning, said that fire is light. The other flew closer and scorched his wing. "Fire is heat," she said. The third butterfly flew close and disappeared in the flame forever. Now she knew what it was, but she could not tell anyone about it. The one who knows is silent, and the one who speaks - doesn't know" - there is usually a pause at this point, and the listeners are given the opportunity to reflect on what was said.

What literary genre do you think this story belongs to? Of course, this is a parable. The meaning of the word is this - it is a short instructive story, which in allegorical form conveys to us some kind of wisdom, moral or religious instruction.

What are parables

Let's take a closer look at this concept. The lexical meaning of the word "parable" reflects the essence of this literary phenomenon. First, as we already know, such a story cannot be long. ATit does not have detailed descriptions of the scene, the characters of the characters and the development of the plot, as, for example, in a fable. In addition, unlike a fable, a parable does not always end with a moral. Events are not depicted, but are indicated as a background, or a kind of cocoon from which the main idea should be formed.

So what are parables? These are moral teachings, dressed in an entertaining form, as modern teachers of early childhood development would say. Take the story of butterflies, for example. If we were simply told the last phrase, we would hardly realize, much less remember its meaning. But thanks to a beautiful and understandable story, the puzzle in our head will take shape in a matter of seconds, and we will perfectly understand the idea that they were trying to convey to us. In this case, an explanation of its meaning is given at the end of the story, but this is not always the case. Some parables do not give the "correct answer" on the last page, and then everyone interprets them in their own way.

What are parables

This genre has been used since ancient times by various religious and philosophical teachings. So, there are philosophical, oriental, Confucian, Sufi, Christian parables. And this is not a complete list of them. Here it would be appropriate to recall the famous Caucasian toasts, which very often take the form of a parable, which is why they are loved far beyond the borders of the fertile mountain range.

Proverbs of Solomon

Many of us have heard the name, but don't really know what "Proverbs of Solomon" is. This is one of the books of the Old Testament, the author of which was the king of IsraelSolomon. It says that he received his wisdom and knowledge from God. Once Solomon decided to share them and "uttered" 3 thousand parables. Some of them were included in the form of the 20th book of the Bible (Old Testament) and are rather sayings and teachings on religious and moral topics than parables in the classical sense. After all, what are parables? These are, as you and I already know, allegorical stories that lead us to some kind of conclusion. The book of Solomon consists of direct statements and advice, which in themselves are moralizing.

Gospel

Completely different parables told by Jesus Christ in the New Testament or the Gospel. Simple stories from the everyday life of people or the reality around them at the moment of interpretation acquire a deep moral meaning, show a person his spiritual path to God.

Let's remember the parable "About the prodigal son". The father had two sons. The eldest worked diligently with his father. The younger one asked for his share of the inheritance and went to wander and lead an idle life. After the money ran out, and attempts to find even the most menial work ended in failure, the son returned home in repentance. The only thing he dreamed of was to receive his father's forgiveness and be hired as his worker. What was his surprise and happiness when he was met with open arms and honors. The eldest son was offended and reproached his father for meeting the wicked with such joy, which he, the faithful and hardworking son of his father, had never seen. To which I received the following response:“You have always been here. All mine is yours. And I rejoice that your brother was dead, and now he has come to life, disappeared and was found. There are several interpretations of this parable, but they all agree on one thing: the father is God. As for the brothers, there are several options. According to one of them, the older brother is a righteous man, the younger one is a repentant sinner. There is a version that the older brother is understood to be the Jewish people chosen by God, and the younger brother is the pagans seeking and gaining God's grace.

Sufi

On the question of who the Sufis are, it is not so easy to give an unambiguous answer. This is a religious doctrine, recognized as one of the branches of Islam, however, having little in common with it. The carriers of the Sufi picture of the world were dervishes - eternal wanderers, looking for the path to Truth or the Almighty, which are one and the same. A person can be called a Sufi if he is looking for his own path to the Truth, to spiritual renewal and improvement outside of any system whatsoever. “To be a Sufi means to be what you were before you appeared in this world,” these are the words of one of the most famous followers of this teaching, Sheikh Abu-Bakr al-Shibli. We have the opportunity to touch the understanding of Sufism through acquaintance with their amazing parables, full of wisdom and love.

Finishing

Now you and I know what parables are, what they are and who wrote them. But in order to really understand what they are, to experience the magical effect of this genre on your ability to think and feel, you need to read them yourself.