Some blind people touched an elephant with their hands and made each different claim.
The person who touched its body said, “The elephant is like a solid wall,” and the person who touched its leg said, “The elephant is like a round pillar.” The person who touched its nose said, “The elephant looks like a long tube,” and the person who touched its ivory said, “The elephant looks like a pointed arrow.” Like this, when a person talks as if he knows everything when he knows in part, he is likened to a blind man who touches an elephant.
Although each of the blind knows only part of the elephant, there is a way to understand the actual appearance of the elephant. It is to share what they know with the others to combine all the parts. Then, they will be able to figure out the whole picture of the elephant by putting together the parts of the body such as the elephant’s belly, legs, nose, and ivory like a jigsaw puzzle.
If you do not stick only to your knowledge but pay attention to the words of others, you will not fall into the error of a blind person’s touching an elephant.