A Boatman and a Scholar

There was a poor boatman in a village. He was illiterate. He had no knowledge about anything. He used to row in boat from morning till evening only to fulfill his daily needs. One day a scholar  got into his boat . The scholar thought to himself as if he knew everything. The scholar asked to the boatman, "Did you read the history?"  The boatman said, "No". The scholar again told him that without any knowledge of history one-fourth of his life was spoilt. Then he looked at the beautiful scenery and asked the boatman again whether he had read geography. As usual, the boatman replied in the negative. This time the scholar said that one half of the boatman's life was spoilt. Then they were silent for some time. It was afternoon. After few moments, the scholar again said to the boatman, “Do you know anything about science?" "No, I don't know about science" said the boatman. The scholar told him that his life was of no use. 'Three-fourths of his life was spoilt. This time the boatman remained silent. All on a sudden, the sky became overcast with dark clouds. Strong wind began to blow. The scholar was very much frightened. Eventually, the wind became more violent. The boatman said to the scholar, "Sir. Do you know how to swim?" The scholar replied in the negative in a painful voice. The boatman said, “The boat is going to sink. Now I see, the whole of our life is spoiled. Your bookish knowledge is of no use at this moment".