Weekend Story-Bullseye

Antipater, a revered Greek general and diplomat, once gathered a group of skilled archers and challenged them to a riddle. He showed them a bullseye and asked them, “Can you describe what you see ?”

Most of the archers responded by describing what they saw, including the target, the bullseye, the woods beyond, and so on. However, one archer, Eubulides, gave a different answer. He stated that he could only see the center of the bullseye.

Antipater was impressed by Eubulides’s response and declared him the winner of the challenge. However, the other archers were bewildered and wondered why Eubulides’s answer was superior to theirs.

Antipater explained to his students, “Eubulides has truly grasped the essence of archery: hitting the center of the bullseye with precision. If the center of the bullseye is not what you are all observing, what chance do you have of hitting the bullseye? Knowing the ultimate goal and understanding what you must achieve is the first step. The rest of you missed the essence of this small test.”