There once was a man who had four sons. He was deprived of luck since all of them were blind. Because he was getting weaker, the old man thought of sending the children away, simply because he could not afford to feed them any longer. Accordingly, one night he called his four children together, and said, “You are big enough and are able to support yourselves. Tomorrow, I shall send you away to seek your fortunes.”
When morning came, the boys bade their father goodbye. Now begins the pathetic story of the four blind brothers.
They groped along the road, each holding the hand of the other. After a day of continuous walking, the four brothers were very far away from their town. They had not tasted food during all that time. In the evening they came to a coconut grove.
“Here are some coconut-trees,” said one of them. “Let us get a bunch of coconuts and have something to eat!”
So,, the eldest brother took off his shirt and climbed up one of the trees. When he reached the top, the coconut leaf he tried to cling on, broke. As a result, he lost grip and fell to the ground.
“Bung!” Down came the poor fellow. “One!” cried the youngest brother, thinking the bung was a falling coconut. “Three more!” shouted the rest.
“Don’t come down until you have dropped four!” they all cried at once. Who would answer them? Their eldest brother lay dead on the ground.
While they were waiting for the second “Bung!” the second brother ran out of patience and climbed up the same tree. What had happened to the first happened also to him, and so to the third in turn. As soon as the youngest brother heard the third fall, he thought of looking for his share. He crept about to find the coconuts. Alas! he discovered that his three brothers lay dead on the ground. He went away from the place crying very loud.
Now, his crying happened to disturb a family of duendes (family of dwarves) who were trying to sleep. They went out to see what was the matter. When they found the poor helpless blind man, they were very much moved, and they gave him food and shelter for the night. They also gave him the tail of a pagui (stingray), which would help him find his fortune, they said. At daybreak they showed him the way out of the grove.
The blind man walked on and on, until he was hailed by a lame man resting under a shady tree. “Friend, carry me on your shoulders, and let us travel together!” said the lame man to the blind. “I will be your eyes, and you will be my legs,” the lame man added.
“Willingly,” replied the blind man.
They travelled for many hours, and at last came to a big, luxurious mansion.
The mansion rises like a palace, its grand façade blending timeless classical columns with sleek modern glass walls that shimmer in the sunlight. A long, tree-lined driveway leads to a circular courtyard where a marble fountain sparkles at the center, surrounded by manicured gardens filled with exotic flowers and sculpted hedges. Inside, the mansion opens into a soaring foyer with polished marble floors and a sweeping staircase beneath a glittering crystal chandelier. Expansive living rooms are furnished with velvet sofas and floor-to-ceiling windows that frame views of the infinity pool and landscaped grounds.
They knocked and knocked at the open door, but nobody answered. The mansion was empty.
At last, they entered. While they were searching through the house, the owner came. He was a two-headed giant. The blind man and the lame man were upstairs.
The giant, sensing that something ill was afoot, was afraid to enter the house, but he called in a voice of thunder, “Who’s there?”
“We are big men,” answered the two companions.
“How big are you?” asked the giant.
“We are so big that the foundation of the house shakes when we walk,” the two replied.
“Give me a proof that you are really big men!” cried the giant again.
“We will show you one of our hairs,” they answered, and they dropped from the window the tail of the pagui (stingray)
The giant looked at it in wonder. He was immediately convinced that they were more powerful than he was. So, picking up the “hair,” the giant went away, afraid to face such antagonists in single combat.
So, the prediction of the dwarves came true. The house and all the property of the giant fell into the hands of the blind man and the lame. So, they spent the rest of their days in luxury and comfort.