_*Descriptive/Analytical Questions with Answers*_
*1.What were the questions that had occurred to the Tsar? Why did he need correct answers to those questions? What did he do when he was not satisfied with the answers of the learned men?*
Ans. In the story ‘Three Questions’, Leo Tolstoy unravels the basic crisis of human nature through three simple questions. The Tsar was eager to know the right time to start every work, which were the right people to listen to and what was the work that needed utmost attention.
The Tsar needed correct answers to these three questions so that he would never make any mistake in any decision that he undertook.
When the Tsar was not satisfied with the answers of the learned men, he decided to consult a hermit who lived in the woods and was well known for his wisdom.
*2. What answers did the learned men give to the three questions? How did the learned men answer to Tsar’s questions?*
_Ans. The first question asked by the Tsar was, what was the right time to start any work. Some learned men advised him to draw up in advance, a table of days, months and years and live strictly according to it. Others advised him to do the most needful work without wasting time. Some of the learned men advised him to consult a council of wise men in order to carry out his work at the right time. Others advised him to consult a magician because they have the power to ascertain things beforehand. When the Tsar asked who the most important people were, some answered that the Tsar’s councilors were the most important persons. Others mentioned the priests, some said doctors and others said warriors. The Tsar’s third question was what was the most important work that he should undertake. Some said science; some said ware fare skill and others said religious worship. The Tsar again got different answers, which confused him, all the more._
*3.Describe the meeting of the Tsar with the hermit.*
_Ans. Once, some questions occurred to the Tsar’s mind of which he needed answers to bring perfection in his work. He sought appropriate answers but found none. So the tsar decided to visit a wise hermit who he thought might be able to give him all his answers. The hermit lived in a wood and met none but common folks. So the Tsar left his bodyguards and horse behind and went on. When he approached the hermit, the hermit was digging the ground. The Tsar requested him to answer his questions while helping the hermit with his work. But the hermit did not answer any of his questions. Later, a bearded man came running to them. The man was severely wounded. The Tsar and the hermit tended the bearded man and saved his life. Again the Tsar asked the hermit to answer his questions to which the hermit replied that he had already been answered. The hermit explained that the right time to begin everything is the present. The right people whom one is at any particular time is the right people one should listen to and the most important thing to do is to do them good because that is why man has been sent to the earth for._
*4.” You do not know me, but I know you”- who said this to whom? What else did the speaker say? How did the other person react to these words?*
Ans. The wounded man said this to the Tsar.
The bearded man asked for the Tsar’s forgiveness. He revealed his identity saying that he was a sworn enemy of the Tsar because the Tsar had killed his only brother and seized his property. He also told the Tsar that he had planned to kill the Tsar in the wood but was attacked by The Tsar’s soldiers. On being saved by the Tsar, he promised to serve the Tsar as his most loyal slave and also assured the Tsar that he would tell his sons to do the same too.
The Tsar was delighted to have ended the enmity so easily, and to have found such a loyal friend for life. The Tsar forgave the wounded man and promised to return his property.
*5.Why do you think the Tsar forgave the bearded man instead of his attempt to kill the Tsar?*
_Ans. The Tsar appreciated the bearded man’s honesty. The bearded man told the truth to the Tsar and stated the reason of his hatred towards the Tsar. The bearded man was brave enough to accept the truth and this quality of the man impressed the Tsar. For this reason, the Tsar forgave the bearded man instead of his attempt to kill him. The bearded man wanted to serve the Tsar for the rest of his life. The Tsar offered him his friendship and promised to return his property._
*6.” You have already been answered”- who said this to whom? How had the person referred to been answered?*
Ans. The hermit said this to the Tsar in the story ‘Three Questions’.
The Tsar requested the hermit to answer his questions several times but the hermit did not answer. According to the hermit experience is the best teacher. So, the Tsar was answered by his own experience. The hermit told the Tsar that if the Tsar had not dug the seedbed for the hermit and instead gone his way then the bearded man would have killed him. So, when the Tsar was digging the ground was the most important time and for whom he was digging was the most important person at that point of time and digging the seedbed was the most important business then. The hermit also told the Tsar that later when he was attending the wounded man then that was the most important time, the wounded man was the most important person and tending the wounded man was the most important business. If the Tsar had not saved the life of the wounded man, then he would not have become friends with his former enemy. By giving these examples the hermit made the Tsar understand the purpose of life, which is to help others. He also explained that the most important time is the present and to wisely and humanly act in the present.
