King Alexander, or more commonly known as King Alexander the Great, wanted to conquer the entire world. Alexander once learned that far beyond the mountains of darkness and the sky of the shadow of death there is a land with a kind of living water from which the drinker will never die, but no one can reach that land because the road to it is a dark rough road that winds between high mountains and is full of dangers – venomous snakes and scorpions and other kinds of pests. When Alexander heard of this, he did not hold back and did not control his passions; He decided to try to reach that land, conquer it and drink from the living water that flows from the Spring. The king summoned all his advisors and began to plan the journey with them. Many of his advisers opposed his plan but did not dare to express their opinions out loud. The king was the final arbiter of all decisions, and anyone who dared to disobey or express an opinion contrary to the king's opinion would be held accountable at his head.
Alexander decided that only strong and young men of valor who were not more than forty years of age would go on this journey; People whose strength is in their waists and will be able to withstand the hardships of the road. Among Alexander's advisors was an old man of great experience, who knew all the upheavals of the world and accompanied the king in all his wars. Alexander did not intend to take this advisor with him on the journey because of his advanced age, and instead he decided to take with him the son of the advisor, who was also a sensible man with considerable knowledge, well versed in royal affairs and the tactics of war. Since the young counselor had not yet experienced such a journey, he turned to his old father and asked for his advice. The old man begged him to take him on the journey with him." I am sorry, my father, I cannot take you with me," the young man said to him, "I am presumed to be the king's commandment that only the youngest men of forty years and under should go on this journey, and that the king's disobedience should die in one way!" But his father, who knew the purpose of the journey and the dangers that lurked along the way, did not agree to give up." "My son," he told him, "if I can't travel openly, take me with you in secret. Prepare a well-ventilated padded box and sit me down in it, and load the box on a horse and attach it to the group of horses carrying fragile and delicate things for the needs of the king and the heads of the army, and whenever you encounter difficulties and need to talk, ride with your horse next to the horse leading me, and thus you can talk to me without anyone noticing anything." The son agreed to his father's advice and then continued to consult with him regarding the tools necessary for such a journey. The old man asked him what things he intended to take, and the son counted all the things in his ears. It is not enough, my son," the old man warned him, "for such a long and tiring journey through the mountains of darkness on winding and winding roads, you need other things that you would not need on a normal journey. My advice to you is to take with you a large stock of wax candles and many bundles of felt (raw wool that takes the form of a carpet by beating and pressing) as well as a large stock of mirrors that will provide for all the participants in the journey.
Many days passed, and the days joined into months, and one clear morning they reached the mouth of the mountains of darkness. As they progressed along the road, it became darker and darker, until a moment came when no one saw his friend walking near him. The paths were narrow and winding, and the soldiers were terribly afraid. They began to scream and shout, and their cry reached the ears of King Alexander and his advisors. Alexander turned to the young counselor and asked him for advice. The counselor hurried and led his horse next to the horse that was carrying his father, brought his head close to the ark and asked for his father's advice. The father whispered to him from the ark: "My son, do you remember the stock of candles that I advised you to take with you on the journey? I thought about this place and this moment when I was advising you on this. Now it's time to make use of them."
The son unpacked the stockpile of candles and distributed them among the soldiers. The soldiers lit the candles, and the terror of darkness was removed from them, and they passed through the mountains of darkness in peace. But they are still happy that they have succeeded in overcoming the first obstacle and that they are already facing a new obstacle. The horses stood as if nailed to their place without being able to move a foot. It was as if their feet were sticking to the desert stones. King Alexander rode to the head of the caravan to see what had happened, and behold, his own horse got stuck as well. The horse makes an effort, tries to lift a leg and move forward, but is unable to get out of place. Alexander was amazed at the sight and did not know what to do. The king sent to summon the counselor, perhaps he had something to advise, and the counselor hurried to his father in the ark and asked for his help. His father asked him: "Tell me, my son, are your shoes forged?" The son did as he said and immediately felt that without shoes it was easier to walk. The son returned to his father and told him about it. His father said to him: "Know, my son, that the rocks of the desert you have reached are endowed with magnetic power, and they charm the horses' hooves and nails made of iron, making it difficult for them to move. Take the stock of felt that I have advised you to bring with you, and wrap the horses' feet in pieces of felt, so that their hooves will not touch the ground and will not be tied to it." The son did as his father advised, and this is how they overcame this obstacle as well.
But it wasn't long before a new trouble befell them, a trouble that horrified the soldiers and endangered their lives, and no one knew how to get out of it: countless snakes crawled around them, and these snakes had a virtue that everyone who looked at them began to smile and laugh and could not restrain himself and stop until he burst out laughing and died. Many soldiers had already been hurt and died, and the king was at a loss, and worse, even his loyal advisor had no solution. The counselor did indeed want to approach his father and ask for his advice, but the king rode next to him and he did not dare to go to the ark in which his father was for fear that the king would notice him. He waited for the right moment and finally had no choice but to turn to the king and ask him to leave him alone, perhaps he would be able to strain his mind and find a solution.
Suddenly the king saw his advisor bow his head over a large box tied to the back of a horse and mumble something. The king approached the counselor, without him noticing, and listened to the voice emanating from the ark, and the voice sounded very familiar to him. In the end, Alexander could not resist any longer. He approached the counselor, patted him on the back, and demanded that he tell him the nature of the box he was carrying." "My lord the king," said the counselor, "I confess my sins this day: Inside the ark is my old father, and without his counsel we would not have succeeded To come this far, for He is the One who guided me in His wisdom and found a way to overcome all the difficulties we have encountered to this day, and if I have sinned before You by violating Your command, do to me as You see fit." You behaved properly," the king said to him, "and I forgive you for your actions!"
The king ordered his companions to take the old man out of the ark and give him the respect he deserved, and then he turned to him and asked if he had any advice for the trouble of the snakes." I've already thought about it," he replied The advisor and I have a solution: Take out the stock of mirrors that you brought with you and distribute them among the soldiers, and every soldier who encounters the snake will present the mirror in front of him." The soldiers acted according to his advice, and indeed the snakes, when they saw themselves in the mirror, were attacked by a binge of laughter that they could not stop, and they fell to the ground dead.
When they were out of danger, they continued on their way, and behold, a large city built for glory was revealed to them. Alexander had already sought to declare war on the people of the city and occupy it, but before that he had asked for the advice of the old counselor." "You will not be glorified on this path," the advisor told him, "I have heard that in this city there are almost no men and women who control the city and manage its affairs. If you defeat them, they will despise you and say: Alexander the great hero went to fight the women! And if they have the upper hand, they will mock you and say: The illustrious Alexander the Conqueror is defeated by women! You'd better uproot the idea of war from your heart." Alexander listened to his advice and sent messengers of peace to the city. The governor of the city went out to meet him and invited him to dine at her table, and Alexander accepted her invitation. They sat Alexander and his ministers at the table of honor and served them bread and fruit made of gold in golden plates. "Do you eat gold in your city"? "No," replied the governor, "I only thought that you lusted for gold, for you must have ordinary bread in your country, and if not gold, why should you have to go all the way here?" The words were taken from Alexander's mouth, and Bush confessed to her that he was looking for the fountain of the water of life, so he said to her: "I did not want gold. In other food my soul desires: I want to look at the order of your life and taste your wisdom." "Then the queen said to him, "sit next to me and see how I judge my subjects."
Two men came to argue before the Queen. One said, "Madam, this man sold me a plot of land. When I dug into it, I found a treasure in it. I bought only the field from him and the treasure is not mine. I wanted to return the treasure to him, but he refuses to accept
