Shan was accidentally injured by the king's arrow, but he didn't complain. He feebly told the king, "My parents are blind; they need me to take care of them. If I die, they will die too!"

Shan was a good young man. His parents were old and blind. To make their lives simpler and to find a suitable place for cultivating his spirituality, Shan built a thatched hut in the mountains and moved there with his parents. The three of them lived peacefully and happily together.

Every day Shan would bring home some fruit and vegetables for the family to eat. He would then fetch water from a nearby river that flowed incessantly and nurtured countless lives in the forest. One day, the young man again went to the river for water. He feasted his eyes on the luxuriant trees and the meadow nearby, breathed in the fresh air, and listened to the melodious chirping of birds. He was full of gratitude for what Mother Nature provided.

When he had filled his pitcher and stood up on the riverbank, an arrow suddenly shot through the air and penetrated his chest. Bewildered, he saw blood flowing from the wound. He cried out, "Who is killing three persons with one arrow?"

A group of people emerged from behind the bushes. As it turned out, the king, who was hunting with his retinue, had tried to shoot a deer. However, the arrow missed and hit Shan instead.

The chagrined king hurried to the young man's side and asked who he was.

Shan replied feebly, "I came to fetch water. My parents are blind and need me to take care of them. If I die, they will die too!"

Upon hearing this, the king felt great remorse. He promised he would take care of his wound and look after his parents. "Where do your parents live?" asked the king.

Shan told him that they lived in a thatched hut not far away. "Please tell my parents that it was an accident and that I won't be able to take care of them anymore..." Then he lost consciousness.

With a sorrowful heart, the king found the thatched hut. Before he opened the door, he could hear an old man shouting inside, "Are there people coming? It sounds like there are quite a few of them..."

The king discovered that despite being blind, the old couple had very good hearing and could move with great agility. He said, "I am the king and I've come to see you."

The old man said happily, "It is our great honor! Please come in! Please have some fruit that my son picked. He is out fetching water and will be back soon."

It was hard for the king to tell the couple about the tragic event. He slowly explained to them that he had been hunting and that he had accidentally injured their son with his arrow. "I'm afraid he is dying," said the king.

The king's statement broke the old couple's hearts. They begged the king to take them to their son. "Even if he's dead, we still want to touch his body."

The king then led them along the winding path to the riverbank. The old man touched his son's head while the old woman touched her son's feet. When their hands fell on the arrow, they lamented, "All you gods! Our son was kind and good to us... Why did you allow such misfortune to befall him? If you have any compassion, please bring him back to life." The old couple's words touched the gods in heaven. Shan gradually woke up and opened his eyes.

The king was taken aback by what was happening. He swore he would never go hunting again and ordered the people in his kingdom to be as good to their parents as Shan was.

　
......

Filial piety is the most important of all virtues and is the root of all good deeds. If we want to keep walking on the Path of the Bodhisattvas, we should strive to emulate this essential virtue. When we hear of good deeds that others have done, we should do our best to do likewise.