The Swan and the Frog

What follows is a version of an old teaching story, passed down by Masters. It has relevance to our human journey, on many levels...

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful swan that flew from lake to lake, feeding upon pearls. One day this swan, weary from travel and in need of rest, landed on a well.

Now, a frog lived in the well; and upon hearing the sounds emanating from above, decided to ascend to see what was happening. He jumped up, onto the rim of the well, where he encountered the swan. The frog had never seen a swan before, and so he asked, “Who are you, and where do you come from?”

“I am a swan. I travel from lake to lake, feeding upon pearls,” said the swan.

The frog had never heard of a lake before, so he asked, “What is a lake?”

“A lake,” replied the swan, “is a large body of water.”

“Oh,” said the frog; but he didn’t really understand. After a moment, he decided to further pursue this idea of a lake, so that he might understand from whence the frog had come. He hopped a quarter of the way around the rim of the well, turned to the swan, and asked, “Is a lake this big?”

“Oh no,” said the swan. “A lake is much bigger.”

The frog then hopped half way around the rim of the well, and asked, “Is a lake this big?”

“No,” said the swan, “bigger still.”

The frog, still seeking to understand, then earnestly hopped all the way around the circumference of the well, stopped and looked at the swan. Finally, he asked, “Is a lake this big?”

“No,” replied the swan. “A lake is much bigger than that.”

Upon hearing this, the frog said, “You are a fool and a liar,” and he jumped back into the well, because he could not conceive of a world greater than his.


I’m wondering: What is your perception of your world, your existence, your life? The frog could not see beyond his little well-body. The swan knew that it was not confined or imprisoned by the well, knew its world to be expansive, and knew that it had a right to a greater experience. He lived that reality. The frog also lived his reality. Granted, there is a big difference between the ability of a swan and that of a frog, but perhaps the scope of the story is greater than mere physical ability. What do you see? Are you a frog, or a swan?