Subtitles section Play video Print subtitles What you're about to watch is an animated chapter from a book I'm working on called Sailing on the Seas. If you're looking for the central concept from this video, here it is: The Golden Judgment: Can I overcome the present obstacles, without creating a bigger one, for myself or others, in the future? The Golden Judgment is a concept that encourages me to consider the largest number of perspectives, across the longest possible time. But to really get the full power of the concept, we have to understand the stories and ideas surrounding it. Now that you know the central idea of this video, I hope that you can lower your guard, enjoy the journey towards it, and appreciate all the other ideas that come along with it. My boat sailed towards the end of the world while I slept. And by divine luck, or perhaps a divine curse, cold water splashed on my face. I awoke, for the first time, to thousands of lights fighting against an infinite darkness. The mighty jaws of darkness were not powerful enough to swallow even the smallest light without disintegrating. I grabbed the edge of my boat and got up, but my vision darkened. I grew dizzy and stumbled towards the mast, resting my body against it to prevent myself from falling. As I took a few deep breaths, my vision returned, and I looked out at the river ahead. The green, luminescent waters split into two directions. On the left, the river flowed gently. Lush sycamore trees adorned the riverbank, and a single vine with golden flowers grew across it. Off in the distance, I heard a chorus of angels humming a lullaby. But on the right, the river raged downwards into darkness. I grabbed my oars and desperately paddled towards the left, against the dominant current. I wanted to hear that sweet lullaby and return to sleep. But as I approached the gentle path, my oars caught the vine with the golden flowers. I inhaled deeply and pushed, but the vine stubbornly held on to the riverbank. I pushed and pushed, until finally, the vine snapped in half. I exhaled and continued paddling towards the music. But all of a sudden, the wind picked up and caught my sail. With enormous force, it blew me towards the dark path. I resisted. I paddled against it, but my lungs were no match for The Wind's. My boat descended into the darkness. I wrapped my arms and legs around the mast and closed my eyes. The wind howled past me as I fell further and further into blackness. The violent waters shook and twisted the boat, trying to knock me loose. And after minutes of falling, the boat abruptly hit a large body of icy water, drenching my clothes before levelling out. I opened my eyes and saw nothing but darkness above. The green river, however, still glowed beneath me. I thought I had entered a cave since I saw no lights above, but I couldn't have been sure. I got up and yelled out. “Hello!” No response. In fact, other than the gentle sloshing of waves, I heard nothing. It was dead silent. If I had entered a cave, it was a really large one. I sat back down and noticed a white light in the corner of the boat. I never saw that before, I thought. I crawled towards it. It was a book. I picked it up and analyzed the cover. A single word had been scrawled across it: Essays. I skimmed through the book and saw nothing but blank pages. How strange. But when I got to the first page, words started appearing, and I began to read them. I walk along an infinitely forking path. Each split represents a moment of decision, and each decision leads to an alternative version of myself. Well, who do I become, and how do I decide which path to take? I plan to retell and examine the story of three brothers who encounter a similar problem, and see if I can walk away with some insight. Once upon a time a King lived in a castle with his three sons. Each day he entered his garden, strolled to his favourite tree, and counted the number of golden apples it held. But one day he noticed an apple had disappeared, and to discover what had happened, he ordered his eldest son to watch the tree overnight. The eldest son sat under the tree and waited, but as the darkest hour approached, he fell asleep. The next morning the King counted the apples and discovered that another had disappeared. So he ordered his second eldest son to watch the tree overnight. The second son sat under the tree and waited, but as the darkest hour approached, he too fell asleep. The next morning the King counted the apples, and again, he found one missing. The youngest son begged the King for a turn to keep watch, and although the King thought him foolish and useless, he agreed. The youngest son sat under the tree and waited, and as the darkest hour approached, his eyelids grew heavy, but he refused to fall asleep. He heard fluttering in the distance, and in an instant, the whole sky turned orange, as if lit with the light of a thousand suns. The light emanated from a Golden Bird which flew towards the tree, perched upon a branch, and plucked an apple. The youngest son drew his bow, fired, and grazed the bird with his arrow. A single golden feather fell to the floor, and as he covered it with a cloth, the bird took flight, and the garden receded into darkness. The next morning the King held a meeting with his council. He unwrapped the cloth his son had gave him and revealed the golden feather. It illuminated the room, and the council proclaimed it was worth more than the entire kingdom. “Then a single feather won't do,” said the King. “I must have the whole bird.” The eldest son, believing himself to be quite clever, set out to find the Golden Bird. Shortly after leaving the castle, on a narrow dirt road, he encountered a Fox. He raised his bow, drew it back, and took aim. “Wait,” said the Fox. “If you do not shoot me, I can give you good advice. I know you're on the way to find the Golden Bird. Up ahead, you will come to a village with two inns. One inn will look more pleasing than the other, but you must not stay there. Stay at the less pleasant inn.” “What does an animal like you know,” said the eldest son. He fired an arrow at the Fox but missed, causing it to dash off into the woods. Eventually the eldest son arrived at the village and saw the two inns. At one of the inns, the people partied, danced, and drank. The other one looked rundown and not a single sound could be heard inside. Only a fool would stay at the less pleasant inn, he thought. And so he stayed at the good inn and partied, danced, and drank, and eventually, he forgot about his father and the Golden Bird. Months passed, and the eldest son never returned home. And so the second eldest son set out to find the Golden Bird. When the second son encountered the Fox and received the same good advice, he too ignored him. And so when he came to the two inns, like his brother, he chose to stay at the more pleasant one. Naturally, he forgot about his father and the Golden Bird. Months passed, and the second son never returned home. The youngest son begged his father to let him go, and although the King thought him foolish and useless, he agreed. And so the youngest son set out to find the Golden Bird. When the youngest son encountered the Fox and received the same good advice, he listened. “Don't worry,” he said. “I won't harm you.” “Thank you,” said the Fox. “Now sit on my back, and I will take you to the village.” The youngest son climbed on the Fox's back, and they raced off, the wind whistling past them. When they got to the village, the youngest son followed the Fox's advice and stayed at the less pleasant inn overnight. The next morning, after leaving the inn, he encountered the Fox again. The Fox nodded towards the path ahead. “Walk straight down this path until you come to a castle. There will be several guards outside, but don't worry: they will all be asleep. Enter the castle, walk past all the rooms, and find the chamber at the end of the hall. The Golden Bird waits there, inside of a wooden cage, but heed my warning: you will see a golden cage there too, but you must not touch it.” The youngest son followed the Fox's advice, walking straight past the sleeping guards and into the chamber at the end of the hall. He saw the Golden Bird inside of a wooden cage, the apples it had stolen, and the golden cage. What a beautiful creature, he thought. Way too beautiful for the wooden cage. Surely it deserves the golden one. The youngest son removed the bird from the wooden cage and housed it in the golden one, but as soon as he did, it began to squawk. The sleeping guards awoke, rushed into the chamber, seized him, and threw him into prison overnight. The next morning the youngest son met with the King in his court, where he was sentenced to death. “But I'll let you live on one condition,” said the King. “What is it?” “Go to the castle down the road and bring back the Golden Horse. If you do that, I will let you live, and I'll let you keep the Golden Bird too.” “Deal,” said the youngest son and set out on the road. On the way to the next castle, on a narrow dirt road, he encountered the Fox. “I told you not to touch the golden cage,” said the Fox. “But still, I will help you get the Golden Horse. Listen to me. Take this road to the next castle and look for the stable in the back. The groom will be sleeping in front of it. Inside the stable you will find the Golden Horse, but heed my warning: you will see a golden saddle there too, but you must not touch it.”