“O teacher,” replied Jīvaka, “how could I, who was brought up in a royal family, help knowing that? The footprints of a male elephant are round, those of a female elephant are oblong.”
“How did you know that she was blind of the right eye?”
“Because she had eaten the grass which grew on the left side only.”
“How did you know that she is big with young?”
“Because she had pressed hard with her feet.”
“How did you know that she will give birth to a male foal?”
“Because she pressed hardest on the right side.”
“How did you know that a woman had been riding on the elephant?”
“From her track in the road when she alighted.”
“How did you know that she was blind of the right eye?”