There once was a king who had five sons. Before his demise, he divided his kingdom into five equal parts, one for each soon to rule over. He hoped that this would avoid conflict over who would be king. And for the first five years, the plan worked.

But then one day, the eldest brother, Gerard, grew greedy. He was his fathers eldest son. Why could not he have possession over all the land? With that thought, he initiated war against his four brothers. Thus, the battle of five crowns began.

The war lasted for many years, and it caused great devastation to the people and the land. By the end of the war, although Gerard finally had all the land he wanted, there were very few residents to actually tend the land for him. But the land, ravaged by battles and blood, not lay unfurled, and it was almost impossible to grow anything at all. On top of all that, his brothers were also dead, and he was left alone to face the wounded world he controlled.

Moral: a clenched fist can cause you to lose more than having an open hand.