Once upon a time, an old man was lying on his bed in his house. He was on the verge of death and though he had taught his sons about various things, he still had one more thing to teach them about. So, mustering all his strength, he called upon his sons. At once his three sons came to his bed from various places in the house. The father said that he had called them in order to teach something important. The sons looked on in anticipation to see what the lesson was going to be about.
The father then pointed to a bundle of 3 sticks that was below his bed. He told the sons to take the bundle and break it. So, the 3 sons took turns to break the bundle. They tried breaking the bundle by hitting it against their thigh. They tried to snap it with their hands. They even tried to break it using some martial arts methods. But they were unsuccessful with whatever method they tried. The father then took the bundle and untied it. The 3 sticks fell to the ground.
The father now told the sons to each pick up a stick and break it. Before they knew it, all 3 had snapped their sticks cleanly with ease and the father smiled. He said that the 3 sticks represented his 3 children and said that when they were united, they would be very strong and nothing could bring them apart. But if they were to be away from each other and do things independently, they would be weak and could be defeated easily just like how the individual sticks were broken. The 3 sons made it a point to remember the advice given to them by their father. After the father passed away, they always remained united and hence all 3 of them lived happily ever after.
Moral - Unity is strength.