One day, surprised by a torrentuous rain, a wandering sage took cover in a cave. There he was surprised by another surprise — a calmly sitting mystic immersed in a blissful state. Upon noticing the sage’s presence, the mystic welcomed him.
“Hello there traveler. Welcome to my humble dwelling.”
“This is your home?” asked the sage in response.
“Indeed, it is, and may I add, I am a master of this cave. No corner no matter how dark it seems frightens me as my eye illuminates them all.”
“Good for you,” replied the sage. “If you don’t mind I’ll just stay until the rain ceases and then I’ll be on my way.”
The mystic looked upon the sage, who looked a little ruffled, with limitless compassion, and assured him that he can stay for as long as he likes.
After a short period of silence, the mystic picks the conversation back up. “May I ask where you are coming from and where you are going to?”
“I come from the north and go to the south,” replied the sage passively.
“So, you are without a specific destination?”
“I guess so.”
“Are you perhaps lost my dear traveler?”
“That much is certain.”
After inspecting the sage from top to bottom and back up to the top again, the mystic continued his questioning.
“Is that sense of lostness not a horrible affliction to you? I can see you are without passion or pain as if numb to the dance of life.”
The sage inhaled deeply and exhaled in a long sigh.
“Listen, you seem to be a nice fellow but I’m in no mood for being probed by your pointy mind nor do I have any need or use for life advice.”
“But don’t you want to be happy?” replied the mystic baffled.
“What would I do with such a thing?” countered the sage.
“It’s nothing you can do something with. It is apparent when you rid yourself of all the negative moods and impulses; it is your true nature.”
The sage remained silent for a minute before replying, “What about ridding yourself of all the positive?”
“What do you mean?” asked the mystic, now not only baffled but puzzled as well. “Why would anyone want to be free from the positive?”
“How can anyone be free from the negative without also being free from the positive?”
Without missing a beat, the mystic replied, “You are going about this too logically my dearest wanderer. It is not something you can understand with the limitedness of your mind. Positive is just a word; the experience is real.”
“I think there is something you don’t understand my dearest cave dweller. You have become the master of this world, and I commend you for the journey you have taken — not many do — but here you are talking to me about the sun while you dwell in a cave. There is none more powerful in this world than you, I agree, but the world is what I have shunned. What for and why, I do not know. It must have been a fire that was getting uncomfortably close. But by shunning the world, I have shunned myself and thus became the barren wasteland itself, which I now wander until I find my way back to the mountain.”
With a smile on his face and love in his heart, the mystic replied, “Perhaps I can help you find your mountain?”
As he said that, the rain audibly stopped and a single shy ray of sunshine entered the dark cave.
“I appreciate your kindness and generosity but I’ll be on my way now which I must walk alone.”
Thus the sage left the cave towards the warm rays of the sun, knowing he’ll never return to this cave.
Luka
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That took a rough twist haha. Great story!
Thank you, Robert!
I tend to like happier endings. But with this story, left open-ended, I imagine the sage will see life differently as he continues his journey, thanks to the experience of having met the mystic. So yes, closer to the happiness he is so actively trying to evade. Great story!
Excellent blog here! Also your website loads up very fast! What web host are you using? Can I get your affiliate link to your host? I wish my web site loaded up as quickly as yours lol