A
certain man believed that the ordinary waking life,as people know it, could not
possibly be complete.
He
sought the real teacher of the age. He read many books and joined many circles,
and he heard the words and witnessed the deeds of one master after another. He
carried out the commands and spiritual exercises which seemed to him the most
attractive.
He
became elated with some of his experiences. At other times he was confused, and
he had no idea at all of what his stage was, or where and when his search might
end.
This
man was reviewing his behaviour one day when he suddenly found himself near the
house of a certain sage of high reputation. In the garden of the house he encountered
Khidr, the secret guide who shows the way to truth.
Khidr
took him to a place where he saw people in great distress and woe, and he asked
who they were. `We are those who did not follow real teachings,who were not true
to our undertakings, who revered selfappointed teachers', they said.
Then
the man was taken by Khidr to a place where everyone was attractive and full of
joy. He asked who they were. `We are those who did not follow the real signs of
the way´, they said.
But
it you have ignored the signs, how can you be happy? , asked the traveler.
`Because
we chose happiness instead of truth', said the people,' just as those who chose
the self-appointed chose also misery' . `But is happiness not the ideal of man?',
asked the man.
`The
goal of man is truth.Truth is more than happiness. The man who has truth can have
whatever mood he wishes, or none', they told him.
`We
have pretended that truth is happiness, and happiness truth, and people have believed
us, therefore you, too, have until now imagined that happiness must be the same
as truth. But happiness makes you its prisoner, as does woe.
Then
the man found himself back in the garden, with Khidr beside him.
I
will grant you one desire' ,said Khidr.
`I
wish to know why I have failed in my search and how I can succeed in it', said
the man.
You have all but
wasted your life', said Khidr, because you have been a liar. Your lie has been
in seeking personal gratification when you could have been seeking truth.'
And
yet I came to the point where I found you', said the man,' and that is something
which happens to hardly anyone at all.'
`And
you met me', said Khidr, `because you had sufficient sincerity to desire truth
for its own sake, just for an instant. It was that sincerity, in that single instant,
which made me answer your call.'
Now
the man felt an overwhelming desire to find truth, even if he lost himself. You
may not follow me', said Khidr, ,because I am returning to the ordinary world,
the world of lies, for that is where I have to be, it I am to do my work.'
And
when the man looked around him again, he realized that he was no longer in the
garden of the sage, but standing in the land of truth.
-
Idries Shah-
