Grandfather Mystery Owl was sitting by Lake Tooba when a raven flew by to rest on a branch of a tree about one meter away to the east. Wolf Lynx rattled his bag answering to the raven’s screeching call. Grandfather Mystery Owl immediately stopped the ignorant teenager from making another noise. Wolf Lynx was alarmed by his overreaction.
“But you taught me to do it. You said that this is the way to answer to the raven.”
“Ssshhss…Be quiet.”
Disgruntled, Wolf Lynx lay down on the warm blanket and closed his eyes listening to the haunting voice of the huge black bird. Before too long he was dosing off under the late afternoon sun. Although he slept on the same spot for umpteen times, he felt that something was different this time. The wind was lighter and the ground seemed harder. At the verge of falling asleep but still staying awake, a blue circle was slowly forming in his mind and not of his own calling. There seems to be an invisible brush painting the circle with graceful force. Nevertheless the circle was not complete and no matter how hard he tried to imagine closing the gap, it was not possible. After trying a few times, he gave up and decided to take a nap. But the blue circle continued to disturb him and it wouldn’t go away.
Wolf Lynx rolled himself out of the blanket and sat up looking at Grandfather Mystery Owl smiling at him. He knew this smile. It is the smile of “I know more than you and you are now trapped in some cosmic lessons.”
“Make this blue circle go away.” Wolf Lynx demanded.
“Well, Wolf Lynx, you created it so he is yours to keep.” Grandfather Mystery Owl replied with an air of delight. Wolf Lynx was getting more infuriated and he clenched his fists slightly when retorting against this gentle and wise old man.
“I didn’t create this damn circle and please stop keeping secrets from me so to appear all knowing. It is not funny.”
“Watch that temper and pride of yours, son. You are on the path of a warrior. A decrease of energy in either body is not a pretty sight. Now about this blue circle of yours, tell me more about it.”
“I don’t know what it is. I was falling asleep listening to that bird.” Wolf Lynx pointed directly at the raven that has now gone out of sight. He looked at the space where it used to be and sensed a strong thug in his stomach as if someone pumped air into it.
“That bird is your messenger. He was here to give you a message. And until you get its significance your blue circle remains.”
Wolf Lynx rubbed his eyes and squeezed them so tight that both eyelids disappeared under the pressure. He quickly opened them praying that the incomplete blue circle would have disappeared. To his disappointment and repulsion, it was still there as bright as daylight. He ran to the lake and frenetically washed his face but the circle stuck like glue. Annoyed, he jumped into the lake and submerged under water for two minutes only to realize that wherever he looked the incomplete blue circle danced before him.
“What kind of joke is this?” He shouted. Grandfather Mystery Owl lit his pipe and inhaled what he termed to be tobacco from heaven forming circular smoke rings all around him.
The very unhappy young man crawled out of the lake and dragged himself over to Grandfather Mystery Owl.
“Sit, son.”
Wolf Lynx plunked his drenched and scrawny body on the ground. “Tell me what you feel about this circle.” Grandfather Mystery Owl asked as he passed Wolf Lynx the pipe.
“It is irritating, distracting and ugly!”
“Ugly?”
“Yes. The circle is faulty. It is not full. What kind of drawing is that?” He took in a puff and choked on it. Grandfather Mystery Owl chuckled so hard that Wolf Lynx immediately threw the pipe back to him.
“The circle is not faulty.” He said as he gathered his breath. “Your mind is. It is full of ideas, of how things should be and of what is perfect and what is not. You read too many fashion magazines.”
“But the circle is not right. There is this gap that cannot be closed. So, it is wrong!”
“The gap cannot be closed?”
“No! It is just there. No matter how hard I tried, it just wouldn’t. You tell me that there is nothing wrong with it?”
Again, Grandfather Mystery Owl laughed so loud that Wolf Lynx felt like running away from this rude and inconsiderate man.
“My dear boy! Don’t you see what the message is?”
Wolf Lynx thought for awhile and he had no clue as to what message the old teacher was referring to. He was embarrassed that Grandfather Mystery Owl was giggling like a child over this matter. He placed his head in between his knees and stared at the circle. He didn’t try to get rid of it or fill in the gap. He merely looked at it with all his heart and soul and asked, “What is your message for me?”
The incomplete blue circle began to flutter and gradually became more transparent. Its opacity diminished and finally the entire visual disappeared. Wolf Lynx wiped his eyes with glee and disbelief.
“It is gone! The circle is gone!” He exclaimed.
Grandfather Mystery Owl’s looked at Wolf Lynx and his eyes twinkled with ageless wisdom. The laughing-child was gone. “Now you get the lesson.” He said. “It is when you stop measuring everything based on what you think is right that you can accept a thing for what it is. You don’t fight everything that crosses your path and twitches your little ego. The incomplete blue circle would have vanished on its own accord if you didn’t insist that there shouldn’t be a gap. Your mind was holding on to it and you reacted emotionally to it by getting all crazy. Notice that everything centered on you, you and only you? That the world was out to get you by sending you an imperfect circle? You created this little molds in your mind that a square must be like this or a doctor must be like this and that or a sweeper is not this and that. So many categories! Your mind is so full of rubbish that when an incomplete circle appears before you, your immediate reaction was to make it whole. What nonsense! You are on auto-mode all the time. But at least you are awakening bit by bit, son.”
Grandfather Mystery Owl gathered his pipe and removed himself from the lake. Their walk back to the village was soaked in silence. He was aware that young Wolf Lynx was trying to comprehend his lesson and that his bombastic ego has been deflated by a mere stroke of a brush. How easy and hard can the mind be known and tamed! And so it is.
Blessings on our journey. Aho!
“But you taught me to do it. You said that this is the way to answer to the raven.”
“Ssshhss…Be quiet.”
Disgruntled, Wolf Lynx lay down on the warm blanket and closed his eyes listening to the haunting voice of the huge black bird. Before too long he was dosing off under the late afternoon sun. Although he slept on the same spot for umpteen times, he felt that something was different this time. The wind was lighter and the ground seemed harder. At the verge of falling asleep but still staying awake, a blue circle was slowly forming in his mind and not of his own calling. There seems to be an invisible brush painting the circle with graceful force. Nevertheless the circle was not complete and no matter how hard he tried to imagine closing the gap, it was not possible. After trying a few times, he gave up and decided to take a nap. But the blue circle continued to disturb him and it wouldn’t go away.
Wolf Lynx rolled himself out of the blanket and sat up looking at Grandfather Mystery Owl smiling at him. He knew this smile. It is the smile of “I know more than you and you are now trapped in some cosmic lessons.”
“Make this blue circle go away.” Wolf Lynx demanded.
“Well, Wolf Lynx, you created it so he is yours to keep.” Grandfather Mystery Owl replied with an air of delight. Wolf Lynx was getting more infuriated and he clenched his fists slightly when retorting against this gentle and wise old man.
“I didn’t create this damn circle and please stop keeping secrets from me so to appear all knowing. It is not funny.”
“Watch that temper and pride of yours, son. You are on the path of a warrior. A decrease of energy in either body is not a pretty sight. Now about this blue circle of yours, tell me more about it.”
“I don’t know what it is. I was falling asleep listening to that bird.” Wolf Lynx pointed directly at the raven that has now gone out of sight. He looked at the space where it used to be and sensed a strong thug in his stomach as if someone pumped air into it.
“That bird is your messenger. He was here to give you a message. And until you get its significance your blue circle remains.”
Wolf Lynx rubbed his eyes and squeezed them so tight that both eyelids disappeared under the pressure. He quickly opened them praying that the incomplete blue circle would have disappeared. To his disappointment and repulsion, it was still there as bright as daylight. He ran to the lake and frenetically washed his face but the circle stuck like glue. Annoyed, he jumped into the lake and submerged under water for two minutes only to realize that wherever he looked the incomplete blue circle danced before him.
“What kind of joke is this?” He shouted. Grandfather Mystery Owl lit his pipe and inhaled what he termed to be tobacco from heaven forming circular smoke rings all around him.
The very unhappy young man crawled out of the lake and dragged himself over to Grandfather Mystery Owl.
“Sit, son.”
Wolf Lynx plunked his drenched and scrawny body on the ground. “Tell me what you feel about this circle.” Grandfather Mystery Owl asked as he passed Wolf Lynx the pipe.
“It is irritating, distracting and ugly!”
“Ugly?”
“Yes. The circle is faulty. It is not full. What kind of drawing is that?” He took in a puff and choked on it. Grandfather Mystery Owl chuckled so hard that Wolf Lynx immediately threw the pipe back to him.
“The circle is not faulty.” He said as he gathered his breath. “Your mind is. It is full of ideas, of how things should be and of what is perfect and what is not. You read too many fashion magazines.”
“But the circle is not right. There is this gap that cannot be closed. So, it is wrong!”
“The gap cannot be closed?”
“No! It is just there. No matter how hard I tried, it just wouldn’t. You tell me that there is nothing wrong with it?”
Again, Grandfather Mystery Owl laughed so loud that Wolf Lynx felt like running away from this rude and inconsiderate man.
“My dear boy! Don’t you see what the message is?”
Wolf Lynx thought for awhile and he had no clue as to what message the old teacher was referring to. He was embarrassed that Grandfather Mystery Owl was giggling like a child over this matter. He placed his head in between his knees and stared at the circle. He didn’t try to get rid of it or fill in the gap. He merely looked at it with all his heart and soul and asked, “What is your message for me?”
The incomplete blue circle began to flutter and gradually became more transparent. Its opacity diminished and finally the entire visual disappeared. Wolf Lynx wiped his eyes with glee and disbelief.
“It is gone! The circle is gone!” He exclaimed.
Grandfather Mystery Owl’s looked at Wolf Lynx and his eyes twinkled with ageless wisdom. The laughing-child was gone. “Now you get the lesson.” He said. “It is when you stop measuring everything based on what you think is right that you can accept a thing for what it is. You don’t fight everything that crosses your path and twitches your little ego. The incomplete blue circle would have vanished on its own accord if you didn’t insist that there shouldn’t be a gap. Your mind was holding on to it and you reacted emotionally to it by getting all crazy. Notice that everything centered on you, you and only you? That the world was out to get you by sending you an imperfect circle? You created this little molds in your mind that a square must be like this or a doctor must be like this and that or a sweeper is not this and that. So many categories! Your mind is so full of rubbish that when an incomplete circle appears before you, your immediate reaction was to make it whole. What nonsense! You are on auto-mode all the time. But at least you are awakening bit by bit, son.”
Grandfather Mystery Owl gathered his pipe and removed himself from the lake. Their walk back to the village was soaked in silence. He was aware that young Wolf Lynx was trying to comprehend his lesson and that his bombastic ego has been deflated by a mere stroke of a brush. How easy and hard can the mind be known and tamed! And so it is.
Blessings on our journey. Aho!
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