The Man in The Cave


Some say he was just a man. Some say he was more than that...a god...a shaman...a messenger from the stars...or even a child from the Earth itself. But whatever the case, this man found himself in a cave. And he found himself in the cave not as much by choice, as by circumstance.

For you see this man, simple as he was, and simple as wished to be a mere shepherd, sometimes farmer and occasional hunter...was forced to be a warrior. And that was the last thing he wanted to be, if he could help it at all.

For life was too precious and beautiful he thought, and to take it easily in the manner of killing his fellows felt to him backwards. It was hard enough he thought to kill his goats, even when he was most hungry.

But sometimes one is backed into a corner---as when corruption becomes so great it interferes with even the tiniest peace a man may ask or need, and the senseless slaughter begins to poison his fertile fields beyond repair, and the destruction of his children's playground becomes too much to bare---something has to give.

Such was the case with this man. So he had no choice but to fight back, somehow. But how? Could he be so clever as to win this war without shedding but tears? He really didn't know. So, into the cave he went. And there, much time he spent.

"A chicken pretending to be a bat, hey Doc?" laughed a new student, in a funny attempt to impress the class.

"Please don't interrupt me in the middle of a story," said Doc most seriously. "And don't be so quick to judge the courage of another, unless you care to share their unspeakable horror. For there are many ways a person's world may fall apart, troubles and losses which make the bravest men cower. And believe it or not---just as many of his fellows were, like you now, in doubt---this man's world was indeed falling apart. Now where was I? Ah yes, in the cave..."

Yes, it is true, the man spent a lot of time in the cave, some say it was 20 years, or even 2000 years and more. It could have been any number really, when in the reality of Eternity, two is as good as two million. And while he was there, dark as it was, he saw a lot, he saw a whole lot. Would you like to know what he saw first?

Well, the first thing he saw in the darkness of the cave was death. But wait a minute, maybe it was life he saw instead. It was hard to tell, because where he was, alone in the darkness with nothing around but himself, it didn't make much difference which was which. For even though nothing else for him really existed, he still felt himself. That's right! In the deepest part of his heart, he saw for a fact, he was still there!

And yet many things were still not clear for the man. So he stayed in the cave a little longer. Trying to find answers to all his worries and troubles and the problems of his world. And while he sat there, he saw much more. Do you want to know what he saw next?

He saw himself an onion, much like the onions growing in his fields---with a thin brown skin covering the outside, and underneath the skin, layer after layer after fleshy layer, until you get to the center, where just a tiny space of seemingly nothing exists. And almost immediately he could see the meaning, though it only provided a clue as to what he should do about all the problems which awaited him outside the cave.

So he stayed there a little longer, and he grew lonely, missing his friends outside, even the ones he rarely got along with. Even his worst enemies, he wondered what they were up to. But still he couldn't leave the cave, not just yet. For he couldn't come out with still so many questions and so much doubt.

As he stayed in the cave longer and longer, something strange happened. He began to hear voices. And he wasn't sure in the darkness if they were another's or if they were his. But he listened to them anyway to see what they had to say. Because he was after all, here to learn. So he listened and listened and listened. Do you want to know what he heard, and what he learned?

The first voice he heard said he was one of the greatest gods, for he was the god of Childhood. Why was he so great the man asked. And the god said, without him, all else forever grows old, nothing ever returns to its pristine condition and original state of innocence, where all is forgotten and all is forgiven. This is something we all need the god said, because, at one time and another on the edge of forever, we all need another chance to learn from our mistakes and begin again. Now, unlike so many other things he'd often heard in the cave, this voice made complete sense to the man. So he asked for the god's name. Do you want to know what the god said next?

He said the wise one's of the West call him Omega, while those of East India call him Purusha, the Chinese Taoist calls him Yang, and in Native America they call him Great Sky Father, or something similar, like Great Grandfather, still others call him the Dream of the Dreamweaver. The god said he goes by many names all over the world, but said to not get hung-up on that. Just remember, in the All that is Existence, he is half? I understand that too the man said, for I see the creation of all children needs father as well as mother. Can you tell me more, asked the man in the cave?

Again the man heard the voice, but now from a different place, somewhere inside its seems, in the deepest part of the man's heart, where he would never forget. For there in this deepest center of the man was Memory itself he carried, together with Love eternally married.

Now the man was feeling quite satisfied with all the answers he'd been given. And he was quite ready to leave the cave with his vision of the onion, for he sorely missed the Earth's surface and his loved one's above. But, curious as he always was, he had to ask one more thing. Do want to know what that was?

Well, I can't tell you. Because before the man could say another word, the voice said, Go now my son, leave this Earthen Womb of my Wife your Mother and do not forget her as you remember me. Go live honestly. And one more thing. Whenever you wish, take your troubles and plant that onion of yours at the foot of Bodhisativa.

So the man left the cave.

And as the man exited the cave he swore he heard an echo that said, As much as this existence is about oneness, about seeing infinite intricate connections, it is about separateness too, about recognizing and acknowledging boundaries in order for one to see one's place among the many. That is the Key to Harmony. Respect others, honor yourself.


Ding.