The Three Fish This is the story of the lake and the three big fish that were in it, one of them intelligent, another half-intelligent, and the third, stupid. Some fishermen came to the edge of the lake with their nets. The three fish saw them. The intelligent fish decided at once to leave, to make the long, difficult trip to the ocean. He thought, I wont consult with these two on this. They will only weaken my resolve, because they love this place so. They call it home. Their ignorance will keep them here. When youre traveling, ask a traveler for advice, not someone whose lameness keeps him in one place. Muhammad says, Love of ones country is part of the faith. But dont take that literally! Your real country is where youre heading, not where you are. Dont misread that hadith. In the ritual ablutions, according to tradition, theres a separate prayer for each body part. When you snuff water up your nose to cleanse it, beg for the scent of the spirit. The proper prayer is, Lord, wash me. My hand has washed this part of me, but my hand cant wash my spirit. I can wash this skin, but you must wash me. A certain man used to say the wrong prayer for the wrong hole. Hed say the nose-prayer when he splashed his behind. Can the odor of heaven come from our rumps? Dont be humble with fools. Dont take pride into the presence of a master. Its right to love your home place, but first ask, Where is that, really? The wise fish saw the men and their nets and said, Im leaving. Ali was told a secret doctrine by Muhammad and told not to tell it, so he whispered it down the mouth of a well. Sometimes theres no one to talk to You must just set out on your own. So the intelligent fish made its whole length a moving footprint and, like a deer the dogs chase, suffered greatly on its way, but finally made it to the edgeless safety of the sea. The half-intelligent fish thought, My guide has gone. I ought to have gone with him, but I didnt, and now Ive lost my chance to escape. I wish Id gone with him. Dont regret whats happened. If its in the past, let it go. Dont even remember it! A certain man caught a bird in a trap. The bird says, Sir, you have eaten many cows and sheep in your life, and youre still hungry. The little bit of meat on my bones wont satisfy you either. If you let me go, Ill give you three pieces of wisdom. One Ill say standing on your hand. One on your roof. And one Ill speak from the limb of that tree. The man was interested. He freed the bird and let it stand on his hand. Number One: Do not believe an absurdity, no matter who says it. The bird flew and lit on the mans roof. Number Two: Do not grieve over what is past. Its over. Never regret what has happened. By the way, the bird continued, in my body theres a huge pearl weighing as much as ten copper coins. It was meant to be the inheritance of you and your children, but now youve lost it. You could have owned the largest pearl in existence, but evidently it was not meant to be. The man started wailing like a woman in childbirth. The bird said: Didnt I just say, Dont grieve for whats in the past? And also: Dont believe an absurdity? My entire body doesnt weight as much as ten copper coins. How could I have a pearl that heavy inside me? The man came to his senses. All right. Tell me Number Three. Yes. Youve made such good use of the first two! Dont give advice to someone whos groggy and falling asleep. Dont throw seeds on the sand. Some torn places cannot be patched. Back to the second fish, the half-intelligent one. He mourns the absence of his guide for a while, and then thinks, What can I do to save myself form these men and their nets? Perhaps if pretend to be already dead! Ill belly up on the surface and float like weeds float, just giving myself totally to the water. To die before I die, as Muhammad said to. So he did that. He bobbed up and down, helpless, within arms reach of the fishermen. Look at this! The best and biggest fish is dead. One of the men lifted him by the tail, spat on him, and threw him up on the ground. He rolled over and over and slid secretly near the water, and then, back in. Meanwhile, the third fish, the dumb one, was agitatedly jumping about, trying to escape with his agility and cleverness. The net, of course, finally closed around him, and as he lay in the terrible frying-pan bed, he thought, If I get out of this, Ill never live again in the limits of a lake. Next time, the ocean! Ill make the infinite my home. ~ Jalaluddin Rumi (from The Essential Rumi, tr. by Coleman Barks)
Posted on: Mon, 21 Apr 2014 07:54:45 +0000
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