Many of you may have heard the story of the man who approached a fisherman and begged a fish. The old man said to this beggar, "Instead of giving you a fish and feeding you for one meal, I would be willing to teach you how to fish and therefore, allowing you to feed yourself for life." Share with me this "Truth" as Kirael calls it, in how this old fable really took place.
Kirael: Along a great river a huge tree had fallen into the rushing waters. So large was this tree that a man could easily walk onto it and fish for his meal. It came to pass that one day a great sage had chosen this space to collect his ration of food for the day.
After a long period of time, he finally caught a fair sized fish and placed it carefully on the log beside him. A passing man, his wife and two children saw this and the man approached him, asking for the fish to feed his hungry family. The old sage happily offered to teach the man how to catch his own fish, but was quickly rebuked. For the young man informed the sage that he was not interested in learning a craft, but he simply wanted to eat.
The old sage stood fast in his resolution and sent the man on his way. He soon after caught another mid-sized fish. The young man hurried back onto the log and again asked the sage to relinquish just one of the fish, for now the sage had more than enough.
The old man, now perplexed, began to wonder if it would not make sense to give this young man a fish, for, in fact, he did have more than enough. As he contemplated this dilemma, a great light appeared at the end of the fallen tree.
The light spoke to him in such calm and beauty, that the older man was immediately convinced, that he was in the presence of a great and wondrous teacher, who had come to share a gift for all humankind.
The light spoke, "Old sage, allow me to express a thought, that if followed, will change your life for all time to come. First, take from your pocket the sharpening file you carry with you, and as we speak, sharpen the hook you have tied to your line. Sharpen this hook like no other in the world. Make it so sharp that when the fish takes it into its mouth it will feel no pain. Then when you are ready, pray with me the following. 'I call on the Creator to help me search out the oldest fish in the river that is ready to leave this dimension, and guide it to my line. For I have sharpened my hook so well, that it will feel no pain, and together we will fulfill our journey.' With this, the sage cast his newly sharpened hook into the water and within seconds he pulled unto the log a great fish.
Before he could begin to celebrate, the light spoke again. 'If one were to look on the shore, he might find string of lighter weight. Thereby, allowing the sharpened hook to fly further into the depths of the water, allowing for greater chance for an older and larger fish to cooperate in this journey. Following this advice, the old sage was again rewarded by the landing of a fish of such size, he had never seen. Thinking this was as good as it might get, the sage was again brought to focus by this great light. And this time, it was suggested that each time he threw his line into the water, as he released the line, he let his wrist extend to the fullest, thereby, allowing the flow of the hook to reach dominion never reached before.
Soon, the accumulation of fish was so vast that even the sage had become proud. He again, became aware of the young man, thinking that surely he would be begging for food again. However, as he focused his attention on him, to his surprise, the young man was now skillfully sharpening his own hook.
The moral, my friends, is do not try to teach another man something he must know on some level. Instead, go about sharpening your own hook. For perfecting the art you know, will enhance humankind. Become so clear on your journey, that as opposed to being the teacher, you remain the consummate learner. For in so doing, all those around you, will want to share this learning and will watch as you perfect this journey you call "life".
Concentrate solely on sharpening your own hook so well, that those needing light on their path, will enter your light, in that they may follow a leader, as opposed to one who speaks with a loud voice and little knowledge.
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