7 2 S p i r i t ua l i t y S t u d i e s 5 - 2 Fa l l 2 0 1 9 It was all as the white king had correctly predicted. He had started with the first move and, with his infinite wisdom, had always to win. The knight understood that whatever he did, he would always be faced with an inevitable loss from which there was no escape. Then it actually came. A white horse rushes to his left, a white bishop is pointing at him from the right, and a white king stands right in front of him: “Chess mat, my dear heavenly knight! You’ve lost the last chess field you can still stand on. Black King, you didn’t surrender in time, so prepare for death!” An unspeakable horror overwhelmed the knight, penetrating to the furthest depths of his being. This is really the end of all hope! Absolute end! Fully reconciled, he just expected when it would happen. Now, or now again… It doesn’t matter anymore. Moments passed… Suddenly he heard a mighty horn sound over the battlefield, announcing the end of the match. And it was only this single sound, vibrating in the entire kingdom of heaven that finally awakened him: “After all, it’s all different! I just dreamt the whole thing, absolutely everything. It was all only my dream about myself! Who would have thought this was possible? It’s just Astera, my beloved star – where is she, what is she doing now– she has known it for ages! She didn’t need to wake up anymore! It was only me who did not understand how deep and true this dream about oneself could be.” Those were his first thoughts when he rubbed his eyes. “Astera…” And he was extremely grateful to her for sending him to conquer the kingdom of heaven, though she knew in advance how much it would cost them both. Chapter Five And how did he get there? As he heard from heaven “Where are you?” he knelt and whispered “I don’t know…” And then he just listened to the echo vibrating in silence — “You are here,” “here,” “here”… “The kingdom of heaven,” he thought, “how could it be at any place?” He smiled at this idea. “But where did I actually wake up, then?” He felt around and found himself in some strange cave with rugged walls and a high ceiling he could not reach. As his eyes got used to the dark, he noticed a roughly carved bench standing at one wall, with a brown robe and knotted rope lying on it. “The hermit!” realized the knight, “I should thank him, too.” What would he do if I asked him, as he did last time, “Do you have anything else to give me?” The knight looked at the bench with the robe, and then looked at himself. He was quite naked! After all the disguises, there was nothing left on his body. And what beautiful and glorious costumes they were! He laughed frankly at this memory. Then he looked at the robes again and finally began to understand the hermit. He got up, put on hermit’s robes, and girded himself with his rope. “Thank you, dear hermit. You had something to give me because now I’m even poorer than you. But I don’t need to be a hermit anymore. It would be just another disguise.” He sat down on the bench and felt good and light again. Will this adventure ever end? Who knows! Where is Astera now? Who knows! Who is he himself and who will he be in a moment? Who knows! And where is he anyway? Who knows… As he sat in the poor hermit robe, he knelt in respect and merely listened to the vast silence that reigned in the cave. This silence continued to grow until a perfectly clear and distinct response emerged from it: “You’re here, you’ll always be here. You will always be where you are and who you are. Like me, I am the one who I am.” The knight bowed in silent approval. “You can travel on with the sun over your head, knight!” the cave echoed. The knight walked out of the cave and stared into the sunshine that spilled across the valley. The sun is here again! He was finally home. His horse stood nearby, nibbling on a fairly ordinary earthly bush, as if nothing had ever happened. It might seem that at this point the knight’s adventures will end, for nothing greater could be achieved, on earth or in heaven. But there is still an earthly life and a world waiting for the knight outside the cave.
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