The teacher's neighbor lost his sheep. To find him, the neighbor raised the entire community to its feet and asked the Teacher to give him students.
- Why do so many people search for one ram? - asked the Teacher.
“There are many forks in the road,” answered the neighbor.
— Have you found the ram? - asked the Teacher when they returned.
- No! Gone!
- Why did he disappear?
— After every fork in the road there are more forks. We don’t know which way the ram left, that’s why we returned.
Out of chagrin, the Teacher’s face changed and fell silent for a long time. He didn't smile once all day. Surprised, the disciples asked him:
- Why did you stop talking and smiling? After all, a ram is a cheap animal. Besides, he didn't belong to you.
The teacher did not answer anything, and they did not understand anything. One of the students told the judge about everything. The next day the judge came to the teacher with this student.
“I dare to ask you a question,” said the judge. - Which of the three brothers is right and which is wrong?
Once upon a time, three brothers studied with the same mentor. Having comprehended the doctrine of mercy and duty, they returned home. “What is the doctrine of mercy and duty?” - asked their father. The elder brother replied: “Charity and duty tell me to take care of myself, and then my glory.” The middle brother replied: “Charity and duty tell me to strive for glory without sparing myself.” And the younger brother said: “Charity and duty command me to preserve both life and glory.”
—Whose side is the truth on in the other story? - asked the Teacher. — The carrier, who lived on the river bank, got used to the water, he swam boldly and steered the boat. He earned so much at the crossing that he had enough to feed a hundred mouths. And so, taking provisions with them, they come to him to study. And almost half of the students drown. This is how much harm has been caused to many by something that has brought such benefit to one!
The judge stood up and left silently, and the student who brought him began to reproach him:
- Why did you ask such a far-from-topic question? The teacher answered so vaguely. As a result, I became even more confused.
- Alas! - said the judge. “You lived near the Preborn, practicing his teaching, and you understand him so poorly!” If the ram disappeared because there were many forks in the road, then philosophers lose their lives because science is multifaceted. This does not mean that the teaching is fundamentally different, that it has more than one root. But this shows how far its branches spread. In order not to perish and to find what was lost, a return to the common root is necessary, a return to unity is necessary.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru