Ascetic
A boy once approached his father, ‘Old man,
why do you fast?’ The father stood silent, bringing heart and mind
together, and then:‘Beloved boy,
I fast to know what it is I lack.For
day by day I sit in abundance, and all
is well before me; I want not, I
suffer not, and I lack but that for
which I invent a need.But my heart is
empty of true joy, filled, yet
overflowing with dry waters.There is
no room left for love.I have no needs,
and so my needs are never met, no
longings, and so my desires are never
fulfilled.Where all the fruits of the
earth could dwell, I have filled the
house with dust and clouds; It is
full, so I am content— But it is
empty, and so I weep.
‘Thus I fast, beloved, to know
the dust in which I
dwell.I take not from that which I
might take,for in its absence I am
left empty, and what is empty stands
ready to
be filled.I
turn from what I love, for my love is
barren, and by it I curse the
earth.I turn from what I love, that I
may purify my loving, and move from
curse to blessing.
‘From my abundance I turn to
want,as the soldier leaves the comfort
of home, of family and
love, to know the barrenness of
war.For it is only amongst the fight,
in the torture of loss, in the fire of
battle,that lies are lost and the
blind man clearly
sees.In hunger of body and mind, I
seethe vanity of
food, for I have loved food as
food, and have never been
fed.In weary, waking vigil I
seethe vanity of
sleep, for I have embraced sleep as
desire, and have never found
rest.In sorrow, with eyes of tears I
seethe vanity of
pleasure, for I have treasured
happiness above all, and have never
known joy.
‘I fast, beloved child, to crush
the wall that is my
self;For I am not who I am, just as
these passions are not treasures of
gold but of clay.I fast to die, for it
is not the living who are raised, but
the dead.I fast to crucify my desires,
for He who was crucified was He who
lived, and He who
conquered, and He who lives
forever.’Read the whole thing at Monachos.net.
Posted: Monday - February 25, 2008 at 11:40 AM
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Published On: Mar 11, 2009 11:48 AM
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