2.

Four days into the journey, the boy could see the approaching mountain range. His heart leaped in excitement and anxiety. After a few more hours of walking, he reached the foot of the closest mountain at the edge of the forest, and sat down near a stream. He decided to rest there and continue the next day. As he was gazing at the stars above, lying near a tree, he began to doze off.

The sun woke him up the next day. He kept lying down, observing the moving clouds. It was fascinating how the clouds would block the sun for brief moments of coolness and then pass on, revealing it in all its glory again. It felt like the world kept alternating between two colors.

He heard humming sounds from inside the forest. Upon paying more attention, he realized that someone was singing. He got up and decided to check it out. Maybe someone could advise him about the best path to take for entering the mountains. He followed the sound and found an old man sitting under a tree. The man paused for a second to look at the boy, then closed his eyes again and continued singing. The song sounded very strange and the boy did not understand any of the lyrics but it felt like it fit well in the atmosphere surrounding them. He sat down a few feet away from him and waited for him to be done. The tree that the man rested his back against had a much thicker trunk than the ones around it. The area of the trunk where his back touched was slightly curved in as if it was a seat made just for him.

After what felt like an eternity but were in reality only a few minutes, the man stopped singing. He opened his eyes and started looking at the boy, as if waiting for him to speak.

“I’m sorry to disturb you. I want to enter the mountain range and travel towards the highest point reachable in a few days. Can you point me towards the best route I can take?”

“Apology accepted child.” The boy waited for him to finish his answer but he didn’t say anything after that.

“Do you know which path I should take for entering the mountains?

“Yes, I do.”

“Can you please tell me?”

“Why do you want to go into the mountains?” It was such a simple question but it felt extremely personal to the boy. He decided to lie.

“I’m going into the mountains to pray.”

“Don’t lie, child. Lies will make your present burdens even heavier.”

“I’m just searching for some alone time, sir. If you do not wish to tell me, I’ll do what I can on my own.” He got up to leave.

“You’re not ready to go into the mountains yet. Whatever problem you have right now, you should solve it on flat land. There will be a time when you will be ready for such a journey but now is not that time.” The boy was confused. How could the man possibly know what he was going through?

“With all due respect, mister, I think I will decide that on my own.” As he was starting to walk away he stopped to when the man made him an offer.

“Let’s make a deal. Tell me your problem and let’s talk about it. If after an hour, you still feel like climbing mountains, I’ll tell you the best routes. I’ll even help you draw out maps that will save you many days in your trip.” The boy could not refuse this offer and he sat down again.

He explained his problems to the man and told him how he thought the journey ahead would help him. The man listened to him with a level of undivided attention that confused the boy. Why did he care? He stroked his beard throughout the explanation and changed his facial expressions with each high and low in the story. The old man was a good listener.

“So, there you have it. If I can sum it all up, I need to know the answers to three questions: Who am I? Why am I here? What do I do?”

“Those are indeed heavy questions.” The man was stroking his beard so hard that the boy wondered why it hadn’t completely fallen off yet. “You want my opinion?”

It had only been half an hour so the boy thought he had no choice but to comply.

“Those are heavy questions but they are very connected to each other. You can’t get an answer to all of them at once. Choose one and it will help you answer the others.”

“Okay, noted.”

“Noted? Choose one now, boy.”

“Now?”

“Yes, now.”

“I guess it’s important to know what I do first.”

“Good choice! You aren’t as dum as you look.”

“Excuse me?”

“Your actions define you. You are what you do and you’re nothing if you don’t do anything. Are you nothing, boy?”

“No, ofcourse not. But sometimes I feel like I am almost nothing.”

“So, you felt your first proper existential dread and you decided to run away from everything? Listen to me carefully. If you’re not happy where you are, you won’t be happy when you go someplace else. You can take an unhappy body anywhere and it will still be unhappy.”

This depressed the boy. His whole body language changed. He went from looking like a curious youth to a defeated adult. It was as if a veil over his eyes was lifted and he could finally see what was in front of him all along. He didn’t like it.

“You were going to write in your journey. Pull your page and pen out and write what you have to do.”

“That is what I wanted to know. That is what I had set out to find. What do I write?” The boy finally looked up again.

“Write anything. Write whatever you can think of that you should do. Write things you have to do that are good for you and not those that will bring you harm. Especially write those things that you are putting off.”

The boy reluctantly put his pen on the paper and wrote ‘Be a good person’.

“No, not like that. Be more specific. What will you do that will make you a good person.”

“I could help the poor.”

“That is also too broad. But let’s humor it. How will you help the poor?”

“I know there are many ways to do that but I guess it’ll be so much better if I had my own resources and did not instead depend on someone else taking care of me.”

“That is a wise thing to say. So what is the first thing you can do to be independent and with resources?”

“I could ask my cousin to compensate what I do for the farm.”

“What are you going to ask him?”

“I am going to ask him to pay me appropriately for the services I render.”

The old man paused and pondered after hearing that, looking like he still wasn’t satisfied but said, “Okay, write that down. Cross out ‘be a good person’.”

The boy wrote down other things as well. Things related to his family, his health, his friendships and his art. He had a long list of things he had to do but each task felt so menial.

“I know you’re still skeptical but do try your best to complete these tasks. I guarantee that before you’re done with all of them, you’ll be able to write down what you really want.”

“What about finding out who I am?”

“Your wants will lead you to the answer to that, don’t worry.”

“Do you know who you are?”

“I’m a mystic. I am someone who believes in the possibility of attaining insight into mysteries transcending ordinary human knowledge.”

“How does one become a mystic?” The boy didn’t really understand what he said.

“One becomes a mystic when he is called a mystic. Never underestimate the power of a fact stated out loud.”

“So you’re a mystic because someone called you a mystic? Was that what you wanted?”

“In a way, yes. But the stated fact that has the most effect on a person is the one stated by him to himself. I said I was a mystic before anyone else said it. In time, the power of what I said made others do the same.”

The boy was trying very hard to digest everything the mystic had told him but his previously empty vessel was now overflowing. He had to pour some of it out into the world and he was coming to the realization that the mountains were not the right place to do so.

“It’s been over an hour now. You still want me to help you find the routes?” The mystic interrupted his thoughts.

“No, I can’t go yet. I have to do a few things first. I’ll come back for them once I’m done.”

“Sure, no problem. Yo can find me later when you decide it’s time. I’ll be here.”

The boy shook the mystic’s hand in respect and walked back to his village in a much quicker pace than when he left it. He hadn’t really found the answers to his questions but he felt like he knew how to answer them now. He couldn’t wait.