a once upon a time story

there was once a man who was very eager to embrace the buddhist way of life, to grasp the way to enlightenment and renounce all temptations. he spend hours after hours locked in his room, days after days, in deep meditation. for years he practiced asceticism, thinking that this will lead him to the path of enlightenment, wanting nothing, wishing for nothing and asking for nothing. he wanted to be oblivious to the evils of the world, free from jealousy, greed and temptation.

after many years of spending long hours in deep meditation, he emerges from his chamber one day, acknowledging that he had finally mastered the essence of the buddhist teachings. he wrote a letter to the dharma to share with him the good news. a few days later, he received a reply from the dharma. on the letter was written a single word, 'rubbish'. the man's brow furrowed in confusion. rubbish? what did the dharma meant by rubbish? is he denouncing all the hours that i have spent in meditation as rubbish? did he not believe that i have indeed achieved enlightenment? the more he pondered over the meaning of that single word, the more frustrated he became. he was restless, turning the word over and over again in his conscious and subconscious mind. he could not understand why the dharma will censure his achievement.

finally, the man decided to set forth to look for the dharma and seek and explanation from him personally. after days of journey, he finally reached the temple. however, the dharma was nowhere to be found. outside the dharma's living quarter, the man found a letter stuck to the door.

"if you have indeed achieved enlightenment, my letter would have brought you no sorrow nor agitation. if you are reading this letter now, it means that you have been disturbed by my one single word to you and have set forth on the long journey to seek clarification for a simple word. you have not achieve enlightenment."