The Monk Story
A man is driving down the road and breaks down near a monastery. He goes
to the monastery, knocks on the door, and says, My car broke down. Do you
think I could stay the night?
The monks graciously accept him, feed him dinner, and even fix his car. As
the man tries to fall asleep, he hears a strange sound; a sound like no
other that he has ever heard. The next morning, he asks the monks what the
sound was, but they say, We can't tell you. You're not a monk.
The man is disappointed but thanks them anyway and goes about his merry
way. Some years later, the same man breaks down in front of the same
monastery.
The monks again accept him, feed him, and even fix his car.
That night, he hears the same strange mesmerizing sound that he had heard
years earlier.
The next morning, he asks what the sound was, but the monks reply, We can't tell you. You're not a monk.
The man says, All right, all right. I'm dying to know. If the only way I can
find out what that sound was, is to become a monk, how do I become a monk?
The monks reply, you must travel the earth and tell us how many blades of
grass there are and the exact number of sand pebbles. When you find these
numbers, you will become a monk.
The man sets about his task. Some forty-five years later, he returns and
knocks on the door of the monastery. He says, I have traveled the earth and
devoted my life to the task demanded and have found what you had asked for.
There are 371,145,236,284,232 blades of grass and 231,281,219,999,129,382
sand pebbles on the earth.
The monks reply, Congratulations, you are correct and now you are a monk.
We shall now show you the way to the sound.
The monks lead the man to a wooden door, where the head monk says, the
sound is behind that door.
The man reaches for the knob, but the door is locked. He asks, May I have
the key?
The monks give him the key, and he opens the door.
Behind the wooden door is another door made of stone. The man requests the
key to the stone door.
The monks give him the key, and he opens it, only to find a door made of
ruby. He demands another key from the monks, who provide it.
Behind that door is another door, this one made of sapphire. And so it went
until the man had gone through doors of emerald,.....silver, topaz, and amethyst.
Finally, the monks say, This is the key to the last door.
The man is relieved to no end. He unlocks the door, turns the knob, and
behind that door he is astonished to find the source of that strange sound.
It is truly an amazing and unbelievable sight.
. . But I can't tell you what it is because you're not a monk.
A man is driving down the road and breaks down near a monastery. He goes
to the monastery, knocks on the door, and says, My car broke down. Do you
think I could stay the night?
The monks graciously accept him, feed him dinner, and even fix his car. As
the man tries to fall asleep, he hears a strange sound; a sound like no
other that he has ever heard. The next morning, he asks the monks what the
sound was, but they say, We can't tell you. You're not a monk.
The man is disappointed but thanks them anyway and goes about his merry
way. Some years later, the same man breaks down in front of the same
monastery.
The monks again accept him, feed him, and even fix his car.
That night, he hears the same strange mesmerizing sound that he had heard
years earlier.
The next morning, he asks what the sound was, but the monks reply, We can't tell you. You're not a monk.
The man says, All right, all right. I'm dying to know. If the only way I can
find out what that sound was, is to become a monk, how do I become a monk?
The monks reply, you must travel the earth and tell us how many blades of
grass there are and the exact number of sand pebbles. When you find these
numbers, you will become a monk.
The man sets about his task. Some forty-five years later, he returns and
knocks on the door of the monastery. He says, I have traveled the earth and
devoted my life to the task demanded and have found what you had asked for.
There are 371,145,236,284,232 blades of grass and 231,281,219,999,129,382
sand pebbles on the earth.
The monks reply, Congratulations, you are correct and now you are a monk.
We shall now show you the way to the sound.
The monks lead the man to a wooden door, where the head monk says, the
sound is behind that door.
The man reaches for the knob, but the door is locked. He asks, May I have
the key?
The monks give him the key, and he opens the door.
Behind the wooden door is another door made of stone. The man requests the
key to the stone door.
The monks give him the key, and he opens it, only to find a door made of
ruby. He demands another key from the monks, who provide it.
Behind that door is another door, this one made of sapphire. And so it went
until the man had gone through doors of emerald,.....silver, topaz, and amethyst.
Finally, the monks say, This is the key to the last door.
The man is relieved to no end. He unlocks the door, turns the knob, and
behind that door he is astonished to find the source of that strange sound.
It is truly an amazing and unbelievable sight.
. . But I can't tell you what it is because you're not a monk.
