Great despair prompted my travel to Tibet in search of truth. Even greater despair came in seeking out a Guru named Wangdue, a hermit and sage who was able to become invisible whilst meditating.
While hiking and camping in the Tibetan mountains for months on end, I got only two glimpses of what seemed to be Wangdue. One day after hearing a sneeze carried by the echo, I saw an old man on the distant hill. I shouted at him, but he did not answer. As he was sitting there with crossed legs, he simply vanished. It was hard climbing the hill, on which the old man appeared. Once there, I called him, searched all over and even kicked the empty space, but to no avail. Another time from a far, I saw the Guru drinking water. However, when I got to the brook, there was no one there.
I could not bear this anymore. When leaving for Tibet, my parents mourned me as if I had died and my colleagues believed some cult had gotten a hold of me. There was no going back and there was nothing for me here in the Tibetan wilderness, so I decided to end it all.
One evening I watched the sunset as a green dash of dusk spread on the horizon. Tears filled my eyes and the scenery seemed blurry. In a flash of irrationality, I ran towards the nearby cliff with the intention to jump. Half way there, something tripped me. It was Wangdue standing between me and the cliff, smiling like we were old friends. Astonished the only thing I could say was:
“You have no idea how long I have searched for you!” “Well, I have always been here,” replied Wangdue.
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