haar -iv

Another story will help you...

A king was very much interested in the ideas of Moses. 

Moses was alive. The king said to the court painter: "Go and paint an absolutely realistic painting of Moses as he is. I would like his picture to always be in my bedroom."

The painter went. 

It took six months for him to do a really realistic painting. 

But when he came back with the painting, the king was puzzled. The whole court was puzzled. Because the face of Moses looked like that of a murderer, that of a thief, that of a criminal!

He said: "You say this is the painting you have done in six months? The face looks like Moses, but it cánnot be Moses' face. I know the man, I have seen him with my own eyes! Yes, the outer lines are exactly like his face, but the gesture, the expression... it is not that of Moses!"

-

The painter said... 

"But you have told me to be very realistic!... 

"So I have not created any fiction around him. As he is, I have painted him, this is just an exact replica. Now, I am not responsible. If you find any difficulty in it, ask Moses!"

The painter, the king, the court, they all traveled. 

They went to Moses. 

The painting was brought to him, and the king asked: "Sir, I have known you for years! You are the most graceful man I have ever seen in the world! There may never be such a graceful man again... and this is the painting?... 

"My painter is a great painter, there is no doubt about it. He has never made any fault like this. He has painted my father, my mother, and thousands of other paintings, he has painted me... And he is absolutely exact, whatsoever he has done... 

"But with this painting, we are not satisfied. Not only not satisfied, I am angry at him. Your face looks like that of a murderer, a thief or a criminal!"

-

Moses said... 

"You are both right...

"Now, looking at me, you will see grace. But your painter has painted with such acuteness, that he has caught my whole life in the painting. Yes, for the first time I am confessing... 

"Once, I killed a man. I ám a murderer. I have never told this to anybody else... And I háve been, in my past, all the things that your painter has painted. They have left their subtle marks on my face... 

"You cannot see them. Because you don't have the eyes which your painter has... So your painter is right: he has depicted my whole history... It is not only my present face. But all the faces that have been there before... 

"But you are also right... because it does not correspond to my present face - but I have to agree with your painter."

~osho~

dhammapada v

(1979) - 10 (5)