Gregory Roberts - The Mountain Shadow

‘You call that power?’ Ambitious challenged.

‘This is energy,’ Idriss corrected. ‘Spiritual energy, sufficient to alter Time, which is no small thing. Time was the lord of all living things, for billions of years, until Will arose to greet him.’

Let Me See called the sages to confer. He was enjoying himself, even at the expense of his colleagues, or perhaps especially at the expense of his colleagues. It was impossible to tell if his tactical conclaves were designed to confound Idriss, or his fellow sages.

Vinson looked at Karla, and was about to speak.

‘Cover your karmic ass,’ Karla synopsised, ‘everything you do affects the timeline, dude.’

I kissed her quickly. I know it was a holy assembly of holy thinkers, but I was betting that they’d forgive me.

‘This is the second-best best date ever,’ she said, as the sages sat up straight, three intellectual corner-men leaning away from Grumpy, the youngest sage, with fresh energy for the challenge.

‘This is digressive,’ Grumpy began. ‘I have found your technique, master- ji . You divert from questions, through semantic tricks. Let us get down to sacred texts and instructions. If the human soul is an expression of our humanity, as you seem to suggest, is it essential to do one’s duty in life, as the sacred texts instruct us?’

‘Indeed,’ Ambitious added, hoping to trap Idriss in a snare of caste. ‘Can any of us escape the wheel of karma, and our Divinely appointed duties?’

‘If there is a Divine Source of all things, our rational and logical duty is to that Divine Source,’ Idriss replied. ‘Our only other duty is to the humanity that we share, and the planet that sustains us. Everything beyond that is a personal preference.’

‘Are we not born with a karmic duty?’ Ambitious pressed.

‘ Humanity is born with a karmic duty. Human beings are born with a personal karmic mission , playing their individual part in the common karmic duty,’ Idriss said.

The sages looked at one another, ashamed, perhaps, that they’d tried to trap Idriss in the quicksand of religion, while he kept lifting himself free on a branch of faith.

‘Does a personal God speak to you?’ Let Me See asked, tangling his long grey beard with knotted fingers, bruised on the inside from years of counting red amber meditation beads in cycles of one hundred and eight.

‘Such a lovely question,’ Idriss laughed gently. ‘I presume that you mean a God that cares about me, personally, and that I can communicate with, personally, while that God, who dreamt the universe into creation, is busily connecting with every consciousness like mine, wherever it arises. Is that correct?’

‘Precisely,’ the elderly guru said.

Idriss laughed to himself.

‘What’s the question?’ Vinson asked.

‘Does God walk the talk?’ Karla whispered quickly, smiling encouragement at Vinson.

‘I get it,’ Vinson whispered back happily. ‘Like, does God pick up the phone?’

‘I see the Divine in every minute that I live,’ Idriss answered. ‘And I receive constant affirmations. It is a language uncommon, of course. It is a spiritual language of coincidence and connection. I think you know, great sage, of what I speak?’

‘I do, Idriss,’ he replied, chuckling. ‘I do. Can you give an example?’

‘Every peaceful encounter with nature,’ Idriss said, ‘is a natural conversation with the Divine, which is why it is advisable to live as near to nature as you can.’

‘A fine example, great sage,’ Let Me See replied.

‘Extending your heart to put the light of affection in the eyes of a new friend, is a conversation with the Divine,’ Idriss said. ‘Honest meditation is the same conversation.’

‘You were imprecise, before, Idriss,’ he said. ‘Tell us, succinctly, what the meaning and purpose of life is.’

‘There are two questions in your challenge, as I said before,’ Idriss said. ‘And only one of them is a valid question.’

‘We have touched on this, and I still do not understand,’ Grumpy pouted.

‘Without a fully conscious Will to ask about the meaning of anything,’ Idriss answered patiently, ‘the question is not just meaningless, but impossible.’

‘But surely, master- ji , this human Will that you champion cannot be meaning in and of itself?’ Doubtful asked, frowning hard.

‘I repeat, the question What is the meaning of Life? is an invalid question. Meaning is a property that emerges when a fully sentient Will exists to collapse the superposition state of possibilities, by making freely willed choices, and asking freely willed questions.’

There was a pause, and I was glad, because I knew that if Vinson disturbed her concentration at that moment, Karla might shoot him, after the debate.

‘Asking the question is the meaning,’ I whispered to him.

‘Thanks,’ Karla whispered, leaning against me.

‘Meaning is an attribute of Will,’ Idriss continued. ‘The valid question is what is the purpose of Life?’

‘Very well,’ Let Me See said, chuckling, ‘what is the purpose of life?’

‘The purpose of life is to express the set of positive characteristics to the most sophisticated degree that you can, by connecting with pure intention to others, and our planet, and to the Divine Source of all things.’

‘How do you define these positive characteristics, master- ji ?’ Doubtful asked. ‘In which sacred texts can we find them?’

‘The set of positive characteristics is found everywhere, in every place where people live humanely with one another. Life, consciousness, freedom, love, justice, fairness, honesty, mercy, affinity, courage, generosity, compassion, forgiveness, empathy and many beautiful others. They are always the same, everywhere that kind hearts survive to preserve them.’

‘But what specific sacred texts do you refer to in your analysis, master- ji ?’

‘Our common humanity is the sacred text of the peaceful human heart,’ Idriss said. ‘And we have only just begun to write it.’

‘And how does the expression of these positive characteristics lead us to purpose?’ Ambitious challenged.

‘We humans are born with the capacity to accumulate non-evolutionary knowledge, and the capacity to shape our behaviour as animals,’ Idriss said, reaching for a glass of water. ‘Which are very difficult things for other animals to do, but are very easy for us, thanks to the Divine.’

‘Can you be specific about this non-evolutionary knowledge, master- ji ?’ Doubtful asked. ‘This is a term I am not familiar with.’

‘Things that we know, that we don’t have to know, in order to survive. Extra knowledge, about everything.’

‘We know things,’ Ambitious said. ‘That is hardly a revelation. And we can shape our behaviour. Where do you see purpose in this, master- ji ?’

‘Without either one of those things,’ Idriss continued, ‘we could not claim to have a destiny. But with both of them in place, the fact of our destiny is undeniable.’

‘How, master- ji ?’

‘We are not apes forever. We can change ourselves. We are changing, all the time. We will discover most of the laws of everything, and we will control our evolution. That is destiny controlling DNA, rather than DNA controlling destiny, as it did forever, until now.’

‘Can you define destiny?’ Ambitious demanded.

‘Destiny is the treasure we find in the awareness of death.’

‘Oh, yes!’ Karla shouted. ‘Sorry!’

‘Perhaps it is time,’ Idriss suggested, ‘that we take a break, and refresh ourselves for the challenge.’