CHANGING CIRCUMSTANCES CHANGING PRIORITIES
What happened? What did you find out?"
"Nothing… much, really." The astrologer pushed his palm leaf charts behind him and faced his friend over the low table. He didn't know what to say. The news was not good. "What about you? Did you do my chart?"
"Oh, yes, replied his friend," who was clutching his book to his chest. "I did it." He too had bad news to tell his friend.
The two friends had decided to cast each other's chart. Astrologers never read their own future – it was taboo in their trade.
"Look. I'm sorry. I have to tell you. You're going to die and soon. In fact you're going to be re-born as an elephant."
"Oh, thank God. I mean, `Oh no!'" He was shocked by the news but relieved. "You're going to die soon, too. You're going to be reborn as a worm."
The future worm fell to his knees and begged the future elephant, "Please, let us make a covenant between us. When you are reborn as an elephant, you'll not cease until you find me in my worm incarnation, and immediately put me out of my misery so that I may be reborn as a nobler creature. Please promise you'll do this for me. Just step on me; one foot is enough."
The future elephant remained silent for a while. Finally, he said, "Yes. I shall do that for you, my friend."
As ordained by fate, they soon died within weeks of each other and were reborn. The astrologer-elephant had perfect recollection of his previous incarnation, and his sacred vow to his friend. He immediately set out exploring the jungle, lifting rocks, looking around the forest. But he could not find his worm friend. He asked the other animals in the jungle, "Have you seen my little worm friend? He's thin; he has poor eyesight, and doesn't move too fast." None of them had seen his friend.
The elephant started putting posters on the trees. 'Reward - Have you seen this worm?'
Weeks and months were passing, and the elephant was beginning to feel that he would miss his opportunity to fulfill his commitment. One day he came across a funny-looking rock. Lowering his huge head, he saw a little wisp of steam rising from the rock. Peering still closer, he noticed that the smoke was coming from a little tube protruding from the stone. It looked like a chimney! "I bet there's a little house in there" he thought. He carefully lifted the rock with his trunk and found himself looking straight down into a tiny little house… and there was his friend in a rocking chair, reading the evening news in front of a nice fire, with his wife and kids preparing a nice dish of rotting vegetables.
The elephant trumpeted, "My friend, I am so happy to have found you. Now I can fulfill my vow," and he lifted his foot. The little worm cried "No, no, forget the foolish covenant we made. That was before I discovered how good it was to be a worm. The deal is off, it's cancelled! Don't do it!"
The elephant calmly replied, "You'll thank me later," and squashed him.
Our goals change the minute we become more comfortable in our new persona, our new role, and the new circumstances. This is a very common delusion in the spiritual life. We may start our any endeavor with the best of intentions—to reach the highest goal. As we begin to enjoy the new look, the company, the pleasant feelings… little by little, the comfort of the journey becomes the goal, and all our efforts now aim at justifying this choice.
The future worm thought that being a worm was going to be awful and he wanted to be quickly put out of his misery. But he started to enjoy worm life. The elephant symbolizes the spiritual master, who pushes us outside of our comfort zone, prodding us mercilessly to remember our divine self. He crushes our illusions, our ego, and our attachments to the world. Yes, it is painful. But as the Sufis say, "When the ego cries at what it has lost, the soul laughs at what it has gained."
