VBT – Meditation 32.5
Don’t Renounce
We cannot find the inner world by renouncing the outer world. I have heard a story: An old master was dying, and he called his successor: “My last message to you is, never, never allow a cat in your house.” And the old fellow died.
The successor said, “My god, what has it to do with the search for truth? And now I am going to be on guard continuously that no cat enters the house? What kind of thing has he left me with and died? Now I cannot even ask, ‘What do you mean?’”
But an old man who was there said, “Don’t be worried, I know the whole story. I will tell you what he means. I have known him for many, many years…”
When he had become a sannyasin, he left the world and went out into the forest. But you need food, you need milk, you need some clothing, you need some kind of roof. But he had left everything, according to the ancient formula; he had brought with himself only two Indian-type underwear.
So, two of these underwear he took, and left. But there was trouble. He managed to make a small hut with bamboo and grass, but those two underwear were creating trouble because rats would come and eat the underwear. He was in great difficulty. Again and again he had to go to the village to ask for new underwear.
Finally, the village got tired. They said, “You have left the world. If you had said that you would come again and again for the underwear, we would have stopped you: Don’t go. What is the point? You had everything, now you are a torture.”
He said, “What can I do? There are so many rats.” The people suggested, “Then do one thing. We will give you a cat.”
He said, “What will the cat do?”
People suggested, “The cat will kill the rats and will protect your underwear.” It was perfectly logical. So he took a cat with him. But now a new problem: the cat needs milk, the cat needs food. She certainly finished all the rats, but now he has to go to the town to ask for some milk for the cat.
The people said, “You are a constant nuisance. We were thinking that we had got rid of you. We have given you the cat, and now you have started coming for milk. Rather than giving you milk every day, we will give you a cow. You take a cow as a contribution from the whole village. But don’t torture us any more. This cow will help in many ways. It will give enough milk for the cat and it will give enough milk for you, too. So you need not come for your food either.”
He said, “The idea is good,” and took the cow. New problems…. Every solution brings new problems.
So those who are really men of understanding never solve anything.
Now the cow needs grass. From where to get so much grass every day? Finally, he had to go to the village again. He said, “You give me solutions and they create new problems! Now I go on searching through the whole forest for the grass. I have gone into sannyas to meditate, but since I have been in sannyas – rats, cat, cow, grass…I was never in so much business when I was in the world. Now show me a way…”
They said, “Don’t be worried, every problem has a solution. There is a widow in the village. She is very poor. And she, we hope, will be willing to go with you and live with you. She can take care of the cow, and we will come and clear some ground so you can grow grass. You can also grow some wheat. And sometimes you may be sick, sometimes you may be not feeling well…that woman will take care of you, too.”
He said, “My god, it seems the whole thing is…that’s what I had escaped in the very beginning! A house, a woman, a cow…I had all these things. Everything is coming again from the back door.”
But there was no other alternative, so he took the widow. And for many, many days he had been involved in such complicated problems that he had not thought about women. But now he saw the widow – she was really beautiful. Deep down, dreams started arising – “This is great. Together alone in the forest…”
And what had to happen, happened. Then children, then searching for a school….
The old man explained to the young successor, “That’s why your master finally told you to never, never allow a cat in the house. Because it was the cat that destroyed his whole life.”
But where will you go? I don’t think there is any place anywhere where you will not need essential things. And those essential things will bring you back again and again. Instead of becoming a sannyasin, you will become a beggar. Instead of becoming a creator, you will become just a burden on society.
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