The man was dressed in robes that were worn with age and they flowed about him as he strode, making him look quite majestic. His hair was completely white and one couldn’t tell where it ended and his beard began; both of which hung down to his waste. He wore no shoes, but his feet did not look worse for wear even though it was apparent that he had been hiking these woods for many years. Though he didn’t look surprised at my presence he stared at me for a long time. His eyes were small and black amidst the mass of hair on his face, but they were also bright and piercing. The gaze he gave me seemed to go straight through me, and was almost painful. I felt that I couldn’t look him directly in the eyes and turned my face away. Time seemed to stretch on and on, but I knew only moments were passing. Each time I looked up at him, I was forced to turn away.
Finally he spoke in a deep, booming voice that commanded attention, “Well, are you just going to stand there staring at the ground like some kind of groveler or are you going to come and sit with me?” His question startled me at first, not just because we had been in silence for so long but also because I wasn’t exactly sure he could speak. Now it wasn’t that I thought he was primitive in any fashion because his presence seemed educated, but I was surprised he could speak because I had heard tails of hermits losing their powers of speech for sheer lack of someone to talk to. This was not the case, however, for him. Another reason I was surprised was that no one had directly spoken to me in a while now and I was beginning to doubt my own existence! At first I didn’t respond to his question because I was unsure of what to say, but eventually I uttered, “oh, yeah, sure…I was about to…I mean…” “Confound it man! Stop stammering and come with me,” he replied to my incoherence and began walking toward the cave. Despite my apprehensions I followed him into the cave.
Inside the cave was nothing surprising, it was fairly large, and there was a few rocks placed like chairs toward the entrance. A bedroll was rolled up against the wall of the cave, but it looked like it had never been used. Other than these items, there was nothing else in the cave. The man immediately sat on one of the rocks and indicated for me to do the same on the other. When I hesitated he became insistent, “don’t dilly dally, we wouldn’t want to waste time.” I sat down without saying a word and then looked up at him. His eyes were still brilliant in the dim of the cave, but somehow I was able to bear it now. Next, I had one of the most interesting conversations I have ever had:
The Hermit: How is it that you have come into my realm?
-Well, it sounds kind of ridiculous, but…
The Hermit: Ridiculous? I will decide what is ridiculous. Tell me the truth and I will not doubt you. I can see through men.
-I came with a truck driver to a gas station somewhere on the other side of that valley down there, and there was an eagle in the sky who led me into the woods.
The Hermit: Ha-ha! Was that you? (He looked outside the cave at a massive eagle that was perched on a branch; presumably it was the one I had followed before.) Were you leading him to me? You must be something if he led you here.
-I’m not exactly sure what you mean. Do you communicate with this animal?
The Hermit: Of course I do! I talk to all of my animals. They are much wiser than men. Now finish your tale.
-After I entered the woods, I became lost, but a red stag guided me through them and into the valley on the other side.
The Hermit: Oh you saw him. This is quite an occasion. He doesn’t come out for just anyone you know, but we’ll talk about that later, now finish.
(By now my curiosity about this strange man had been peaked, but I knew from his tone that I should ask questions later.)
-When I entered the valley I became lethargic and content and rested against the tree. It was very strange because I became so apathetic, and then a figure spoke softly to me with a man’s voice. He urged me to stay there in that place, but I ignored his words and ran off toward the woods at the base of this mountain. After I passed through the woods, I ended up here by your cave.
The Hermit: That is quite the story you’ve spun there, but I believe every word of it because I’ve seen and heard stranger things and I was there of course.
-Wait, what? How were you there this is the first time I’ve ever seen you.
(And then I realized the truth before he even said it)
The Hermit: Why it was me, of course, who was speaking to you by that tree in the valley. You looked much different then.
-Why were you trying to stop me from moving on? Especially in that awful place…wait, how do I look different, that was only yesterday?
The Hermit: I was trying to save you from the pain of leaving that place. You see, once you leave there, you can never go back. Despite what you might think, you will never find that place again. Was it really awful? Could you say that you have been more at peace in your life?
-No, I can’t say I have ever felt peace like that, but I didn’t feel good either. I simply felt empty and devoid of feeling at all. If I can never go back there, then how did you find me there?
The Hermit: You are making assumptions, my friend. I said that you could never go back that there, nothing in that says anything about me. But because you brought it up I will attempt to explain. I found you there, but when I was there it was a different place than what you experienced. Even though we were in the same place we were experiencing completely separate phenomena. I could tell by your appearance that you were in that place, especially the way you were clutching that clump of dirt as if it were some luscious fruit. I only encouraged you to stay because I too have been there, and now wish I had stayed.
-How is that even possible, experiencing different realities?
The Hermit: Ha! Don’t act so surprised! Surely you have seen things seen things stranger than this. The world is not as neat and orderly as you would like to believe. We like to conform the world into a little box and limit our imaginations, so we can cope with reality. But when you let the world take the lead on your reality, you find much more interesting things can happen.
(I was mesmerized by his words, and despite how unbelievable they might have sounded I took in everything he said, soaking it up like a sponge)
-You never answered me before. How is it that I look so different than last time you saw me?
The Hermit: Don’t think that I had forgotten your question! You say that our meeting occurred yesterday, but what exactly do you mean by yesterday?
-How can you ask such a question? I mean the day before today, of course, before the night passed last.
The Hermit: I stopped counting days long ago. Time only has meaning if you want it to. I am no longer a slave to that tyrant who dominates men! I have fought and defeated time at his own game. ‘Submit!’ he cried, and when I refused he lost all power, turned and disappeared. Out here submission leads to the death of spirit, one must use his Strength and Will to rend his would be enemies asunder. Now, I say you look different because indeed you do. Your appearance is very different than when I saw you last.
-How is that?
The Hermit: When I saw you before you had the look of a young man, naïve, but leery of things that were out of the ordinary. Now you have a much bolder look about you. Your hair has begun to turn much as mine did once. In your eyes, I no longer see youth, but age and wisdom.
(With all that had transpired this didn’t surprise me, but I did wonder if I truly did look older or if I just felt that way. Something about this place was making me feel aged. In the air was the sense of countless ideas that must have passed through this man’s mind. I wondered how long he had been there by my time measurement.)
-Why have I changed?
The Hermit: You have changed because, by leaving your apathy behind and grabbing hold of your passion, you have embarked on the real journey, the pursuit of knowledge.
-But I thought that I had been pursuing knowledge before?
The Hermit: Knowledge is not gained by reading books! The dusty thoughts of some dead philosopher help no one. One must go out into the world to discover his reality. He must speak to the world and listen for its answer. Those scholars locked away in their libraries know nothing of knowledge. Their knowledge is limited by the boundaries of their lifetime, but my knowledge is eternal and because my knowledge is eternal, so am I.
(This last statement stunned me, and my eyes became wide. It was as if I had been asleep and dormant all my life, and now I had been awakened by this man’s words)
The Hermit: At last you realize the truth! I knew you would! Many are unable to understand or accept the true reality of things, but I knew that you would.
-Yes, I do. I can’t explain how, but you have awoken me from my slumber. Everything seems so clear now. Before I would have said that this was an insane notion, but after everything that has transpired I understand.
The Hermit: Then you have begun the transformation. It is long and arduous, but wholly worthwhile. Of course you no longer have a choice. You have already embarked on the journey and you cannot turn back. This place around you is nothing, but the first stepping-stone. It is the plateau where you may rest and survey your surroundings before beginning the climb. Here you can turn and look back upon the way you came, but ahead you cannot. Turning back implies doubt and on this path one must never doubt. This is my sin, I doubted and turned to look down on the path, and now I must remain here. My only purpose now is to lead those who pass through here; however, wanderers are very few anymore because people have lost their faith. They no longer trust their passions, their emotions, the very essence of their being. The people of your time have forgotten their nature and created a new “nature” with laws and morals. Nature serves no one, not even him.
-That is the second time you have mentioned him. Who is he, and why do you regard him with such reverence?
The Hermit: If you knew him as I do, you would never think to ask such a question. This is not because it is taboo, but because he explains himself. He is a guide for those who are lost, a seeker for those waiting to be found. While some animals can be trained and put to use, he cannot be tamed. His presence has always been here, before, that villain, Time was born. Some of the animals have told me that he is the father of Time, and Nature is Time’s mother. She is the fury, the tempest, and he is the guiding light that will lead you to shore. Nature is fierce and has become especially weary of us men, but he speaks softly to her and convinces her that we are trying to right our wrongs. Eventually, he will lose, but not because he is weak, only because Time will be on his deathbed and the end will be at hand. Nature will unleash her scorn upon us, and nothing will remain of our kind. After that, things can begin again.
You must be on the grandest of adventures if he has appeared before you. From what I know, he guides those that are lost, but never shows himself. In all my wanderings of this realm, I have yet to meet him and if it were not for the animals I would doubt his existence. I would put him among those religious phantasms created by ignorant men. Now I see that my rambling is not only hindering you from this path, but it is obstructing his plans. The sun has gone to sleep in the west and the stars are beginning to shine, this is the best time to travel. You must climb the mountain, do not try to circumvent it because this will lead you astray. This is a trial that must be faced. Now my friend, go and do not look back. The path is forward!
