There is a very beautiful story about Buddha when he came back to his home after twelve years, his father said, ”I can still forgive you. Though what you did was wrong, you tormented us, you have certainly done a crime, I have a father’s heart – I will forgive you. The doors are open for you. Throw away this begging bowl, remove these monk’s clothes. None of this will do here. Come back – this kingdom is yours. I have become old; who is going to look after it? Much childishness has gone on, now stop all this play!”
Buddha said, ”Please look at me. The one who left has not returned. Someone else has come, the one who was born in your house has not come back. Someone else is here, the seed has returned as a flower. Look deeply.”
The father said, ”You are going to teach me? I have known you since the day you were born! Go and deceive others; go and lecture other people and delude them – you cannot deceive me. I repeat again, I know you perfectly well – don’t try to teach me. I am willing to forgive you.”
Buddha said, ”You say you know me? I didn’t even know myself before. Only recently have the rays of light descended and I have come to know myself. Excuse me, but I have to say that the one you saw is not me. Whatever you saw is not me. You saw the outer shell, but did you look inside of me? I was born out of you but you did not create me. I came via you as traveler comes via a certain route, but what do the traveler and the road have to do with each other? Suppose that tomorrow the road says ’I know you, your being has come from me’ – just as you are saying. ”I existed before you. I have been on this journey for many lives. I certainly passed through you, as I have passed through others. Others too have been my father, others too have been my mother. But my being is completely separate.”
It is very difficult, extremely difficult: If you saw the seed you cannot believe the flower is in front of you.
