Part 22: A tale of two brothers
As the Stranger and the Seeker step through the gate, they hear the sound of a heavenly chant:
“Checkpoint 5 saved”
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Daylight. The Seeker stands outside a cave. The path continues in front of them. Wide fields of flowers in the distance. Forests, hills and mountains.
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“What about the animal spirits?” asks the Seeker the Stranger. “Where did they end up?”
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“Different places and different times,” responds the Stranger. “They have their own journeys, their own paths to walk. They will grow on their own, so that we may all one day meet again.”
The Stranger and Seeker walk together through a vast valley. Hills of grass to the left. Dense forests to the right.
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Every now and then, they come across ancient stone-carved totems from lost cultures.
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“Forgiveness breaks the chain of resentment,” speaks the Stranger, as he continues on the path with the Seeker.
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“We have all seen, what wars have done to the world. We are aware of the deep resentment between tribes. We see how separated we are as humanity. We see, how this very separation is the root of our conflicts.
Now we need to ask ourselves, 'how do we heal this wound?' How do we end these never-ending cycles of hatred and suffering? Forgiveness heals the scars of humanity. Forgiveness heals the wounds within oneself.
What happens, when you can't forgive? You are trapped in your own resentment.
As long as you are unable to forgive, the scars will never be fully healed.
Forgive whoever has hurt you. When you forgive another, you also heal yourself.
Ask for forgiveness to whomever you owe it to. Own up to your mistakes, vow not to do them again. Forgive yourself and clear your guilt.
If you want to live a life without regrets, you first need to clear whatever still holds you back. Forgive the perpetrator, for every time, that you were made the victim. Ask for forgiveness for every time, that you caused someone pain. Be it direct or indirect.
Take some time for yourself to introspect. Go through your entire life from childhood to present moment. Go through all your memories and filter through every time that you hurt someone and through every time that someone hurt you. Think back to every moment, when you acted against your conscience. Think back to every regret, that you have. No matter how uncomfortable it may be, face it. Introspect your Traumas, your grudges, your resentments. No matter how painful, face it.
Forgive those who harmed you inwardly. Ask for forgiveness to those, that you hurt.
This exercise is about becoming conscious of your mistakes and thus reducing the chance of it happening again. By forgiving and showing remorse inwardly, it will release some of your energetic blockages.
Forgive yourself for all actions, that you regret. Accept that you can't change what has happened. Accept that the only thing that you can change, is who you are right now. In the present moment. Forgive yourself for past missteps, make sure not to repeat them. That is how you heal yourself within.”
The Seeker suddenly stops.
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The Stranger stops as well.
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There is an old statue buried in the dirt.
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“But what if that is not enough?” questions the Seeker. “What if I forgive myself and still feel regret? What if the same old thoughts keep repeating? What if I continue to make the same mistakes?”
“Then do it in person,” responds the Stranger calmly. “Then it's part of a lesson, that you need to go through. Face it head on... Even if its uncomfortable... Even if you can't find the courage. Do it. Not only for the other persons sake, do it for your own sake.”
This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
The Seeker's eyebrows become narrow. “What if they don't deserve my forgiveness? What if it's impossible to forgive?!”
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The Stranger remains calm. “Listen to your heart. What does it tell you? Does it tell you to run away? Does it tell you, that you are in the right? No... The heart doesn't say such things. It is only the Ego that is afraid of forgiveness. Your heart longs for it to be healed. And forgiveness is its cure.”
“You have no idea, what I went through!” shouts the Seeker enraged. “Forgiving is easier said, then done!”
The Stranger takes in a deep breath as. His speed slows down.
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“Let me tell you a story," speaks the Stranger. "There once were two brothers, living in a place, far away. Even though they were often fighting, they cared for another. Until the older brother lost something and hurt the younger brother deeply. The younger brother couldn't forgive, he turned resentful. But he hid his resentment under his smile. Always keeping it to himself. The brothers saw each other less and less.
When the family came together, the younger brother always just ignored him. Over the years, he turned more bitter and provocative against his older brother. Until he found the resolve to live a life without regrets. One day, he took all his courage together and spoke his truth: “I can't forgive you.”
His words shattered the facade. Everyone was quiet, then the younger brother resumed:
“But I don't want to carry this burden any longer. I want to forgive you. I want to free my heart. But I just can't.”
“Give me a chance,” pleaded the older brother. “I have changed. Let me prove it to you.”
The younger brother looked into his eyes and agreed. He saw his brothers true remorse and gave him another chance.
“Prove it to me,” demanded the younger brother. “Show me that you truly have changed.”
The brothers shook hands.
A couple of months later, the two brothers met again. They walked for a while through the city, then sat down and talked. Probably the longest and most sincere conversation they ever had. The older brother had truly changed. The younger brother listened for the first time without being angered by every single word. He listened with compassion. His older brother told him of his past years of pain and suffering.
The younger brother realized, that the older brother was torturing himself out of guilt. And for the first time he truly saw his brother, beneath the mask. And as he looked into his brother, he found his own reflection.
He recognized himself in his brother. He realized that he was both himself and his brother. He was both the victim and the perpetrator. They were both the same actor playing different roles. He could see it clearly.
And as the younger brother realized all this, he only had three words to speak: “I forgive you.”
Words to break a pattern. Words to free the heart. And as he forgave his brother, he ended a cycle for both of them.
“Now I see you,” spoke the younger brother to his older brother. “I can finally see you.” No longer did he see his brother as a monster, as a villain or as a threat, he saw him for who he truly was. The two brothers embraced with a wonderful, purple-orange sunset sky above them.
From that moment on, all resentments faded away. No longer thoughts spiraling over ideas of victim-hood or self-pity. The curse was broken, the heart was healed again. The two brothers renewed their relationship, no longer tainted by grudges and resentments.”
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The Stranger suddenly stops.
The Seeker stops as well.
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The path leads to a man-made structure in the middle of the green valley. Huge, gigantic walls. A maze made of giant stone walls.
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In the far distance, the Seeker sees a giant tower. Their path leads towards a gate into the labyrinth.
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A sphinx guards the gate of the maze. A being, with the face of a beautiful woman with wings and the body of a lioness.
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“To be invited into the 'labyrinth of the mind', you must first solve a riddle,” thunders the voice of the great sphinx.
The Seeker sighs tiredly. “Why must everything always be about riddles, jokes or stories...”
The sphinx deep voice thunders like a war-horn: “Listen! At Dawn, I walk on four feet. At noon, I walk on two feet. And at Dusk, I float through the empty space. What am I?”
The Seeker takes a moment to contemplate.
'This riddle sounds familiar, as if I had heard this somewhere before,' the Seeker silently thinks to themselves. A sudden feeling of Deja-Vu.
“Was I already here?” asks the Seeker the Stranger.
The Stranger doesn't react. His calm, burning eyes are fixed on the Sphinx creature.
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The Seeker turns their head and looks directly at the Sphinx.
“Your riddle... I think I know it's answer. You are Humanity. At the Dawn of your evolution, you walked on four feet, at the noon of your evolution you walk on two feet and at the Dusk of your evolution, you will levitate through the sky.”
There is a short amount of silence. Then the sphinx opens its mouth. “You are almost as clever as Oedipus,” thunders the deep voice of the ancient creature.
“You shall pass!”
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The sphinx fades away. Dissolving into air. The path is free, the gate is open.
The Seeker suddenly realizes something, as they walk towards the gate into the maze.
“Wait a second,” mumbles the Seeker as they suddenly stop in their way. “Did that sphinx dude just call me a motherf***er?”
The Stranger quietly takes the first step towards the gate.
“You will lead the path through this maze,” speaks the Stranger to the Seeker. “You will decide which way to take.”
“Me?!” asks the Seeker. “I don't know, where to go!”
The Stranger grins with confidence.
“You will find your way. I believe in you. Besides, we are together in this. I will support you, but the journey must still be yours. The journey to find yourself. Walk with fire in your eyes and the path will unfold in front of you.”
The Seeker contemplates for a moment. “Did you already went through this maze in the past? Or is this also your first time?”
“Everyone has their own labyrinth of the mind. It looks different for every Seeker and Stranger.”
The Seeker looks confused. “What do you mean by that? Are there more Seeker and Strangers, than just you and me?”
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The Stranger smiles but doesn't answer. The Seeker takes a look around them. Looking at the mountains, the sky and the forest and then looking through the entry gate towards the path ahead. The Seeker takes a deep breath.
“Let's go,” sighs the Seeker with ironic enthusiasm.
As the Seeker and the Stranger walk into the maze, the gate behind them suddenly closes. The former entry disappears behind the stone wall. The Seeker has the feeling, that in the maze, time and space are expanding.
The Seeker hides their secret fear behind a nervous laughter.
“Welp. Guess there's no going back now...”
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TO BE CONTINUED