He opened door upon door, and the boy became more and more afraid, he started cursing himself: Why have I asked him to teach me? This is not for me. If I can manage to survive tonight, finished – I don’t want to learn this art. It is beyond my capacity.

The man was doing things, so at home, and he took the boy into the innermost part of the house, opened a big cupboard and there were very costly things inside, valuable diamonds, very costly, and rare clothes. Everything was dazzling. The boy could not believe his eyes, that people have so much money.

The old man said, “Get in!” He got in and the old man went out and – it was such a great surprise – closed the door, locked it with the boy inside, and shouted “Thief! Thief!” and ran out!

The boy said, “Is this my father, or my murderer? And what kind of teaching is this? I was wondering if I could survive – now there is no possibility.” The whole house was awake. The servants were awake. People were searching every nook and corner, and a maidservant came into the room where he was inside the cupboard. He knew nothing of what to do, but spontaneously he started scratching on the cupboard…as if there are rats inside.

This was not a calculated act, it was absolutely spontaneous. Even he could not believe what he was doing. And the maidservant, just to look for the rats, because there were valuable clothes, opened the door. She had a candle in her hand, and the boy blew out the candle, and rushed out. But he was seen, so the whole family and the whole neighborhood followed him. He had never run so fast in his whole life – he could have become an Olympic champion the way he was going! – just like the wind.

It was a question of life and death, and he was praying to God, “This is the first and last time, just save me!”

Then suddenly he came across a well. He took up a big rock and threw it in the well – the whole crowd that was following him stopped. They thought he had jumped in the well: they had heard the sound, so they stopped there, and they said, “Now there is no worry. Either he will be dead, or in the morning we will pull him out and shoot him.”

And the young man reached his house, and again a great surprise: the old man is fast asleep, snoring! He could not believe that this man was his father! He shook him, and the father said, “Don’t disturb me. You have come back, that’s enough. I know the conclusion; the rest of the story you can tell me in the morning. There is nothing else to learn, I have given you my whole art.

“I am not acting out of mind. I am acting out of no-mind, in utter silence. It is my meditation. Just go to sleep.”