Zen Stick

Amelia dragged the two of them to the rooftop for a discussion. Ayan stood with his head hung low, while Sonia avoided Ayan, staring into the distance. Watching them both, Amelia felt an incoming headache.

Not knowing how to pacify them, Amelia said, "Come on, let's forget what happened in the past and move forward with our plans, alright?"

Sonia looked pissed at Amelia, "Forget? Do you think I can just let it go? Would you be able to forget it if you were the one going through this?"

Taking a deep breath, she continued, "Amelia, I know how much you want to go with him. But, I'm sorry. I not taking part in it anymore. Let's stick with the original plan—it's better for all of us."

"Also, tell him to stay away from me. I don't want to see his face or anything related to him near me," Sonia added with an angry tone.

Before Amelia could respond, Ayan spoke quietly as he gloomily left, "If that's your wish then I'll leave today. I won't come in contact with you for the rest of your life. Farewell."

Watching the situation escalating beyond her control, Amelia felt as if she hit herself on her foot.

She ran off to catch up with Ayan. "Ayan, you shouldn't believe what she's saying. She's just too angry and saying things without thinking."

She grabbed his hand stopping him. "If you leave now, she'll definitely think you're a jerk who's not willing to face the consequence of his own actions."

Ayan stopped and turned his face conflicted, "Then, what do you think I should do?"

Amelia thought for a moment before suggesting, "Stay in another hotel nearby. After Sonia cools down in a few days, we'll figure out something to make things right."

Ayan nodded, went to his room, and left quietly.

With Amelia's help, Ayan tried every trick in the book using heartfelt letters, cool clothes, thoughtful gifts, her favorite flowers, and food. However, Sonia wasn't moved.

Amelia sighed to herself, 'Damn. Looking at how the whole events unfolded, I would have believed something really happened between them if I wasn't the cause of the whole incident.'

Fed up with this, Amelia decided to tell her the truth.

Frustrated, Amelia went to confront Sonia, "Come on, how can you brood over this matter for so long? It's not like he impregnated you or something."

Sonia shot back, "Being a woman, how can you say something like that?"

Amelia retorted, "Look at how sincere he is. How many things he's doing trying to please? How can you be so indifferent and not give him a chance to repent?"

Sonia scoffed. "I don't believe in the sincerity of an innocent-looking guy who secretly preys on women when they're vulnerable."

Amelia sighed deeply and declared her decision. "Anyways, I've decided. I'm going with Ayan. If you want to continue your mission, come with me otherwise feel free to leave. I'll tell them I forced you to leave."

Amelia was going to reveal the truth but surprisingly Sonia relented, "Alright, I'll come with you. But that doesn't mean I forgive him."

Amelia became joyful that the situation improved without the need to reveal the truth. "Alright, I'll make sure he understands that."

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The trio journeyed to a remote part of Tibet, arriving at a Buddhist monastery in the morning. The monastery complex had several distinct buildings including a meditation hall, dining hall, kitchen, library, and small quarters with bedding on the floor. The main temple was adorned with vibrant murals and intricate carvings.

A bell rang and they gathered in the dining hall with others and had a normal meal with them. They went roaming around the whole monastery throughout the day. People were engaged in various activities or steeped in meditation. But, surprisingly, they couldn't hear the voice of anyone speaking and nobody came to talk with them, ignoring them as if they didn't exist.

Fed up with the silence, they stopped a bright-looking monk joyfully walking in the grass.

Sonia whispered, "Why is everyone so quiet here?"

The monk, seemingly puzzled, smiled. "Isn't that normal? I thought monasteries were supposed to be quiet."

Sonia further asked, "No one came to converse with us. Nobody even asked us who we are despite knowing we're new."

The monk said with a grin on his face, "Here, nobody will ask you who you are?—not because they don't care for you. It's because the biggest thing about their life is to discover 'who am I?' If you ask a person 'Who are you?' as soon as they come—It's a big question. They don't want to embarrass you with such a big question."

Amelia interjected, "If they can't ask who we are? They could at least ask where we come from, right?"

The monk looked at her and smiled even brighter. "That, too, is a difficult question. You might say a country or from your mother's womb. But do you really know from where you came into this life?... So, they don't want to embarrass you with that question either. When a new person arrives, you don't ask them, 'Who you are?' and 'Where do you come from?' Tch... not much room for conversation. That's why they don't talk to you."

"Morning and evening there's a bell signaling lunch and dinner. If you want, you can go and eat. If you don't eat, nobody will come and say 'come and eat' because fasting is greatly respected here," he added joyfully and left.

The ladies conveyed the monk's words to Ayan.

Amelia turned to Ayan, exasperated. "Why did you bring us to this weird place? No one speaks, and it's like we don't exist! I don't think your master's here, let's go back."

But Ayan decided to stay, much to Amelia's dismay. A week passed, filled with silent days and Amelia's constant complaints. Then, one day, the trio were walking around to relieve boredom when they noticed something different.

A disheveled foreigner stormed into the monastery complex, muttering, "Monkeys, monkeys,…."

As the trio went near him, he looked at them and said, "Three monkeys…" and continued walking.

Intrigued by him, they went to converse with him and he started narrating his story.

"I wanted supernatural powers. Someone told me about a monk in Tibet who has all the supernatural powers and is willing to give them away. So, I traveled all the way from the far South to here. This place was very strange. Nobody asked me anything. When I became hungry, I ate and hung around. Three weeks passed away but nobody came to talk. After three weeks, the old monk here finally called me."

"He knew why I came. He said, 'What will you do with supernatural powers? I will teach you the way of meditation. With this, you can live a fruitful life.' In many ways, the monk tried to dissuade me, but I stood determined. He finally revealed three mantras to me," he added.

Amelia quickly interrupted him with the question, "What are those three mantras?"

He looked at her and slowly spoke.

'Buddham saranam gachami',

'Dhammam saranam gachami',

'Sangam saranam gachami'

"The old monk explained that I had to utter these three mantras three times over to get all the secrets of the supernatural. The only condition is when I'm uttering the mantra I should not think about a monkey."

"And?" Amelia asked eagerly.

"I went and took a dip in the river and sat down. As I started 'buddham…' a monkey came to my head. I tried various postures and methods but 'boo' I started and the monkey came. After one week of intense practice, now I don't have to do anything, inside, outside, everywhere in the universe is filled with monkeys for me."

"To hell with all the supernatural powers," he shouted. "I just came to get relieved of these monkeys."

The trio tried to do the mantra without thinking of the monkey but they realized they couldn't.

An old monk came to meet the 'monkey' man. He looked at the trio and asked, "Do you also want superpowers?"

"No," they said in unison.

Ayan understood that if he wanted to have superpowers, he needed to have some mastery over himself. With the monkey experiment, he realized how far he was from mastering his own mind. His determination to find a master who would teach him how to get mastery over himself, increased further.

The long meditation in the monastery didn't suit his current goals and the conditions given by the hermit didn't match so Ayan decided to leave for another place.

-----

They got into an ashram in India, where an old bearded master gave Ayan a knowing smile and said, "I'm not the guru you're looking for. Looking at your condition, if you want to learn from me, you'll have to prepare yourself for 12 years." Understanding the implications, Ayan bowed and left.

The trio reached a zen monastery in Japan. The surroundings were simple with small buildings surrounded by meticulously maintained gardens, featuring rock gardens, koi ponds, and carefully pruned bonsai trees inspiring mindfulness and reflection. The architecture of the buildings was simple with wooden structures, tatami mats, and sliding shoji doors.

One monk guided them to the Zen master. They were talking peacefully while sipping tea when the Zen master abruptly grabbed the bamboo stick beside him and hit Ayan on his head.

Ayan jumped in pain trying to keep his distance but the zen master chased him with equal speed and gave him a barrage of hits. He finally jumped into a river and escaped. Looking at him escaping, the zen master showed a regretful face.

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Six months went by as the trio visited many different countries meeting several strange masters each with their own quirks but Ayan couldn't find his master.

"How can you put up with these weirdos? You even didn't complain when that old guy hit you black and blue with the bamboo stick," Amelia quipped.

"The only thing I know is that mystics never harm another person. I don't understand how but after the wounds healed, I actually feel much better than before. Maybe he was trying to help me. I regret that I didn't let him finish," Ayan answered truthfully.

"What nonsense are you saying? I think you're getting more muddleheaded continuously meeting these psychos," Amelia rebuked.

Despite the oddities of their journey, their bond grew stronger. Sonia, though still appearing distant, began to soften toward Ayan. Sonia spoke in concern, "How long are you going to search for these strange mystics?"

Ayan thought for a moment and said, "Let's go and visit this oracle in Europe. After that, I'll stop looking for mystics in this world."

But silently, he added to himself, 'And start searching for them in the worlds beyond'.