
Faraway Travel
A man I met in Poona
Soyeon, Yoon
It was when I was traveling to Southeast Asia. On arriving at the city of Poona, South of India, my Master said.
“Let the intellectuals of this city know that I am here.”
I traveled to and fro, without fear, to convey his message to strangers in the city of the unfamiliar country that I first visited. Puna is said to be a city of education in India, where there are lots of people who have an excellent reputation. As a result of the inquiries there, I found out that Poona University is famous for philosophy in India. I went to the University and knocked on the chancellor’s office. When the door opened, three was a man, who turned out to the chancellor later but I did not know the fact at that time. I asked him.
“Where is the chancellor?”
Then he answered.
“Why are you looking for the chancellor?”
I showed the master’s message and said.
“My master has come to Poona from South Korea. He wants to meet Indian intellectuals.”
He read the message and unhesitatingly arranged a meeting.
When we arrived at the chancellor’s office at the appointed time, two men welcomed us. One was the man I met before and the other one was a stranger. I asked the person I met before, indicating the other one.
“Is this the chancellor?”
He said no. I finally found out that the person I ment the first time was Gupte, the chancellor of Poona university. The other person was a professor of psychology at the university, and he was a very famous professor. I first introduced the master to them and then them to the master. The master introduced himself to them again.
“I am the truest person in the world.”
The master asked them some questions and then told them to ask questions if there were any matters they wanted to know.
The chancellor, Gupte, said.
“Can you tell me where my soul is?”
“Yes I can. However, before I speak of it, I would like to ask you a question. After hearing your answer, I will answer your original question so that you can understand it most easily.”
“What is your question?”
“Where do beans come from?”
“Don’t beans come from beans?”
The master smiled brightly and said.
“Yes, beans come from beans. However, from the standpoint of beans, since their roots are embedded in the ground they can tell differently. Your soul lies in you, just as beans are from beans, and your soul is made through your activity. And you will be reborn due to what exists in your soul.”
Doctor Gupte was very pleased with the master’s answer and said.
"A lot of people around us have tried to know about this, but we have not found the answer so far."
The chancellor and the professor had a long talk with the master. When the promised time came to an end, Gupte said to the master.
"The words you gave us today are very useful, and if you come to Poona again, I hope you will find me."
The master was happy to accept the offer and they saw us off politely.