musicology #201

teachings of billionaire YenTzu #11

(Ernest Wilson - Undying Love)

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penultimate cut of the Yen Tzu selection…

Kissing The Scorpion (following your true nature)

‘This will be ideal for my meditations,’ thought a wandering sage, seeking a cave in the wilderness. Upon entering it, however, he noticed the skeletal remains of many human corpses. Unconcerned, he sat down on a rock to rest from his travels.

‘How you answer will seal your fate!’ boomed a voice, and turning the sage saw that before him was a gigantic scorpion, the size of a large man.

‘As your questions have undoubtedly sealed yours,’ replied the sage calmly.

‘What manner of Man are you to be without trace of fear?’ demanded the giant scorpion. ‘For the nature of Man is to be afraid.’

‘Not so,’ answered the sage. ‘For in truth the nature of Man is to be in balance, and such a state comes when he has no fear of what life may confront him with, because he is in love with the true meaning of life. As my thoughts and actions have led me to this place, how can I fear it? To do so is to fear myself, which I do not, for I have only love for the person that I am.’

‘Then you are rare indeed,’ said the scorpion, ‘for the men who have come before you have been escaping from themselves, as one seeks to leave another within a loveless relationship.’

‘You speak as one who has experienced such,’ said the sage intuitively, ‘for your visage is not strong enough to hide the pain, frustration and indeed anger that you exude.’

‘It would seem that truthful perception is yours to command,’ answered the fearsome creature. ‘Because in truth I was as a man once, long ago, until my ruthlessness attracted a demon seeking a disciple. My resistance to it resulted in having my current condition cast upon me. But because what was left of my original nature was able to resist, the demon was compelled to allow my situation a reversal. Though little use it has been. For of all those who have approached my lair these past long years, none have caused the spell to be reversed.’

‘Because no doubt they must answer of their own accord and without direction,’ said the sage. ‘An accord distorted by their fear.’

‘Exactly so! and now you will forgive me if I become impatient to address the riddle I must ask of you!’ said the scorpion. ‘If you refuse to answer, cannot or your answer is wrong, then I thank you in advance for our debate, for afterwards it will be too late.’

‘Proceed as you wish,’ the sage said, ‘for it is of little consequence.’

‘Take heed though,’ advised the scorpion ‘that immediately after I have incanted my words I will be rendered helpless in order to allow you to make your choice. Although you are weaponless, there are many swords around you that are sharp enough to enable even the weakest of arms to slice off my deadly tail. And so:

‘When you embrace the most deadly, you overcome your worst fears;
When you act the least likely, there can be nothing but tears;
When you act from the heart and engage worthy might,
Then to the end from the start, you have held to what’s right;
Your balance to death will be as it is for your life,
To do one over the other, can bring sorrow and strife;
when you act as you do because you are as you be,
You will know if a kiss or a strike is the key.

‘Quickly!’ added the now motionless scorpion looking menacingly into the eyes of the sage. ‘You have the opportunity to strike me.’

‘My answer is as my action,’ said the sage and calmly outstretched his arms and kissed the creature on it’s evil-looking head. Immediately the scorpion was transformed and it was now a man that stood before him. With the spell broken, tears flowed freely down the large man’s cheeks and he fell at the feet of the sage in gratitude. As the sage helped him up, the large man said,

‘You chose correctly, yet why were you so sure, when the nature of a scorpion is to strike when face to face with it’s adversary?’

‘Because deep down you were still a man,’ said the sage, ‘and it is the true-nature of a man to love, not strike. And as the riddle implied, transforming you back into a man is the greatest risk to overcome, because Man can be more deadly than any scorpion. Acting in the least likely way of not seemingly protecting myself could only release your tears. Those tears a man has prior to his transformation and the tears of happiness that follow it. Furthermore because I am in a state of balance I can but only act in a right manner.’

‘I am indeed fortunate to have found such a natural individual to release me from my predicament,’ said the man.

‘Fortune has nothing to do with it,’ replied the sage with finality. ‘It was your own need to return to your true vocation that attracted you to me, and it was my own thoughts to test my own vocation that led me to you. All of us are interdependent of others whether we are aware of it or not. As such, all of us are both teachers and students, appearing as appropriate to one another when each is ready. That is how we can fulfil our true vocation. Learning how to express it effectively requires a state of balance. For only in such a state can we act as our true nature intended.’