In a dark and damp room, he sits.
After months of grueling torture he has finally come to terms with this.
Initially when the judge announced his punishment, he was terrified and felt
he’s been wronged and that everyone was being harsh on him. But now, after
three months of thinking, he understands.
He was at ease with his judgment
now. For the past few days he felt a remorse as well. All the crimes he
committed, could have been averted if only he was taught the difference between
the good and the bad. But alas. He was an orphan who lived on the streets and
did odd jobs to make ends meet. There he met with people who introduced him to
the world of crimes. He was excellent in whatever he did and crimes were no
different. Petty thefts turned into robberies and then to murders.
Sitting in his cell, he cursed his
fate. He cursed God for killing his parents and making him an orphan. The more
he came to terms with his oncoming fate, the more he cursed God. He though all
his sufferings were because of him. And even though he turned more humane than
what he was when brought into the jail, he ritually performed the daily cussing
of his Lord. All of this was about to change soon though, when he saw a new guy
coming into the adjacent cell.
He asked the jailer who the man was
and why was he brought there. To his surprise, the man was to be put to the
gallows for teaching a new religion. “A
new God?” He thought. How could this be possible? In the free hours he
asked the man, who was looking rather content, why is he doing this knowing how
strict the king of the land is.
The man smiled and replied, “my friend, what’s the purpose of life if you
don’t do try doing something good for others and something that will peace to
them? I know the king is harsh and cruel. He oppresses his masses and the
people of this land need salvation. So I’m willing to do my best to give them
that. In whatever way possible”
He looked at the man with shock. He
couldn’t understand the calmness of those eyes when he knew they both were to
be hanged the following day! The man smiled again and continued, “I see your in doubt, but don’t be. I don’t
fear death, and neither should you, for only the body that wither. The soul is
ever lasting. It will after our deaths go back to the eternal being from which
everything you see is created! Our Lord!”
Laughing he asked if he was worthy
to be meeting his maker, as he has sinned throughout his life. The man
responds, “Why not. Everything meets the
maker in the end. No one is big or small, right or wrong, good or bad in front
of him. That is the only truth. Everything else around us is just an illusion,
a dream. All one can do is to be good to others so that unlike yourself right
now, one can die in peace.”
Finally understanding the meaning
behind the man’s words he quietly stood up and went back to his cell. The
entire day he kept to himself. He remembered as many wrongs he had done in his
life and repented each one of them. He too wanted to be at peace before he
died.
At dawn, he woke up to the sound of
the bells ringing in the courtyard. He knew his time was near. Tears welled up
in his eyes as he saw the man from the adjacent cell taken by the guards before
him. The man looked at him as he went by and smiled. Just then, his cell was
opened and he too was taken out. In the courtyard he saw two rope nooses on the
gallows. Suddenly the thought of dying along such a man gave him a sense of
pride and he felt maybe he too has a chance of salvation if he is killed
alongside him.
Both the prisoners were taken to
their respective positions. The noose tightened on their necks. The jailor
asked them if they had anything to say before the executioner pulled the lever.
He was at a loss for words. And just then he heard the man beside him say in a
soft tone, “Hallowed be thy name.” He smiled as if he had heard something
enlightening and said, “Hallowed Be Thy Name!!”