us forever in unbearable sadness.” They were almost inconsolable
at that point. In his great compassion, he sympathized with how
poor their community was. This they knew; yet they couldn’t help
but feel terribly miserable watching the cherished treasure over
whom they had faithfully kept watch for so many years slip away
from them forever. He was departing now, and there was nothing
they could do to prevent it.
As Ãcariya Mun was carried past, the sounds of their heart-
felt laments surged along the path, a tidal wave of grief inundating
the hearts of those who lined the route. As he passed by, every-
thing appeared gray and bleak, as though their lives had sud-
denly been snuffed out. Even the grasses and trees, though insen-
sible to the unfolding scene before them, appeared to wither up
and die in response. As Ãcariya Mun left the peaceful shade of
the forest sanctuary where he and his disciples had lived so con-
tentedly – a place where so many ordinary people had come to
find shelter over the years – the monastery suddenly felt deserted,
even though many monks still remained. Suddenly it no longer
had that enormous tree with the thick, broad foliage that had
always given so much peace and comfort to all who came to shel-
ter there. The heartrending, anguished cries of those wanting to
offer their undying devotion to the sãsana was an immensely sad,
forlorn sound indeed. They were witnessing the departure of the
one man who embodied the high ideals of their unshakable reli-
gious faith.
Long after the procession had passed through the village
and the sounds of inconsolable grief had faded into the distance,
hundreds of monks and lay people continued to walk behind his
stretcher, their long, drawn faces mirroring the somber, cheer-
jacob rumans
(Jacob Rumans)
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