The Answer Lies Within
News to those of us who believe the answers are “out there”
A tale about a rabbi and his death, as written by Michael Meade, author, mythologist and storyteller, in the book, “Fate and Destiny.”
“It’s like the story of an old rabbi who lay upon his deathbed as the final hour drew near. His name was Zushya and he had lived a long and meaningful life. He was a holy man who had studied scholarly texts and been a teacher for many years. He was widely known and greatly respected; more than that, he was revered and loved by his students for his honesty and wit.
“Now that the time had come, many of his faithful students gathered to share in his final moments. When they asked how it felt to be at the door of death, the old teacher told his students the truth of the situation. He explained that with the hour of death approaching he feared having to face God. ‘I am afraid,’ he said, ‘of God’s final justice. I fear that I will be punished in the world to come.’
“The students were shocked; how could such a thing be possible? Their teacher was an exceptional religious leader who had taught them generously and guided them wisely. Now, it was the students who began to reassure the teacher: ‘Rabbi, you are a pure and righteous man. You have shown the leadership of Abraham, the courage of Jacob, the vision of Moses, and the moral fortitude of the greatest profits. What do you have to fear in facing God?’
“With diminishing breath Zushya replied to his students, ‘I’m not afraid that God will ask me, ‘Zushya, why were you not more like Abraham? Why were you not more like Moses?’ I can answer honestly that I did not have the God-given abilities of Abraham or the talents of Moses. But, if God asks me, ‘Zushya, why were you not more like Zushya?’ for that I have no answer at all!’
“In so saying the good rabbi passed into the world that waits beyond this one.”
This tale reminds us that it’s better to enter the question of one’s life while still alive.
We can only answer for the life we have lived. While living, did you become your true self? In the end, we can only answer that from within.
