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| The mountain had been always there. And there were people living at the foot of the mountain for such a long time that nobody remembered where they had come from. Because they had lived there for so long they knew their side of the mountain very well. But the only thing they knew about the other side were some old stories supposedly told by the few people, none of them alive anymore, who had claimed going up the mountain and seeing what was beyond it. Some of these old stories described a place of unimaginable beauty and abundance. Others painted a completely opposite picture of unspeakable horrors and desolation. Thus people never knew what to believe in and were always wondering what was really beyond the mountain. The only way to find out was to climb to the top and look at the other side. But they were all afraid of doing it because the mountain was so high and so steep that it seemed absolutely insuperable. Then one day a man said: "I don't know how all you feel about it but I can't live any more without knowing what is on the other side of the mountain. And my desire to find it out is stronger than my fear of climbing. I will try to go up the mountain and if I reach the top and am able to look at the other side of it I'll tell you all that I've seen. Just be patient and wait till I come back." Having said that the man went up, leaving everybody behind waiting at the foot of the mountain. It took him many days and nights but finally, overcoming seemingly insurmountable obstacles, he reached the top. Eager and excited, the man stood up and looked. But he saw nothing, absolutely nothing , because there was nothing to see. Before his eyes there was boundless emptiness. And the more he looked the more he felt the same boundless emptiness growing inside of him. Then he felt nothing... Some time passed. Suddenly the man remembered the people waiting for him below.. "I must return now and tell them the truth," thought the man, and he began to climb down. Though he already knew the path back, the man was so tired and weak that it took him again several days and nights till he got to the foot of the mountain. Only a few were still waiting for him. The rest had left a long time ago. But those who remained, the most stubborn and the most curious, were glad to see him back. Now their patience was about to be rewarded. "Tell us what have you seen, was it a paradise or a hell?" But the man was silent. He just looked at them saying nothing. And in his eyes they saw what can only be described as a boundless emptiness. Gradually the people become silent too. Then the man said: "I haven't seen anything. There was nothing over there, absolutely nothing." But the people wouldn't believe him. "How it is possible?" they started shouting. "There must be something over there, beyond the mountain. And what about all those old stories we've heard for ages. Some of them must be true." "I can't tell you anything about the old stories," shouted the man back. "All I know is what I've seen and I've seen nothing, because there was nothing to see on the other side of the mountain. I'm telling you the truth!" Then the people became very angry. "You must have lost your mind over there," cried they. "The hardship of climbing the mountain made you completely insane. Your truth is a truth of a madman." "Very well," replied the man. "If you don't believe me, let any one of you go up the mountain himself. Perhaps he will bring you the truth you would like." And then the man left. He was never seen again and soon was forgotten. Many years passed. The same people were still living at the foot of the mountain. And as their parents before them, they didn't know what was exactly beyond it. They kept hearing the same old and contradictory stories supposedly told by the few men dead for a long, long time by now. And they were also wondering which of these stories were true. But as the people before they were afraid to climb the mountain to find out. Then one day, just as it happened many years ago, another man said that his desire to know is stronger than his fear of climbing, and he went up the mountain. When upon reaching the top like the man before him he saw nothing but boundless emptiness, the man went back and told those waiting for him to return about it. And again, just like the man before him he was met with disbelief and anger, pronounced mad, and in a due time was also totally forgotten. Then many more years passed again, and yet another brave man striving for knowledge went up the mountain, had the same experience and suffered the same fate as the other men who had done it earlier, and all that had happened on previous occasions was repeated again. And then again, and again, and again... |
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