________________
insects hummed their melodies. As he approached the top of a slope, the figure of Jewo Reval accompanied by his dog loomed up from behind a boulder.
He hesitated before the muni, then bowed slightly in reverence to him. Gurudev looked upon him intently. He raised his hands to give him the blessing "Dharma-labh May your
spirit prosper."
Then in a soothing and gentle voice, he asked him, "Who are you, brother?"
"I am Jewo Reval, the famous outlaw," he stammered. "Do you not recognize me?"
Gurudev silently gestured to him to follow as he walked a few yards ahead to a large banyan tree in an open clearing. Golden sunlight filtered down through its branches, making circular patterns on the earth where the pair seated themselves opposite one another. Jewo's dog rested contentedly by his side as his master gently stroked him.
At first Jewo put on airs and blustered, "Don't you know how dangerous I can be? Aren't you afraid of me?"
Gurudev calmly responded, "Why have you not harmed me? I feel no fear in your presence."
Jewo became a bit confused. Finally he answered, “Well, I would not harm you because you do not try to exploit people. You don't make any demands on me. So I have no reason to hurt you."
Gurudev assisted him with kind words and gestures to unload his heavy heart. He saw that Jewo had suffered pain, neglect, and injustice in his life. As a result, he had found satisfaction in disrupting what he viewed as a corrupt and hypocritical society. He discovered that Jewo's life had not been so different from that of Robin Hood!
Instead of a talk between a sinner and a saint, it was a dialogue between two currents of energy, one embittered, the other loving.
Gurudev asked him, "Have you ever felt love for anyone or anything in your life?"
Jewo replied with a scornful laugh, "Not I! I do not know what is love. What have I to do with love? I have no need for love. Who gave me love so that I could love?"
190
Jain Education International
For Private & Personal Use Only
www.jainelibrary.org
