THE DERVISH AND THE SLEEPING MAN UNDER THE APPLE TREE - By Mevlana Rumi

The Dervish and the sleeping man under the apple tree.

by MEVLANA – RUMI

Once there was a man sleeping under an apple tree.

He was sleeping very deeply, sound sleep like a baby. He was even snoring.

Not very far was a Dervish riding his donkey slowly slowly moving.

He had seen the sleeping man under the apple tree who was sleeping and snoring.

Suddently he catched sight of a snake sliding nearby the sleeping man.

He tried to accelerate his donkey but the snake was fast, so fast that in one second he had squeezed into the sleeper’s mouth. Yet the sleeper’s sleep would continue uninterrupted by this intrusion ! The man continued to snore!

The Dervish as fast as possible ran close to the man, jumped down his donkey and started to energically shake the sleeping man:

“Wake up brother ! wake up!”

but the man does not understand anything, and continues more or less to sleep. The Dervish shakes him stronger and stronger.. the sleepy man looks at the Dervish totally dazed.. as if stuck somewhere ...

The Dervish thus shakes him definitely stronger, takes him to stand up, hits him, but the man stays like stupefied by what happens to him... totally dazed still ...

So the Dervish takes roten apples that lie on the ground all around and forcibly put them in the man’s mouth... the man slowly slowly starts to surface... the Dervish continues to force the man to eat those atrocious roten apples ... then the man starts to really wake up and rebels reacts ...

He manages to mutter in between the apples he is forced to swallow

“Who are you ??? what are you doing to me? “

But the unruffled Dervish continues to treat hardly and mercilessly the ignorant who now resists and  fights...

Now the Dervish has taken the man by the back and pushes him to run and run around the apple tree.. the man runs and falls and runs again, moaning and complaining....

“What do you do to me?? who are you then ???”

Without listening even a word the Dervish continues, pulling pushing the man, shaking and hitting him more and more ...

Ultimately the man falls down, exausted and ... brings up  ...the snake !

“Oh! what is this ?” he shouts totally dumbfounded..

“This animal was in my belly!? and you treated me like that to make it come out then ?” he understands rapidely..

“Oh you are my Saviour! let me bow down to your feet.. my Saviour”

But the Dervish is already gone.. gently riding his donkey..

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Like this the Divine Life who sometimes “mistreates” us .. it is only to help us bring out the hidden and unknown “poisons” which are in us...

Yogic vision ... Sufi vision ..

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Om Tat Sat