Inner Peace Fables

The Mysterious Bear

There was a mysterious bear in the woods that many knew of but none had recently met. He was a character that most were aware of, but one that many feared to approach. He had a strange way about him, he seemed to have some kind of power, or powers, that normal bears did not have.

"That's one weird bear," some of the bears would say.

"He must be dealing with the witches of the next forest," others would say.

"Maybe he's a demon or something," was another idea they had...

This bear would walk along the woods and the trees would speak to him. Flowers would emit a stronger fragrance for him, fruits would drop at his feet if he was hungry, and the insects and fish would even sacrifice themselves for him! Fish would jump out of the water, land next to his big paws, and actually ask to be eaten. "I have had quite enough of this world," they would say to him, "I am soon to die anyway, Nature has said, and so I would be honoured to sustain your body in this world, since you are a great influence on the land."

And so the bear would gratefully sustain himself on the food Nature had provided, treating his meals with the utmost reverence and respect.

No one could understand. This bear didn't even seem to be asking for anything, and things would just drop at his feet!

The bears would always watch him from a distance, feeling both awe and an underlying fear of this mystical bear. No one from this generation of bears had ever actually approached him. They felt both attracted with their eyes, yet repelled by their bodies.

The bears of this world would always be hanging around in groups. It was very rare that you would see any less than four together at a time. To be alone was unheard of, except in the case of this mysterious bear.

One day, Lazarus, one of the younger bears, had noticed how much better this wise bear seemed to have it. The rest of the bears would sometimes be fighting or struggling to get food, arguing or feeling in conflict with things, and yet this distant bear seemed to have it so easy, and he looked so serene!

Lazarus was in a big group of bears – three large families – and they were in an open clearing in a pocket of the forest, sitting in an expanse of greenery with the forest edge surrounding them like a big horse-shoe, and in front of them was the huge crystal-looking lake which led into the river. The sun had been dancing on the water for hours, but now it seemed to be resting behind the grey clouds that were arriving above the lake.

In the distance, closer to the edge of the forest, Lazarus could see this lone bear sitting by himself in the grass. All the other bears knew he was there as well, and were feeling mildly unsettled.

"I'm going to ask him about himself!" declared the young bear, keenly interested in the secrets of this sacred figure in the distance.

"No!" the rest of the bears affirmed, "No, you aren't to go over there."

"Why?" asked Lazarus, not actually caring much for whatever the response would be.

"Because it's too dangerous, there are strange stories about that bear," replied his grandfather. "We have heard that only one bear has approached him, many many years ago, and when he returned from the meeting with him, he was no longer a bear. It was like he had completely lost who he was."

"But was he happy or upset?" asked Lazarus, slightly more interested in what his group had to say.

There was a pause. "Never you mind," said his grandfather, "you just stay well away from that bear. Anyway, what is wrong with our way of life? Is this not good enough for you? We live as bears should live, that bear over there is not a bear anymore. You stay here with us and we will teach you more about our ways and how to live."