 The Parable of the Holy Man There once was a small village within a forest of trees. Words started to spread amongst the people that there was a wise holy man who lived in a small house at the top of the mountain. One man truly wanted to visit the holy man, to ask him questions and get advice on his own life problems. And so he set out on a long and difficult journey to visit the man. He crossed the forests, mountains and rivers to seek him out. His journey was very perilous, but eventually he made his way. Once he was there, he knocked on the door and waited eagerly. The door swung open and he was greeted by an old servant. He told the servant he traveled all the way there to meet the wise holy man. The servant simply smiled at the man and let him inside the house. As they walked through the house, the man looked around curiously, waiting to see where he would meet the holy man. But before he knew it, the servant opened up the back door and let him outside. Confused, the man turned to the servant and told him again, Hey, I wanted to see the holy man. You already have, the old man replied. Everyone that you meet in your life, even if they appear plain, I want you to see each of them as a wise and holy man. If you do this, whatever problem you brought here today will be solved. This parable teaches us the lesson of don't judge a book by its cover. You never know who is who, who has suffered and who is full of joy. It's not our place to cast judgments on people that we don't know or on anyone for that matter. When we can hold the space of openness and empathy for everyone that we meet, it becomes clear that they are merely a reflection of us. Once again, we are presented with a lesson in managing our expectations. Anticipation of something may be greater than the thing itself, and many times, anticipation of looks is a mistake. Further, people often go searching for things like love and happiness and don't recognize them when they see them because they have spent their whole life searching. Sometimes the answer to our problems is right in front of us, right within us, if only we are present to them. Ultimately, this parable teaches us that we can see ourselves in everyone that we meet and that every step we take on our journey is significant. Everyone you meet in life may know something about life that you do not, no matter what their status or position is. Like the old saying goes, a wise man learns more from a fool than the fool from the wise man. Everyone just wants to be loved and accepted for who they are, and if you practice giving this love out to people, you will receive it back and come closer to inner peace.