Awakening to the Sudaon – The One Who Sheds the Impurity
Prologue: The Blind Elephant – The Beginning of the Wise Man’s Path
Four travelers were in the desert before dawn.
The one from the east bore a cross and spoke of the light of love.
The one from the west held a law code and preached the power of order.
The one from the south wore a robe and chanted the wisdom of the sky.
The one from the north held a sakaki branch and prayed for the harmony of nature.
They were all surrounding the same elephant.
But none of them could see the whole picture.
“This thing is soft. It’s like a snake.”
“No, it’s solid and immovable. It’s like a tower.”
“No, it spreads out like a fan.”
“No, it’s the earth itself.”
With each exchange of words, conflict arose, and the light faded away.
Suddenly, an old man stepped out of the silence.
Wrapped in white cloth, his eyes held a serene light.
“You are not blind. You only see part of it.
Love is part of the truth. Dharma is also part of the truth.
The sky, nature, and everything else are merely pieces of the elephant.
But when your heart is pure, the elephant appears as one.”
The four of them gasped.
The old man placed his hand on his chest and continued quietly.
“The method for opening these ‘eyes that see the whole’ is taught in the Agama Sutras.
It is the path to enlightenment—
it is engraved deep in our hearts as the Five Steps to Enlightenment.”
“Five steps…?”
As the Christian asked, the old man drew five circles in the sand with his finger.
“First, taking the precepts – the path to self-correction.
Second, attaining concentration – the path to purifying the mind.
Third, observing wisdom – the path to illuminating truth.
Fourth, embracing compassion – the path to embracing others.
Fifth, attaining enlightenment – the path to seeing everything as one.”
“Those who walk this path are called ‘Shudaon.’
One who sheds impurities and opens their true eyes –
one who transcends all religions and returns to truth itself.”
Dawn began in the desert.
A faint light rose in the eastern sky.
The four of them looked at each other and nodded slowly.
–And so it all began.
The journey of awakening to Shudaon had quietly begun.
