Mytheyma of Iany

STORIES ABOUT DARETHKHAT

Enon I 

Iany collected the true stories about the deeds of Darethkhat and wrote them down. Let them be edification for those who follow the same path. The life of the wise keeps the lives of the others. Darethkhat was faithful and did nothing vicious and that is why not only his acts are edification for good but he himself as well. He was born in the realm of Param, in a village. He had led a common life until he met the Teacher. And that day his life became like a tree that grew to a half as usual but then continued growing gold. He was such a disciple as one ought to be.

Enon II

The Teacher had died and his disciples were to bury him. There were three of them — Darethkhat and the other two. The two said: “We must pay the last respect to the Teacher. We should find a good place, dig a grave, face it inside with smooth stones, place the Teacher into it, make a man's height grave-mound, and mourn for him for three days at the foot of this mound.” Darethkhat said: “Listen to me. Do not render the Teacher any homage. Let us bury him in any place we shall find, put a plain tombstone above and do not stay beside him for three days.” They said: “You are not a disciple, but a jackal. Get away right now or else we shall kick you away.” He said: “The corpse of the Teacher is not the Teacher. His tombstone, his homage and he himself are his disciples. You are going to bury his teaching with him, but I shall take it with me. I shall be gone and you will stay, but in fact I shall stay and you will be gone.” He left and they did what they wanted. And it happened as he foretold – he remained faithful, and they preferred later to the teaching the former life.

Enon III

Once Darethkhat saw how a man was beating the other with a stick. He snatched the stick out of the offender and drove him away. Then he asked the beaten one, “Why has he beaten you?” The man answered: “We have been at enmity with each other for a long time. And today he was in wait for me and caught me all of a sudden.” Darethkhat asked: “If you catch him tomorrow, will you beat him the way he did?” The man answered, “Yes, I shall.” Then Darethkhat brought the offender back and returned him the stick. “Go on with your doing as if I were not here”, he said to him and left them.

Enon IV

One day some man abused Darethkhat calling him a fool. Darethkhat said: “If I am a fool, then you must be a wise man. So be my Teacher and teach me wisdom.” And he began to follow his offender everywhere bowing him and admiring his every word. If he heard a man asking something, he always said, “Ask so-and-so.” He exalted him in every way to everyone and sang songs of praise in front of his house. And he brought him the gifts openly ­­­­­­­­– now a dead dog, now rotten fruit, now stinking rags, now slops in a pot. And he kept saying: “No offence, Teacher – I present according to my stupid understanding.” He asked him in public the questions, which that could not answer. So the rumour of the great sage reached the neighbouring villages. People would come to look at him. Then they would say: “He considers himself a wise man, but he is not better than others.” And they began to laugh at him and bring to his house any rubbish and carrion and pour out the slops coping Darethkhat. And they jeered at him deriding his every word, even a clever one, and did not give him any trust. And his life became insufferable. Then he began to plead with Darethkhat for forgiveness. Darethkhat forgave him and said: “Henceforth do not abuse others if you are not better than they are.”

Enon V

Darethkhat found out that his wife was fornicating with his friend. He came to his friend and thanked him for his helping to know his wife better. As gratitude he gave his friend a goat. Then he thanked his wife for her helping to know his friend better. As gratitude he gave her another goat. Then he sent away his wife and renounced his friend.

Enon VI

Once Darethkhat said, “I shall leave the village.” His relatives persuaded him to stay. He asked them: “Why do you need me and why do I need you? I love you and you love me, but neither you do me any use and joy nor I do any to you.” They said: “Just stay with us and be a good relative, and that would do use and joy.” He answered: “A good relative is the one that does a good to his relatives. I could teach you good things, but you don’t want to. A smith cannot make pottery and a weaver cannot forge. Everyone has his own business, so have I – but my business is none of yours. What I can do – you do not want, and what you want – I do not care for. Hence, you do not need me. And I need nothing from you for I am a hundred times richer than you are. So why do we need each other? And good relationship is not a thread – if I leave, it will not tear.” And he left.

Enon VII

Once Darethkhat felt thirst on his way. He was looking for water and found out a lakelet two steps wide. Near that lakelet there was a man who had slaked his thirst before Darethkhat. When he saw Darethkhat, he urinated into the lakelet, laughed and said, “Drink.” Then Darethkhat threw into the water the silver he had on him. And the man got into the lakelet and began taking out the silver. And Darethkhat said: “Here I have known the baseness of a man for a little pay.”

Enon VIII

One day Darethkhat happened to meet a man who said that he was seeking happiness. Darethkhat said to him, “I shall show you happiness.” They came to the river, and Darethkhat washed himself, had some food and water, looked around and stretched his legs. Then he tied the man, blindfolded and gagged him and left that way for three days. Then he untied him. The man looked around, had some food and water, stretched his legs and washed himself. Then he said: “Now I know something I never did before.” Darethkhat said: “When you have happiness, you cannot see it. The one found happiness that got it back.” And the man returned his home.

Enon IX

One day a man asked Darethkhat to be his Teacher. He said, “I want to have wisdom.” “Why do you need wisdom?” asked Darethkhat. The man answered: “Wisdom is a great treasure; what man will not want to be wise?” “Why do I have to teach you?” asked Darethkhat. The man answered, “I shall give you a part of my property, which is not a small one.” Darethkhat said: “As I see you are going to trade wisdom. I do not need that kind of pay. Here is a riddle for you: if I give wisdom to you, others will receive it; if you give pay to me, others will receive it. If you solve it, I shall be your Teacher.” The man had been thinking for a long time and then said: “I cannot solve it for I am not wise yet and my mind is poor.” Darethkhat said: “It is not the mind of yours that is poor, but your conscience.” And he sent him away. Then he said: “What is the use of telling a deaf man about music?” And the point of Darethkhat's riddle is that a giver gives for the good of others, and a taker takes for the good of others.

Enon X

One day a man asked Darethkhat to be his Teacher. Darethkhat said: “I shall have to teach you for ten years or probably for twenty.” The man answered, “I agree – teach me.” Then Darethkhat said: “Carry me on your back up to the place where we shall spend the night.” The man put Darethkhat on his back and carried him. In the morning Darethkhat said, “Carry me farther.” Next morning he said the same. At noon the man said: “I shall not carry you any farther – you can walk yourself.” Then Darethkhat said: “You have not carried the Teacher on your back even for three days, but you want the Teacher to burden himself with you for twenty years. Your body has not ached for your Teacher even for three days, but you want his heart to bleed for you for twenty years.” And he sent him away.

Enon XI

One day Darethkhat happened to meet a man with a spear. The man said threatening him: “Give me everything you have; and take off your clothes.” Darethkhat answered: “Take everything; and take myself as well for I can be of use to you. I shall go with you and carry all I have with me and my clothes on me.” The man was astonished and asked, “Who are you?” Darethkhat answered, “I am Darethkhat from Sourm.” Then the man bowed to him and said: “I did not know you were Darethkhat. How can I redeem my fault?” Darethkhat answered, “Give up robbing.” The man said, “That is the thing I shall not do.” Then Darethkhat took his clothes and everything he had, put it to the man's feet and went farther.

Enon XII

One day Darethkhat came to a village. The people recognized him and showed him proper respect. In that village two old men were dying, one of them was rich and the other was poor. The rich one sent his servant to Darethkhat, and the servant said: “My master is calling you to his house. He wishes to leave you all that he has, for he knows that nobody will dispose his property better than you.” At the same time the poor one sent his neighbour to Darethkhat, and that man said: “My neighbour is asking you to come to him. He wants to taste the Truth before he dies." Darethkhat went to the poor man. The servant of the rich man said: “Leave him. He is not long for this world; why do you need such a disciple? Hurry up until my master is alive.” Darethkhat answered: “I do not go without the Truth and the Truth does not go for profits.” He came to the poor man and began talking to him. The rich man died two days later, and the poor man died eight days later. Darethkhat stayed with him until his very death and then went farther.

Enon XIII

Once Darethkhat came to the capital, sat down on the street and began eating a flat cake. A noble man seeing him on his way shouted, “Get away!” Darethkhat answered, “Don’t you dare to turn out the king.” The man got surprised and asked, “Are you calling yourself a king?” Darethkhat answered, “Yes, I am.” Then that man ordered his servants to seize Darethkhat, and they took him to amuse the king. The king said to Darethkhat: “There cannot be two kings in the realm.” Darethkhat answered: “There are not two kings; I am the only one.” The king asked, “How can that be?” Darethkhat answered: “You have power over everybody, but you have no power over yourself. You are a prisoner of your high position; but I am free and have power over myself. Therefore, I am more a king than you; and if there cannot be two kings, then I am the real one.” The king burst out laughing and said, “Let me have your realm.” Darethkhat said: “I cannot let you have the realm but the reign — I could.” Here realized the king that there was a sage before him and asked him to be his adviser; and Darethkhat agreed. And since then people had been talking about the king that even his realm he received as a gift.

Enon XIV

Darethkhat used to give a lot of good advice to the king, but the king refused listening. One of the grandees sneered at Darethkhat saying, “What a nice adviser!” Then Darethkhat began to sneer at him saying, “What a paunch you have developed!” The grandee took offence and shouted: “So this is what you are reproaching me with; you just envy my wealth!” Darethkhat said: “So this is the measure of notability. The one who is more notable is richer; the one who is richer gets more food; the one who gets more food defecates more. So it turns out that the one who defecates more is more notable.” Then he said: “I cannot reproach you with gluttony, but you are reproaching me with my failing in doing something good. You are the one who will never deserve such reproaches.”

Enon XV

One day the king asked Darethkhat, “Whether wealth is good or evil?” Darethkhat answered: “Neither one thing, nor the other. It will not corrupt a good man and will not reform a bad one.”

Enon XVI

Once the king asked Darethkhat, “Who is happier — a stupid one or a wise one?” Darethkhat answered: “A stupid one doesn’t know what the real happiness is and that is why he is happy the way he is; a wise one knows what the real happiness is and that is why he is happy the way he is as well.” Then he said: “That man is happy who has a sage as a friend, and that man is unhappy who has a stupid man as a ruler.” The king asked frowning, “So I prove to be a stupid man, don't I?” Darethkhat answered, “You are close to happiness.”

Enon XVII

Once a grandee, who was not in favour with the king, rendered him an important service. But the king did not reward him. Then Darethkhat put on some rags and began to walk about town begging. The people were surprised, but he was saying: “I am doing this not only for myself but for the king as well. He is even poorer than me: he has no even the rags. He is staying indoors naked being ashamed to show himself so I am begging for us both.” The king learnt about it and fearing disgrace rewarded that man and gave out a lot of gifts to the people.

Enon XVIII

One day Darethkhat happened to hear too much flattery addressed to the king. He walked off to the corner of the hall and defecated there in the view of everybody. Then he bent over his excrements and began to inhale the stench. The king got angry and shouted at him. But he pointed to the flatterers and answered: “Now I am more modest than they and happier than you.”

Enon XIX

Darethkhat decided to leave the king and go away. The king said to him, “Don’t leave - I need you.” He answered, “Come with me then.” The king said, “How can I come with you?” Darethkhat said: “If you need something of what I have — follow me; as for me - I need nothing of what you have.” He said so and went away.

Enon XX

A stupid man forced his apprenticeship upon Darethkhat. Darethkhat said to him: “So be it, sit down - I shall teach you.” The man did as was told, and Darethkhat sat down opposite and spent all day silently and motionlessly. In the evening the man asked, “Where are your edifications?” Darethkhat answered: “The best I can teach you — is keeping silence and doing nothing so that you may do no harm to anybody.”

Enon XXI

One day Darethkhat came to a large village. Some poor people let him in to spend the night. In the morning there came a servant of a rich man and said to Darethkhat: “My master wants you to be his teacher and invites you to his house. You will be well off while teaching him. Here, he sent you a roll of expansive cloth so that you may have new clothes for you done and dress yourself more decent before you come to his house.” Darethkhat took a dog and wrapped it up in that cloth. Then he gave the dog to the servant and said: “Take it to your master. He would not notice that it is not me.”

Enon XXII

One day Darethkhat stayed at the house of some man. That man said to him, “I want to be your disciple.” Then he said: “Take my house, my cattle and all I have.” Darethkhat said: “Wisdom can be neither bought nor exchanged.” The man said: “I am not buying you. I have no wisdom; I do not know what true good is. Therefore I have no use of what I have. If you do not want to take my gifts, I shall leave everything here and go with you. When I learn how a fortune can be of benefit, I shall begin to make it anew." Darethkhat said, “Wisdom — to wisdom.” That man became his devoted disciple.

Enon XXIII

One of the disciples asked Darethkhat, “What is a good disciple like?” Darethkhat answered: “His eyes are the eyes of a Teacher, and the eyes of a Teacher are his eyes. It is the one that would not waste a single breath of a Teacher. It is the one that a Teacher would be glad to live for. It is the one that does not tell the difference between the notions “Teacher”, “life” and “world”. It is the one that follows a Teacher even after his own death.”

Enon XXIV

By the end of his life Darethkhat had nine disciples. When dying he called the best three and talked to them. Having given them some edification he said: “Whose unfaithfulness was not exposed by my life will be exposed by my death.” And he told them to act in a certain way. When he died, people began talking to his disciples: “Have you no shame? Doesn't your Teacher deserve a funeral feast and mourning?” Then the six disciples gathered round his body and began to mourn over him crying and tearing their clothes. The other three seeing that, brought the dogs, which had been trained in secret, put them round and commanded them to howl. Then they threw them raw meat, and the dogs began devouring it. Seeing it two of the six took offence and went away, and the four were ashamed of their acts. This way there were seven faithful disciples left. Darethkhat said once: “The life of a Teacher and his death teach the same thing.”

The translator wished to remain anonymous