The Strange Noise In The Monastery

When a man was driving down the road and his car broke down near a Monastery, he went to the Monastery, knocked on the door and when a Monk appeared, he said,” My car broke down. Do you think I could stay the night?” The Monks graciously accept him, feed him dinner and even fixed his car. As he was about falling asleep, he heard a strange sound. So when the next morning he asked the Monks what the sound was, they said, “We can't tell you. You're not a Monk.” The man was disappointed, but thanked them anyway and went on his way.

Some years later, the same man had a break down in front of the same Monastery. And the Monks again accepted him, fed him and also fixed his car. And when that night he heard the same strange noise that he had heard years earlier, and he asked the Monks the next morning what the noise was, they replied, “We can't tell you. You're not a Monk.” The man then said, “All right, all right. I'm dying to know. If the only way I can find out what that sound was, is to become a Monk, how do I become a Monk?” The Monks replied, “You must travel the earth and tell us how many blades of grass there are and the exact number of sand pebbles. When you find these numbers, you will become a Monk.”

The man then set about his task. Some 45 years later, he returned and knocked on the door of the Monastery. And when the Monks opened the door, the man said, “I have travelled the earth and have found what you have asked for. There are 145,236,284,232 blades of grass and 231,281,219,999,129,382 sand pebbles on the earth.” The monks then chorused, “Congratulations! You are now a monk. We shall now show you the way to the sound.” They then led him man to a wooden door where the Head Monk said, “The sound is right behind this door.” The man reached for the knob, but the door was locked.

And the man said, “Real funny. May I have the key, please?” And a Monk gave him the key, and he opened the door. Behind the wooden door was another door made of stone. The man demanded for the key to the stone door, and a Monk gave him the key. He opened it, only to find another door made of ruby. He demanded and another key was provided. Behind that door was yet another door made of sapphire. So it went until the man had gone through doors of emerald, silver, topaz, and amethyst. Finally, the Monks said, “This is the last key to the last door.” The man was relieved to no end. He unlocked the door, turned the knob, and behind that door he was amazed to find the source of that strange sound. But he can't tell you what it is, because you're not a Monk. Don't be angry with me, because I am still looking for the guy who sent me this piece. Off to my church, to pray for you and yours.