Pleased with his success as peacemaker, Kovrin went in the park. As he sat pondering on a bench he heard the clatt of carriages and a woman's laughter - guests had arrived. j the shadows of evening fell across the garden he heard tl vague sounds of a violin, voices singing, which reminded hi of the black monk. Where, in what country or on what plan 20 was that optical absurdity wandering now.?
Hardly had he recalled that legend, conjuring up the dark spectre he had seen in the rye field when quite silently, without the slightest rustling, a man of medium height, his grey head uncovered, all in black, barefoot like a beggar, his black eyebrows sharply defined on his deathly white face, slipped out from behind the pine trees just opposite. Nodding his head welcomingly, this beggar or pilgrim silently came over to the bench and Kovrin could see it was the black monk. For a minute they both eyed each other - Kovrin in amazement, the monk in a friendly way, with that same rather crafty look.
'You're just a mirage,' Kovrin murmured. 'Why are you here, sitting still like that? It doesn't tally with the legend.'
'Never mind,' the monk answered softly after a brief pause, turning his face towards him. 'The legend, myself, the mirage are all products of your overheated imagination. I'm an apparition .. .'
'That means you don't exist?' Kovrin asked.
'Think what you like,' the monk said with a weak smile. 'I exist in your imagination, and your imagination is part of nature, so I exist in nature too.'
'You have a very aged, clever and extremely expressive face, as if you really have lived more than a thousand years,' Kovrin said. 'I didn't know my imagination could create such phenomena. But why are you looking at me so rapturously? Do you like me?'
'Yes. You're one of the few who are rightly called God's Chosen. You serve Eternal Truth. Your ideas, intentions, your amazing erudition, your whole life - all bear the divine, 21
heavenly stamp, since they are devoted to the Rational a the Beautiful, that is, to the Eternal.'
'You mentioned "Eternal Truth" ... But is that witl men's reach, do they need it if there's no such thing eternal life?'
'There is eternal life,' the monk said.
'Do you believe in immortality?'
'Yes, of course. A great, bright future awaits you hum beings. And the more men there are like you on earth, 1 quicker will this future come about. Without men like y serving the highest principles, living intelligently and free humanity would be worthless. In the normal course of eve1 it would have to wait a long time for its life upon earth come to an end. But you will lead it into the Kingdom Eternal Truth a few thousand years ahead of time - this your noble service. You are the embodiment of God's blessi which has come to dwell among men.'
'But what is the purpose of eternal life?' asked Kovrin.
'Like any other kind of life - pleasure. True pleasure knowledge, and eternal life will afford innumerable and im haustible sources of knowledge: this is the meaning of t saying, "In my Father's house are many mansions."'
'If you only knew how enjoyable it is listening to yo Kovrin said, rubbing his hands with pleasure.
'I'm very pleased.'
'But I know one thing: when you've gone I'll start worryi whether you really do exist. You're a phantom, a hallucir tion. Does that mean I'm mentally ill, insane?'
22 'Even if that were so, why let it bother you? You're
from overworking, you've worn yourself out. I'm trying to say that you've sacriĥced your health for an idea and it won't be long before you sacrifice your very life to it. What could be better.? All noble spirits blessed with gifts from on high have this as their aim.'
'If I know that I'm mentally ill, how can I have any faith in myself?'
'But how do you know that men of genius, in whom the whole world puts its faith, haven't seen ghosts too? Nowadays scientists say genius is akin to madness. My friend, only the mediocre, the common herd are healthy and normal. Thoughts about an age of neurosis, overwork, degeneracy and so on can seriously worry only those for whom the purpose of life lies in the present - that is, the common herd.'
'The Romans used to speak of mens sana in corpore sano.'
'Not all that the Greeks and Romans said is true. Height- ened awareness, excitement, ecstasy - everything that distin- guishes prophets, poets, martyrs to an idea, from ordinary people is hostile to man's animal side- I mean, his physical health. I repeat: if you want to be healthy and normal, go and join the herd.'
'It's strange the way you repeat things I think of myself very often,' Kovrin said. 'It's as though you spied out and eavesdropped on my most secret thoughts. But let's not talk about me. What do you mean by Eternal Truth?'
The monk did not answer. Kovrin looked at him and could not make out his face - its features had become hazy and indistinct. Then the monk's head and arms began to 23
disappear. His torso merged with the bench and the twilig: shadows, and he vanished completely.
'The hallucination's over!' Kovrin said laughing. 'A pity!'
He went back to the house happy and cheerful. Tl monk's few words had fl.attered not his pride, but his vei soul, his whole being. To be one of the Chosen, to ser' Eternal Truth, to stand in the ranks of those who, a thousar years ahead of time, would make men worthy of the Kingdo of God, thereby saving them from several thousand years ■ needless struggle, sin and suffering, to surrender, to surrend everything - youth, strength, health - to an idea, to be rea< to die for the common weal - what a noble, blissful destin The memory of his pure, chaste, hardworking past flash< through his mind, he remembered what he had learned, wh he had taught others, and he decided that the monk had n been exaggerating.
As he went through the park he met Tanya. She w: wearing a different dress now.
'So you're here,' she said. 'We've all been looking for yo looking everywhere . . . But what's the matter?' she asked surprise, studying his radiant, glowing face. 'How stranj you are, Andrey.'
'I'm contented, Tanya,' Kovrin said as he put his han< on her shoulders. 'I'm more than contented, I'm happ Tanya, dear Tanya, you're such a likeable person! De; Tanya, I'm so glad, so glad!'
He kissed both her hands passionately and went on, 'I'1 just experienced some bright, wonderful, divinc moment 24 But I can't tell you everything, because you'd call me mad 1
disbelieve me. Let's talk about you. Dear, wonderful Tanya! I love you. I'm used to loving you now. Having you near me, meeting you ten times a day has become a spiritual necessity. I don't know how I will cope when I go home.'
'Well!' Tanya laughed. 'You'll forget about us in a couple of days. We're small fry and you're a great man.'
'No, let's be serious!' he said. 'I shall take you with me, Tanya. Will you say yes? Will you come with me? Will you be mine.?'
'Well!' Tanya said and felt like laughing again. But she could not and her face came out in red blotches. Her breath came faster and she quickly went away, not towards the house, but further into the park. 'I hadn't given it any thought ... I hadn't thought .. .' she said, wringing her hands despairingly.
But Kovrin kept following her, still speaking with that same radiant, rapturous expression on his face, 'I want a love which will completely transport me, and only you can give me that love, Tanya! I'm happy, so happy!'
Quite stunned, she stooped, shrank and suddenly seemed to have aged ten years. But he found her beautiful and shouted out in delight, 'How beautiful she is!'
5
When he heard from Kovrin that not only were they enam- oured of each other, but that there was even going to be a wedding, Pesotsky paced up and down for a long time, trying 25