In the last post, the king of the south was prepared to go into battle again against the king of the north. But before he set out to make war he asked the merchant what wisdom he had for him.

“What wisdom do you have for me before we go into battle,” the king of the south asked the merchant.

“Food! You will fare well with food,” counseled the merchant. “Food enough I have, and then some,” replied the king. “But what good is food without drink?”

“Food is precious,” said the merchant. “Well, if food is so precious then that’s what I’ll pay you with,” laughed the king of the south. And so he did.

Once again the two kingdoms went to war, and once again neither king won. This time the soldiers of the south could not keep the battle because they were too weak from thirst.

So what did the kings do next? I’ll tell you next time!

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Waging Peace is adapted from a story by John Aurelio in his book Story Sunday.

Not long after the first battle between the kingdom of the north and the kingdom of the south, the merchant entered the kingdom of the south to peddle his wares. As he pushed his cart down the streets of the kingdom, he sang:

I have pots. I have pans. I have hammers and saws. I sell this. I sell that. But wisdom I give away free.

The king of the south heard that the merchant was in his land and had him brought to the royal court.

“I hear,” said the king of the south, “that in the kingdom of the north there is plenty of water.” “So it has been said,” replied the merchant. “Then I must go and take it,” said the king of the south, for my people have barely enough water to live on. Have you bows and arrows to sell so I can make war on them?”

The merchant smiled at the king and sang:

I have bows. I have arrows. But wisdom I give away free!

“I have no need of your wisdom now, merchant,” said the king of the south, “I need weapons so I can prepare my people for battle.”

So the king of the south bought bows and arrows from the merchant and for many months prepared his men for war.

When at last they were ready, he called the merchant to seek his advice.

What advice did the merchant give the king of the south? I’ll tell you in the next post!

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Waging Peace is adapted from a story by John Aurelio in his book Story Sunday.

In part one of “Waging Peace” the king of the north bought bows and arrows from the merchant and then asked him for the wisdom he had for the king. In this post we learn what that wisdom was. 

When the king of the north asked the merchant for his wisdom the merchant replied with a single word: “Water”  “What?” asked the king. “You will win the war with water,” was the merchant’s strange reply.

“That is not wisdom, that is foolishness,” laughed the king. “Water is precious,” responded the merchant. “Well if water is so precious, then I shall pay you with water, said the king.” So, the king of the north paid the merchant with water, and his army set off for battle.

The war between the kingdoms went on, but not for too long. For the king of the north and his men were weak from lack of food. Both kings returned home without winning. 

Next time we’ll see what happens when the king of the south encounters the merchant.

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Waging Peace is adapted from a story by John Aurelio in his book Story Sunday.

On the fifth anniversary of the war in Iraq this story adapted from Fables for God’s People by John R. Aurelio, is my way of protesting the war.

Once upon a time there were two kings. The king of the north ruled over a land that was cold, bare, and poor. It had nothing good to speak of except for –WATER–and that it had in plenty. The king of the south, on the other hand, ruled over a kingdom that was almost the opposite. It was rich, and the people lived well. But there was never enough to drink.

The kingdoms sat on two mountains with a valley between them. But the valley might as well have been a bottomless pit, because no one ever passed from one kingdom to the other, except, that is, for a merchant. He crossed the valley often as he went from one kingdom to the other selling his wares. As he pushed his cart along he sang a song:

I have pots. I have pans. I have hammers and saws. I sell this. I sell that. But wisdom I give away free.

One day, the king of the north asked the merchant. “Is it true that the kingdom of the south has more than enough to eat?” “So it has been said,” replied the merchant. “Then I must make war on them, for we barely have enough to live on. Have you bows and arrows for me to buy?”

The merchant smiled at the king and sang:

I have bows. I have arrows. But wisdom I give away free!

“Wisdom!” cried the king. “I have no need of wisdom. I need weapons of war!”

So the king of the north bought plenty of bows and arrows and trained his people for war. And when at last he thought them ready to do battle, the king asked the merchant for the advice he’d declined earlier.

What was that advice? Read my next post to find out!

Between two mountains lay a narrow one way bridge. On each mountain lived a man who commuted into the city on the opposite side of the opposite mountain. Some days the man from the western mountain would cross the bridge first on his way to the city on the other side of the eastern mountain. Some days the man from the eastern mountain would cross the bridge first on his way to the city on the other side of the western mountain. But one day both cars began to cross the bridge at the same time.

The two commuters met in the middle of the bridge. “We have a problem here,” said the commuter from the western mountain. “So it seems,” said the commuter from the eastern mountain. “I do not want to back up,” said the man from the western mountain. “Neither do I,” said the man from the eastern mountain.

“I’ll tell you what,” said the western commuter, “This time I will back up if you will back up next time we meet at the bridge.” “That sounds good to me,” said the eastern commuter. The eastern commuter backed up and let the western commuter pass.

Thus the two men passed peacefully and went on their way. Each could be heard on his cell phone telling his wife, “What a cooperative fellow he is!”

Between two mountains lay a narrow one way bridge. On each mountain lived a man who commuted into the city on the opposite side of the opposite mountain. Some days the man from the western mountain would cross the bridge first on his way to the city on the other side of the eastern mountain. Some days the man from the eastern mountain would cross the bridge first on his way to the city on the other side of the western mountain. But one day both cars began to cross the bridge at the same time.

Those commuters met in the middle of the bridge. Neither wanted to give way. “Move off!” shouted the commuter from the eastern mountain. “I am crossing this bridge.”

“Move yourself!” screamed the commuter from the eastern mountain. “I am crossing here!”

As neither would retreat and neither could move forward, they idled in anger for some time.

Then at last they locked bumpers and began to push. The cars were so evenly matched in size and horsepower that they succeeded only in pushing each other off the bridge. Wet and furious the commuters climbed from the river and stomped off with their cell phones in hand. Each could be heard to say to his insurance agent ”See what his stubbornness caused.”

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Stubbornness is the path to war.

Posts for the next few weeks will be stories to reflect on the topic of peace. We begin with a Zen Tale that teaches where war and peace begin. 

A soldier named Nobushige came to Hakuin, and asked: “I there really a paradise and a hell?”

“Who are you”" inquired Hakuin.

“I am a saumurai,” the warrior replied.

“You, a soldier!” exclaimed Hakuin, “What kind of ruler would have you as his guard? Your face looks like that of a beggar.”

Nobushige became so angry that he began to draw his sword, but Hakuin continued: “So you have a sword! Your weapon is probably much too dull to cut off my head.”

As Nobushige drew his sword Hakuin remarked: “Here open the gates of hell!”

At these words the samurai, perceiving the master’s discipline, sheathed his sword and bowed.

“Here open the gates of paradise,” said Hakuin.

A Zen tale found in Peace Tales by Margaret Read MacDonald

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War and peace both begin in the heart.