Publication of the English version at Ipernity 15.12.2008


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A modern creation story for Jan and Janina



In a small country there lived a wise man
and in another much bigger country
there lived a wise woman.
Although they lived apart
they had the magical power
to communicate with one another
from the bottom of their hearts.

The man had a special
kind of knowledge,
something you can’t learn at school,
a kind of basic knowledge for living.
They knew where they came from
and where they were going to and,
above all, why they were living on this planet earth.

Jan and Janina lived in the same small country as the wise man.
They were very fond of each other,
indeed they loved one another very much.
They often said
how wonderful it
was that they had got to know one another.
“But where does our love come from,
where does life come from
and all the beautiful things around us?”

They asked themsel
They asked people far and wide
for an answer to their question
but nobody could give them a satisfactory answer.
“We don’t know either.
But why do you want to know this so exactly.
Just live as you are!”

But Jan and Janina were very sad about this answer.
They excused their friends by saying
that they were probably too young
and so not interested in such things.
So there was still a yearning for an answer
to their questions which grew and grew.

This yearning reached the wise man
and he decided to help them.
Then the wise man lived,
not by chance but due to a wise ruling,
near to the young couple.
One day the man decided to go for a walk.
After a while he sat down,
took out his bread and something to drink
and refreshed and fortified himself.

At the same time Jan and Janina,
who loved one another and so much
wanted to find out more
about their life and the world they lived in,
set out for their morning walk.

After a while they came to the place
where the wise man was sitting and having a short nap.
They didn’t want to disturb him
and had just decided to walk on
when the man opened his eyes,
blinked, smiled at them and, with a gesture,
invited them to sit down.

“You’re not disturbing me,” he said,
“on the contrary I have been waiting for you.”
The couple were astounded to hear this.
But they trusted this friendly man and sat down beside him.
They unpacked their sandwiches and ate in silence.
Then Janina opened a bottle of Coca-Cola ,
which they drank.

“Well,” said the man,
who had been watching them without saying a word,
“that’s not exactly the healthiest drink.”
“You’re right,” answered the young woman,
“but one doesn’t always eat and drink the healthiest things.”
And she sighed a little.

The wise man was, however,
already fond of the couple
and was happy that they were sitting next to him.

He looked at them full of love
and yet at the same time his thoughts
turned to past times which now awoke to new life.
As he spoke these thoughts
grew with an unaccustomed and refreshing clarity and vivacity.

“Yes,” he said,”
you’ve probably been wondering about
what I have just said.
I heard of your yearning for an answer to your questions
and so I made my way here and waited for you.
You want to know
about life, your love and the world around you.
I want to tell you
about these things in a story -
that makes explaining easier.”


“A long time ago
a great number of men and women
lived in a boundless and beautiful world.
The people had everything they could wish for.
They were happy –
but not as you would think,
that they just lived for the moment.
They had the desire
to make their world more beautiful and more varied.
As a result,
new worlds evolved
that were more beautiful than the ones before.

One day a couple said,
“We want to have children
and give them one of these worlds.
They should be happy, like we are,
and should make their world
as beautiful as we have done.”

And so this happened

They had children and they gave them this world.
The sons and daughters were happy
and were pleased with their gift
and, full of joy,
they told their parents
about their achievements and successes.
They were delighted and spread out all over their world.
As they became stronger
and got to know and understand more
about the secrets of their world,
they also became aware of their power.

That took a very, very long ‘time’ – unimaginable for you.

These people were also creative and keen to try out new ideas.
They had the same talent
as their parents and were pleased
to make new worlds.
Then, one day,
they decided to build a new world.
Full of zest they created the world in which you live:


Light and dark became day and night
High and low became mountain and valley
Hot and cold became fire and ice
Dry and wet became earth and ocean
Plants and birds, animals and fish
Man and woman.

They looked at your earth and found it
beautiful, strong and healthy ”

_____________________

For a while there was a silence
between the wise man and the two young people.

Then the wise man broke the silence and said,
” I have just shown you in very large steps
where you come from.
Now you know
where your world, your life and your love come from.”

The couple had listened to the man
attentively and with growing surprise.
A sigh of relief went through their whole bodies –
a calmness spread throughout their being –
like after a storm.
“Thank you for these unexpected and novel findings.
We shall have to assimilate this first” they said,
and added a little reluctantly
“Can we communicate with these people?”

“But of course, answered the wise man thoughtfully,
“every person has his own spirit.
With it you can perceive
what goes on in and around you.
And with this power you can reach these beings.
The question isn’t if they speak to you,
but rather if you hear ‘them’ and take notice of them.
Where do I have my knowledge, do you think?
If you want to
we can talk about all these things another time.”
“If you have time for us again,
we would appreciate it,” they said.

What we have talked about today is just the beginning,”
said the wise man.
He smiled at Jan and Janina
and watched them
until they turned a corner and disappeared from sight.

Then he stood up and was somewhat relieved.
For the first time he had explained
the beginnings of this world to people of this ‘time’.

And deep in his heart
he felt the smile of the wise woman
with whom he shared such a deep bond,
even though he lived in the small country
and she in the bigger one so far away.



Text and Fotos from Albert Jäger

Translation courtesy of Vicki Herrmann