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twenty-four hours' time, please. And if I can convince one journalist to go to hell then one place will be vacant, that you can give to me. Just twenty-four hours' time, otherwise I will go to hell."
St. Peter saw the logic of it and he said, "Okay, you can try."
And the journalist tried. And journalists are experts in lying. Truth is not their business, truth cannot be their business, because truth is so simple and so plain. You cannot make any story out of it; there is nothing much in it. It is simply so. Lies are very complicated and you can make many stories out of them, and you can go on making stones from one story to another. But in the foundation you need a lie, not truth.
The whole art of journalism is the art of Lying in such a way that people think it is true. So he was an expert. He started spreading a rumor. The moment he entered he started saying to people, "Have you heard that a new newspaper, a very big project, is being started in hell? The chief editor is needed with a great salary and all facilities. Assistant editors are needed, news reporters are needed." And he spread so much rumor around in twenty-four hours' time that when he came back to the door to ask St. Peter, "Has any journalist left for hell?" St. Peter closed the door and said, "You get in! Now you cannot get out. All the twelve have escaped! Ant we should have at least one journalist in case something some time happens. So now I cannot allow you out."
The journalist was mad. He said, "This is not right! This is not according to our contract; I had asked only for twenty-four hours. I want to go to hell!"
St. Peter said, "Why? For what? -- because you spread the rumor. It was all Lying! You invented it!"
He said, "Yes, I invented it -- but there must be something in it when twelve journalists have believed it. There must be something in it! It may be a coincidence that I invented it and there really is going to be the beginning of a big newspaper. I cannot stay here! When twelve people have believed it... a great doubt has arisen in me. Maybe it was not a lie at all."
This you can experience in your own life. Start telling a lie to a
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