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mad! Can a lost camel be found on the roof? Think about it, how will a camel get up on the roof?"
A voice came from above: "Before calling others ill-mannered and mad, think about yourself. Is happiness found in wealth, or luxury, or wine and song? If happiness is found in wealth, in luxury, in wine and song then camels can also be found on the roofs."
Ibrahim was startled. It was the middle of the night but he got up, ran. He sent his men running to catch hold of him: that fellow seems to know something. But by then the man had slipped away. Ibrahim sent men around the capital to find out who the fellow was. He seems to be an enlightened fakir. What did he say? For what purpose did he say it?
Ibrahim could not sleep the rest of the night. While he was holding court the next morning, he was in a melancholic mood. The words had struck hard. He must have been someone like Janak. He was hit by the truth of what had been said. If this man is mad, am I intelligent? Who has found happiness in this world? I am also searching for it. Happiness is not found in this world and if it is, a camel can also be found. Then the impossible does happen, there is no problem. But who is that fellow? How did he get up on the roof? How did he escape, where did he go?
He sat lost in thought. He was holding court. Court was open, business was being discussed, but today his mind was not there. His mind had flown away somewhere. The bird of his mind had already flown off to some other world. As if renunciation had already happened! Just a small incident -- as if Ashtavakra himself had climbed up on his roof and spoken.
Just then he noticed there was trouble at the door. A man wanted to come in and was telling the courtier he wanted to stay in this caravansarai. And the guard was saying, "You are mad, this is not a sarai, this is the palace of the emperor. There are many sarais in the city, go and stay there."
But the man was saying, "I will stay right here. I have stayed here before, it is a sarai. Tell someone else this nonsense, you can't fool me."
Suddenly, hearing his voice, Ibrahim realized that this is the same voice and this is the same
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