An Old Story, Well Loved

The story, 'The Three Hermits', by Leo Tolstoy, has stayed with me through the years. It is based on a legend, current in the Volga district, in Russia, and apparently has a historical basis. The island, where the three hermits are said to have lived, exists in the mouth of the Dvian river. I have recounted it so many times to my children and friends and yet each time, it causes a lump in my throat and moisture in my eyes. This little story brings out clearly the distinction between organised religion and spirituality, which wells up straight from the heart. It expresses the power of the simplest of all prayers - 'O Lord, have mercy upon me' and the wonders that can be wrought by it. Sri Ramakrishna has also advocated the use of this prayer, and it is the prayer, closest to my heart.

The Three Hermits

A Bishop was sailing from Archangel to the Slovetsky Monastry, when he overheard a group of pilgrims, pointing towards an island in the distance and talking. On enquiring, they told him about the three hermits , who lived on the small island for the salvation of their souls. Intrigued, the Bishop decided to visit them and was rowed to the island. As they neared the shore, the Bishop saw three old men: a tall one with only a mat tied around his waist, a shorter one in a tattered peasant coat, and a very old one, bent with age and wearing an old cassock -- all three standing hand in hand.

When the Bishop got down from the boat, the three men bowed. He gave them benediction and they bowed still lower. He asked them about their methods of seeking salvation, the prayers they used and the tallest one replied that they knew only one prayer, "Three are ye, three are we, have mercy upon us." The Bishop smiled and said that that was not the right way to pray. He would teach them the way in which God, in His holy scriptures, has commanded all men to pray to Him. He then began teaching them the Lord's prayer "Our Father, Which art in heaven."

The Bishop spent the whole day, teaching them the prayer, making them repeat it again and again till they finally got it right. It was evening, when he took leave of the men and they all bowed down to the ground before him. As he left in the boat, he could hear the voices of the three hermits, loudly repeating the Lord's prayer. After some time , the island disappeared from sight, and only the water, shimmering in the moonlight could be seen all around.

As the Bishop sat on the deck, looking out at the sea, he saw something radiant moving towards the ship, at great speed. When the apparition came closer, he saw to his amazement, the three hermits coming along, hand in hand, gliding on the water.When they reached the ship, they began speaking in one voice, "O servant of God, we have forgotten the prayer you taught us and have hastened to ask you to repeat it."

The awed Bishop shook his head,"Dear ones,"he said humbly,"continue to live with your old prayer. It is not for me to teach you."

And the Bishop bowed low before the old men. They turned and went back across the sea and a light shone till daybreak at the spot where they were lost to sight.