Chapter 18 -2

He and the moon experience disappearance and rebirth together, as if by their own mysterious power.And so whenever the moon seemed to have undergone some extraordinary misfortune, to show signs of sickness and danger, to show signs of injury, to seem to have dimmed its color, diminished its brilliance, or even nearly extinguished and became pitch black, Knecht would It feels like experiencing it personally and being terrified.Of course any man would sympathize with the moon at such a moment, would tremble with fear, would have seen in its dull color the imminent doom, and would have gazed worriedly at the sickly old countenance in the sky.

However, Knecht, the man who calls the wind and rain, has a particularly close relationship with the moon at this very moment, and learns more from it than others.Although he shares the fate and pain of the moon, and the moon is closely related to his heart, his memory of similar experiences is clearer than others, and he has preserved more and better than others, which also builds his confidence. , which made him firmly believe in the eternal rebirth of the moon, and strengthened his confidence in correcting and overcoming the inherent concept of death.But more importantly, such moments heightened his devotion to devotion.Knecht often has a wish at this moment, to share fate with the sun, moon, and stars, and to live together with death. Yes, sometimes he will make up his mind almost arrogantly and recklessly, to fight death with the power of his heart, and to fight against death with his own strength. Dedicated to a destiny beyond humanity to strengthen this self.This spirit was more or less manifested in his manner, so that others were aware of it, and therefore regarded him as a learned and pious saint, a man of great peace of mind and not too afraid of death, a man in harmony with the way of heaven. People who walk hand in hand.

Knecht had to prove his talent and character in many difficult tests.At one point he had to contend with a two-year-long crop failure and bad weather that was the biggest test of his life.During the first year, the date of sowing was repeatedly postponed by repeated signs of disaster, followed by successive misadventures which damaged the crop until at last it was almost completely destroyed.Everyone in the village suffered from hunger, and Knecht was no exception.Knecht was able to get through this unfortunate year without losing faith and influence, and he was able to help the tribal people survive this natural disaster in a restrained manner. This fact in itself shows his achievement.

In the second year, after a severe winter that froze many villagers to death, the disasters that happened last year repeated again, and after entering the summer, it was a continuous drought, and the tribal fields were dry and cracked under the scorching sun , rats multiply horribly.Neither the solitary prayers of the weather-maker, nor the public ceremonies of the whole tribe, with drums and choruses, or even processions in processions, had any effect.When brutal facts prove that the prayers of the rainmakers are ineffective, things are not trivial.He is no ordinary villager, he has to take responsibility, he has to face terrified and angry people.For two or three weeks, Knecht was completely alone and helpless. He had to face the entire tribe, the famine and the despair of the people, and the traditional belief that only by sacrificing the master of the wind and rain could he regain the power of the gods in the sky. understanding.Knecht also thought about this way of winning by obedience.He did not object to the idea of ​​sacrificing the individual, and he had expressed his attitude in his prayers.In addition, he has used unimaginable hard work and sacrifice to help the villagers alleviate their plight, and he has repeatedly discovered new water sources and found new springs and streams.Even in the worst moments of disaster, he prevented people from slaughtering animals.What is more important is that he helped the female ancestor in the village who succumbed to the disaster and fell into despair at that time. He used advice, advice, threats, magic and prayers, and shocked her with his exemplary behavior, protecting her from the weakness of her soul. The whole tribe completely collapsed.The situation at the time showed that a man like Knecht was needed even more when a catastrophe made people panic.The more a person can establish a transcendent spiritual awareness in life and thought, the more he can learn to reverence, observe, pray, serve and sacrifice.The two years of hard work almost cost him his life, but in the end he gained even more respect and trust. Of course, not everyone knows this, but the few who bear the responsibility of tribal leadership do admit that his value.

In this way, Knecht passed year after year of constant trials, and finally reached the stage of a mature man, reaching the peak of his career.He presided over the funerals of two female ancestors; he lost a beautiful son who was snatched by wolves when he was six years old;He had been hungry and he had been cold.All the disasters left traces on his face, and branded them in the depths of his soul.At the same time, he also experienced from his own personal experience that it is unbelievable that a thoughtful person will be criticized and opposed by ordinary people.People do respect them from afar, and turn to them for help in times of misfortune and calamity, but they never regard them as their own and love them, but are afraid to avoid them.In addition, he also knew from experience that when people are sick or in trouble, they would rather accept spells and incantations for healing or relief than listen to rational advice; Self-censorship or self-censorship; people believe in magic instead of reason, and in secret recipes instead of experience.All these phenomena have continued for thousands of years to this day, just as some historical records have concluded: basically there is no change.However, Knecht also learned at the same time that any thinking person who is good at thinking must never allow himself to lose love, he must be kind to the wishes and stupidity of ordinary people, he must not be superior, but he must not be dominated by them.The wise man and the liar, the missionary and the magician, the helper and the parasitic eater, are often just one step away.Ordinary people would rather pay liars and be exploited by magicians than accept generous and selfless help.They would rather give money and goods than love and faith.They deceive each other, and would rather deceive themselves.Knecht had to realize that human beings are weak, selfish, and cowardly creatures, and he also had to admit that he also shared these human beings' bad characteristics and instinctive impulses.But, in spite of this fact, he should have the faith, and nourish and nurture his soul, with the confidence that man is also a soul and loving being, and that in him dwells a creature contrary to his instinctive impulses. stuff that drives people to desire self-purification too.However, all these ideas are obviously not a problem for Knecht, but seem to be useless for him.We can think of it this way: he has already embarked on this path, and one day, he will walk from this path to his goal, and even surpass this goal.

Knecht is walking on this road, exploring forward according to his own thoughts, however, he lives in the awareness of sensations, in the charm of the moon, in the smell of herbs, in the salty smell of tree roots , in the taste of bark, but also in the cultivation of herbs, in the preparation of ointments, he devoted himself to the cause of climate and atmospheric change, and cultivated many abilities in this area, some of which are no longer mastered by our descendants Ability no longer fully understood. The most important of all abilities is, of course, praying for rain.Even if Knecht also suffered from the special situation of God's obstinate rejection of him, and seemed to have taunted him coldly, making him useless, Knecht had successfully prayed for rain hundreds of times, and every time he Each case is almost slightly different.Of course, he didn't dare to change or abridge in the slightest during the sacrificial ceremony, reciting the mantra, and playing the drums.But all this is only part of his public and official activities, his priesthood, which of course is beautiful and brings him joy, especially after he has done a day of sacrifices and ceremonies. At dusk, God finally gave in, the sky was overcast with dark clouds, and the moist wind blew until the first raindrops fell.However, everything depends on the skill of the weather maker, who can choose the most suitable day. If you act blindly, the result is just a futile effort.

People can pray to the sky, yes, they can even challenge it, but people must have a sincere heart and obey the wishes of the sky.For Knecht, this kind of experience of winning victory through prayer is actually far less in line with his own mind than his inexpressible experience of more sensory knowledge than reason.Knecht’s various conditions of the climate: the tension of air and temperature, the formation of wind and clouds, the smell of water, earth and dust, the threats or promises expressed by the weather monster, the emotions and temperament expressed, Knecht always I like to feel and test with my own skin, hair, and all senses first, so as not to be frightened by any unexpected situation, nor to be discouraged by unexpected situations.He gathers all kinds of changes in the climate in his heart, and he masters them as much as possible, so that he has the ability to control the changes of the wind and clouds. Nesit was able to completely eliminate the difference between the objective world and himself, the outside world and the inside.At such moments, Knecht was intoxicated with joy. He stood and listened with ecstasy, squatted and waited quietly. He not only felt how the wind and cloud shared life in his heart, but also felt that he could command and transform They are like we can reproduce and recite a piece of music that we are very familiar with from our hearts.So, Knecht only needs to hold his breath—then the sound of the wind or the thunder will be silent; he only needs to nod or shake his head—then the hailstorm will pour down or stop; Xie wither,—then the clouds in the sky scattered in all directions, revealing the bright blue sky.At certain times, he feels particularly confident in predicting the weather in the next few days, as if he has the infallible prophetic ability, as if the overall score of the outside world has been written in his blood precisely and carefully, and everything in the outside world must follow this The music scores are performed one by one.These were his good days, his greatest reward, his greatest joy.

However, if once this internal connection between the inside and the outside is interrupted, the climate and the outside world become strange, incomprehensible, and even more unpredictable, then his own inner order is also disturbed and becomes chaotic, so he So he felt that he was not a real master of making wind and rain, and felt that it was a mistake and a mistake to let him take the responsibility of climate forecasting and sowing grain.At these times, he is very home-loving, caring and caring for Ai Dai, trying his best to share her housework, making toys and tools for the children, running around the house to prepare potions, and at the same time, he is particularly eager for other people's love. Caring, just wanting to be exactly like other men as much as possible, minimizing differences in customs or other aspects, and even patiently listening to the gossip of wives and women next door, even if it is just to slander other people's lives, conditions and A boring story of right and wrong.But once his season turned around, it was rare to see him in his house again. He had already gone out to fish, hunt, and search for tree roots. He lay on the grass or squatted among the bushes, sniffing and listening. Then, he imitated the calls of animals, he lit a fire to compare the difference between smoke clouds and clouds in the sky, and he let his skin and hair be moistened by mist, rain, air, sunlight or moonlight.Knecht was also like his master, Old Toulou, who always collected all kinds of substances whose appearance and substance seemed to be irrelevant. He felt that they seemed to allow him to glimpse the wisdom or mood of nature, so as to figure out the nature of nature. A small number of laws and secrets of creation, these substances always embody the unity of two diametrically opposed things, for example: a tree tumor has a human face or an animal face; general; petrified animal figures of primitive times; misshapen or twin fruit pits;

Pieces of stone shaped like a human kidney or heart.Knecht carefully studied the vein symbols on a leaf and the net-like lines on a fungus block to speculate on all the mysteries, spirituality, future and possibilities of the outside world. In the meaning of aura, he transforms the infinite and the many into simplicity, incorporates them into the system, and forms concepts.For everything in the world is already in his mind by the way he grasps the world with his mind, and all things are indeed nameless and unnameable, but conceivable and possible, not beyond the power of human premonition, though still in the embryo Condition, however, does mean a lot to him, has become a part of himself, and is growing organically within him.If I go back a step further, beyond the time of the master of the storm, into a past that seems so remote and primal to us thousands of years ago, we shall find—and we are sure of it—that People at that time were the same as today, although they were not yet civilized, they already had an inclusive heart.

We, the Stormmaker, can neither gain immortality through our premonitions, nor further confirm our premonitions.He became neither the inventor of writing nor the geometer nor the founder of medicine or astronomy.He is only a nameless link in this long chain, and yet as indispensable as any other important link.He inherits the past and inspires the latter, and he also supplements the experience gained from his own struggle for the latecomers.Because he also has his own students.During these years he trained two disciples who were going to become masters of the Wind and Rain, one of whom later became his heir.

For many years he performed his duties alone, with no one to see the mysteries of his work, and then—after a severe harvest and famine—a boy appeared, who began to visit him frequently, to observe him, to adore He, and stalking him everywhere, is a kid who yearns for mastery of skill and desire to become a master.Knecht felt a strange and painful throbbing in his heart. The important experience of his own youth was recurring again. At the same time, a kind of heart-wrenching and clear harsh feeling emerged spontaneously: his youth was over. Gone, the days of prosperity are past, the flowers have borne fruit.What surprised Knecht was his attitude towards the child, which was almost the same as that of old Tulu towards him back then.This indifference, refusal, procrastination, and hesitation are entirely instinctive, just like the deceased. In fact, he has no intention of imitating the deceased teacher, nor is it out of moral education considerations, such as: the young offspring must be taught for a long time. The test is to examine whether he has enough seriousness; people should not easily let the younger generation enter the mysterious palace of the industry, but must let them suffer hardships, and so on.It’s not true. Knecht’s attitude towards the boy is very simple. It’s the attitude of a lonely and learned eccentric elder towards a student who admires him. Interrupted in solitude, that freedom to roam the wilds, to hunt alone, to gather herbs, to dream, to listen, he poured too much passion and love into all his habits and inclinations, all his secrets and thoughts.Doubtless he should welcome the boy who approached him timidly with reverence and curiosity; no doubt he should help him and inspire him to overcome his timidity; , It is the recognition and affirmation of his achievements from the outside world, because the outside world finally sent a special envoy to him and presented a declaration of support, expressing the pursuit and flattery of the outside world to him, indicating that someone is attracted to him and wants to learn from him In response to mystical calling, I served it.However, Knecht's reaction was quite the opposite. He first felt that this was an annoying interruption, which interfered with his daily habits and authority, and compromised his independence.For the first time in his life, Knecht felt how much he valued this independence and freedom.He instinctively resisted the boy's pursuit, and he tried every means to outwit the boy. He concealed himself, erased his whereabouts, and made it difficult for others to figure out himself.However, what happened to Tolu in the past is now happening again to Knecht. The young man chased after him silently for a long time, which gradually softened Knecht's determination and melted away his resistance. Yes, even the more territory the child gained, Knecht's heart became more inclined to to him; Finally, he opened his mind completely, treated the child’s request kindly, accepted his hospitality, and finally regarded the often extremely tiring responsibility of recruiting apprentices and teaching as his new task, which was his destined and indispensable spiritual mission. Knecht is getting farther and farther away from his fantasies day after day. He gradually bids farewell to dreams and the endless pleasure of exploring human possibilities and futures.Instead of this boundless dream, instead of accumulating thoughts of wisdom, there is a young disciple standing beside him, a small, urgent reality, an intruder and disturber, but he no longer avoids and rejects this child, because This is the only way to the future, the only place of his great responsibility, and the only way in which the life, deeds, thoughts, consciousness and imagination of the Stormmaker can survive death and be preserved and continued in a new little germ Unique trails.Knecht sighed, gritted his teeth, accepted the young disciple with a slight smile. An important issue in Knecht's job, that is to say, one of his most important missions, is to cultivate and educate the talents of his successors. For this, the master of wind and rain had to endure all kinds of heavy disappointments and difficult trials pain.The first student to court him was named Marlowe, and after protracted delays and refusals he finally accepted the boy, but Marlowe was never able to fully resolve his disappointment.The boy was subservient and flattering to him, and for a long time was simply docile.However, this child always made Knecht feel that there was something lacking. First of all, he lacked courage and was afraid of the dark. He tried to hide this defect from the teacher, but Knecht still noticed the truth.Although Knecht still looked forward to and observed for a long time, thinking that it was a remnant of his childhood, which would disappear sooner or later.But in fact it always exists.This young man also completely lacks the gift of devotion. Whether he treats the observation work and research work within the duties of calling the wind and rain, or conveys thoughts and imaginations, he is all selfish.Marlowe is very smart and responsive, and he can learn everything easily, and he will learn it immediately.However, he has also increasingly revealed a selfish motive, even learning the ability to make rain and wind is no exception.What he pursues first is to get ahead and become an important figure in society. He has the vanity of a capable person, but lacks the sense of mission of a genius.He always wins the applause and applause of others, and always shows off the fur knowledge and little skills he has just learned to his acquaintances—of course, this may just be childish, and it will improve sooner or later.But he seeks more than applause, more than power, in order to gain the advantage of dominating others.When the master discovered these problems, he couldn't help being shocked, and slowly withdrew his love for this young man.After studying with Knecht for several years, Marlowe made two or three serious mistakes.Unable to resist the temptation of the gifts, he did not tell his master, and did things without authorization. One time he used medicine to cure a seriously ill child, and the other time he went to a hut to chant a spell to drive away rats without the master's permission.Although he was seriously warned by his master and promised to correct himself, Maro still repented and refused to change. When he repeated the same mistakes again and was caught by the master, the master not only fired him, but also reported his bad deeds to the female ancestor. This ungrateful and delinquent boy was completely cleared from his mind. Knecht's two later students made up for this shortcoming.Especially the second of them—his own son Toulo Jr.He especially liked this youngest student, who was also his last disciple, and believed that little Shanglu would achieve greater achievements than himself in the future. He obviously felt that little Tulu's grandfather's soul had already lived in his body. Knecht felt a strong sense of satisfaction that all the knowledge and beliefs he had accumulated had been passed on to the future ones.He has a definite successor—his son, ready to relinquish power at any time should he be unable to take responsibility himself.Yet the first student who was expelled was still living within the confines of his work and hadn't been completely out of his mind.This Maro was now a well-known figure in the village, a well-liked and somewhat influential man, though not widely respected.He married, entertained the villagers in a sort of vaudevillian clown fashion, and even became the lead drummer in the drum band.He has always quietly opposed the master of wind and rain with jealousy, always waiting for an opportunity to hurt Knecht with big and small slanderous words.The weather shaker never makes many friends, he needs to work alone and be free.Knecht never pursued the love of others, and he himself only paid attention to Master Tulu when he was a boy.Until this time, he finally tasted the taste of being hated and opposed.This fact influenced many of his later good times. Marlowe, who should have been one of those very fine pupils, always made his teacher unhappy and saddened by his unfounded faculties and his lack of inner feeling.His talents were not based on a strong organism, on noble marks such as good nature, healthy blood, and industry, but on a very accidental factor, yes, it may be said that it was acquired by robbery, Or it can be said that it was obtained by stealing without any effort.A pupil of low character, who is brilliant or fancy, will leave his teacher in a difficult position, bewildered. A teacher who should be bequeathing to his pupil his own inherited knowledge and methods, to enable him to assist him in his soul-work—yet the teacher cannot but be troubled by the fact that perhaps his real and more important duty is precisely Strive to defend the arts and sciences from the encroachment of those who are gifted but not virtuous.For the duty of a teacher is not merely to serve the students, both the teacher and the students should be servants to the work of their souls.This is why some teachers fear and reject some brilliant talents.Any student of this type always misinterprets the whole meaning of teaching as serving students.In fact, any education and promotion of a certain class of students who only know how to get ahead and who do not serve means to undermine the very truth of service in its very nature, and is an act of betrayal of the soul.We know from the history of many countries that whenever these countries are in great disorder and the soul and mind are in deep crisis, there must be a large number of immoral and talented people in power. leadership in the government.These capable men sit securely in all the important offices, but think only of governing, and know nothing of service.It is difficult to recognize such geniuses correctly, once they have laid the foundations of their professional positions, and it is even more difficult to send them unceremoniously back to unimportant and soulless positions. Difficult.Knecht also made this mistake. He tolerated his apprentice Marlowe for too long. It is a pity that he imparted some secret wisdom of his profession to an ambitious and superficial villain.This incident brought him heavy consequences that he could not have foreseen. Time passed by, and Knecht's beard was almost gray.For one year, it seemed that the good order between heaven and earth was being frantically disrupted by a demon of immense strength and cunning.The accident happened in the autumn of that year, and everyone in the village was terrified to death by the horrible sight.Not long after that day when day and night were equal—a spectacle to which the weather-maker has always absorbed himself to observe and experience with solemnity and reverence—a phenomenon that no one had ever seen arose.One evening, the sky was high and the clouds were light, the wind was blowing, and the climate was cool; the sky was bright and transparent like glass, with only a few small floating clouds floating high in the sky, and the rose-colored glow shone on the earth for a long time. much longer than usual.The afterglow of the setting sun floated across the cool, pale universe like a dreamy beam of bubbles.Knecht has been feeling strange weather for several days in a row, which is much more intense and strange than what he felt in the days when the days gradually shortened in previous years.Knecht felt that the gods in the sky were moving, the earth, plants, and animals were all terrified, the air was full of tension, and something restless, expectant, fearful, and full of foreboding was wandering in the whole nature, Even those fiery sunsets that linger long in the evening belong to this singular sight.The direction of movement of those light beams is exactly opposite to the direction of the wind blowing on the earth. They struggled for a long time to maintain their own existence. The pale red light became cold and faded sadly, and the father suddenly disappeared. That evening, the village was very peaceful. The children who gathered in front of the ancestral hut to listen to stories had already dispersed. Only a few boys were still chasing and playing nearby. The other villagers had already returned to their huts, and most of them were After dinner, many people have even gone to bed, and few people are watching the red clouds in the sunset, except for the master of wind and rain.Knecht was pacing back and forth in the small nursery behind his hut at the moment, he looked nervous and uneasy, and was very worried about the abnormal weather; occasionally he would sit in the grass on a stump for chopping firewood for a while, Take a break.When the last cloud disappeared, stars suddenly appeared in the still bright blue sky, and the number and brightness increased rapidly. Just now, there were only two or three faintly, and suddenly there were ten, twenty.Knecht was familiar with many of these constellations, individually or in groups.He had seen them hundreds of times.The perpetual return of the stars to the sky gives people a sense of reassurance, the stars bring people comfort, although they are far away, hang coldly high in the sky, without a warm light, but they are constantly arranged, proclaiming order and heralding continuity. No change, they are reliable.The stars seem to be indifferent and distant to the life on earth and human life, seem not to be touched by the warmth, tremor, pain and ecstasy of human beings at all, and seem to be mocking condescendingly with their own cold solemnity and eternal existence In the world, the stars are still related to us, and may always guide us and rule us.Therefore, anyone who has more or less human knowledge, spirituality, spiritual stability and superiority will understand and grasp the impermanence of the world, and will quietly radiate coldness like the stars in the sky. The brilliance of life, soothing people with shocking coldness, will look at the world with a slight irony forever.This is how the Stormmaker often feels when he looks at the stars, even if he doesn't feel the stars like he does with the moon, that great and intimate moist disc, that fat devil fish that swims in the ocean of space. Relationships so close, so exciting, so eternally changing, yet he respected them deeply, and linked many of his beliefs to the stars.Knecht looked up for a long time, letting them affect him, presenting his spirituality, warmth, and worries under their cold stares. This feeling often made him feel as if he had taken a bath or drank A dose of refreshing medicine was given. The stars tonight seem to be the same as usual, but they are surprisingly bright, as if they have been severely polished in the thin and hard air, but Knecht does not feel at ease in his heart, nor can he entrust himself to them. He felt that somewhere there was a force pulling him, this force was stinging every pore of his body, sucking his eyes, hurting him continuously silently, it was a strong air current, a warning Sexual vibrations. In the thatched hut next to Knecht, the warm and feeble fire flickered dim red light. The hut showed a warm life, a cry, a laugh, a yawn, filled with the smell of human body, skin The warmth of the mother, the love of the mother and the sleep of the child, this warm scene close at hand deepens the concentration of the night, pushes the stars to a higher and farther place, and pushes them to an incredible height. Just as Knecht was listening to Aide whispering a tune in the hut to lull the child to sleep, a catastrophe that had not been seen in the village for many years suddenly appeared in the sky.Sparks flickered here and there in the silent and luminous web of stars, as if flames were igniting the normally invisible threads of this vast web.Then, the stars fell down one after another like stones being thrown, one after another burned red and slanted across the space, then quickly extinguished and disappeared without a trace, here is one, there are two, here are a few more, or Before the eyes left the first batch of disappearing stars, and before the heart that stopped beating in fright at the sight resumed beating, the stars that slanted down or fell in an arc turned into clusters of lights At this point, thousands and hundreds of stars began to fall, and countless constellations seemed to be driven by a huge and silent storm, slanting across the silent night sky, as if the universe was experiencing an autumn wind, and the stars were blown from the sky like yellow leaves. Scraped off the trees, blown into soundless nothingness.The stars, like dry yellow leaves or fluttering snowflakes, fluttered and fell in thousands in eerie silence, disappearing among the mountains and forests to the southeast.Since the villagers can remember, they have never seen a star fall, let alone know that the star will disappear without a trace. Knecht was dumbfounded, as if his heart had froze. He raised his head high and stared at the terrifyingly deformed sky with fear and dissatisfaction. He didn't believe his eyes, but the terrifying scene in front of him But it is a solid fact.Anyone who has been there will think that this is the well-known stars themselves shaking, scattering, and falling. Knecht also thinks the same. He predicts that the space will soon become empty and dark, and he himself has long been captured by the earth. engulf.In fact, of course, he recognized after a moment that all the familiar stars hung in the same places, here and there, everywhere.This scene of falling stars did not happen among the well-known stars, but appeared in the middle of the sky and the earth. This group of novas that fell or were thrown out quickly appeared and disappeared quickly, and the light they emitted also It is very different from the color of the old stars that people are familiar with.Knesh felt a little comforted, and his heart calmed down again.Yet the presence of these stormy points of light, or even fleeting novas, was still sinister, ominously chaotic.Knecht could not help but let out a deep sigh from his thirsty throat.He stared at the ground and listened, wondering if the ghastly drama was only his own delusion, wondering if others saw it too.It was not long before he heard terrible groans, screams, and cries from the neighboring huts. Yes, there were other people who witnessed the disaster, and their cries woke up the sleeping people, who were still ignorant of everything, and in a blink of an eye, the whole village fell into a state of panic.Knecht accepted the fact with a heavy sigh. This ominous event hurt him the most, since he, as the master of the weather, was, of course, somewhat responsible for the weather.For many years in the past, Knesi has always been able to predict or detect the imminent disasters, such as floods, hailstorms, and storms. Every time he was able to warn the mothers and the elderly in every household to take precautions, he used to Having prevented the most terrible disasters many times, he used his knowledge, courage, and trust in the gods of the sky to resolve the despair of the villagers.Why did he have no prior knowledge of this question, or even no arrangement?In fact, he also had a vague warning premonition, why did he keep silent? 克乃西特揭起茅屋入口的门帘，轻声呼唤他妻子的名字。她走过来，怀抱着他们最年幼的孩子。他接过孩子，放到草席上，他握住艾黛的手，伸出一根手指按在嘴唇上，示意她别出声，随即带领她走出了茅屋，看到她那副温柔沉静的脸容猛然间吓得变了样。 “让孩子们睡觉吧，他们不该看见这种景象，听见了吗／他斩钉截铁地说。 “不要让一个孩子出来，包括土鲁。连你自己也待在屋里吧。” 他犹豫了片刻，考虑是否再说几句，是否再吐露一些想法，最后却只是坚定地对她说：“这情形对你和孩子不会有什么事的。” 她立即表示相信，虽然脸容和心情还未从惊吓中恢复正常。 “这是怎么啦？”她问，再度瞪视着天空。“情况很糟糕吧？” “是很糟糕，”他柔声回答，“我的确认为情况非常糟糕。不过对你和孩子们不会有什么损害。你们都留在屋里，把门帘紧紧放下。我现在得到村民们那里去说说情况。进屋去吧，艾黛。” 克乃西特把文黛推进茅屋，细心地拉紧门帘，面对着持续不灭的星星雨，在门日又忙立了片刻。然后，他垂下了头，心情沉重地叹息了一声，急匆匆穿过黑夜，走向女祖宗的茅屋。 这里已聚集了半个村子的人，人群中充满了一种沉闷的气氛，因为恐惧和绝望而形成的麻木不仁几乎使人群陷于神志不清的状态。有些妇女和男人，自感大难临头而向不知来由的感官欲望投降了，听任自己的怨气胡乱发泄；一些人好似丢了魂，呆呆地站立不动，一些人四肢颤抖着，好似已丧失了控制能力，一个妇女口吐白沫，独自跳起了一种又淫荡又显示绝望的舞蹈，一边还用手扯拉着自己披散的长发。克乃西特清楚反常气象已经在发生作用了，村民们几乎都丧失了理智，好似中了纷纷坠落的星星雨的邪毒，都发疯了。一场疯狂、愤怒和自己毁灭自己的悲剧也许即将发生。现在到了集合几个勇敢而又有头脑的人来加强全体村民勇气的时候了。 女祖宗看上去很镇静。她相信全村的末日已经来临，一切都已无法挽救。她面对既定命运，露出了一副近似嘲笑其辛酸苦涩的坚定而又冷酷的面容。克乃西特试图劝说她，给她指出那些恒常出现的星星仍旧高挂在天空。然而女祖宗没有接受忠告，也许是她老眼昏花，无法看清那些星星，也可能是她对星星的观念以及对待自己与星星的关系上和克乃西特的看法迥然不同。她摇摇头，始终保持着自己狰狞的冷笑，而当克乃西特请求她不要听任村民们陷于着了魔的恐惧之中时，她却立即赞同了。一群害怕得要命，总算还没有疯的村民这时围到了女祖宗和呼风唤雨大师身边，打算听从他们两人的指挥。 克乃西特本想趁此机会通过实例、理智、言论、阐释和鼓励的办法，引导村民摆脱恐慌。然而，女祖宗的一番简短讲话让他明白，想挽救局面为时已晚。他原本希望能够与其他人分享自己刚刚获得的经验，想把观察所得作为礼物赠送给大家，他也衷心希望说服大家首先看清实况，真正的星星并未坠落，或者至少是并非所有星星都坠落了，也不会有什么宇宙风暴把星星一扫而光。他原本以为可以帮助他们从惊恐绝望转变为积极的观察，惜以顶住这场灾难。但是克乃西特很快发现收效甚微，全村没有几个人肯听他的解释，他刚以为说服了几个人，另一些人却又完全陷于疯狂状态。无法可施，这里的情况就如同常常发生的情况一样，人们听不进任何理智的和聪明的话。 克乃西特庆幸自己还有别的办法。如今想用理智去化解人们这种吓得要死的恐惧，显然绝不可能了，但是设法引导人们的恐惧感还是有可能的，组织他们，赋予他们以正确的形貌，从混乱的疯狂绝望状态转化为坚定的统一状态，让这些不受控制的狂呼乱喊转化为集体的合唱。克乃西特立即作出决断，也立即付诸行动。他走出几步站到这群人前面，高声念出人人熟悉的祈祷词，这是当年为悼念每位刚过世的女祖宗举行的公开哀悼仪式，或者为疾病流行和洪水泛滥而举行祭献和忏悔仪式时，必须大声念诵的祷告词。克乃西特高声叫嚷着有节奏地念着这些祷词，边念边拍着手以加强节奏感，而且合着节奏、叫喊和拍手，不断作着弯身动作，先弯身向前，几乎触到了地面，接着向后退，伸直身子，接着又弯身，接直又伸直，他反复不停地念诵着、运动着，顷刻间就有十个，二十个村民加入了他的有节奏的动作，就连站在一旁的年迈女祖宗也合着节奏喃喃念起了祷文，还以微微躬身的形式参与了大家的仪式。从各家茅屋里又涌出了许多村民，也都毫不迟疑地加入了这个有节奏有灵魂的典礼之中。那几个恐惧得失去常态的村民，这时也大都不再乱动，而是静候在一边，另一些人则跟上了喃喃的合唱声和有节奏的虔诚敬神行动。克乃西特成功了。一批丧失理智的绝望疯子，变成了一群虔诚悔罪和准备献祭的村民，他们愿意互相鼓励，愿意把畏死的恐惧深深锁进身体里或者至少只在自己内心里发泄这种恐惧感，他们有秩序地加入了大合唱，让自己和这场祈祷典礼的节奏保持一致。 这场仪式显现了许多不可思议的神秘力量，其中最强大的力量表现在人人强化了的协调一致，表现在大家的团体意识，还有就是它的不容置疑的医疗作用，用节奏、秩序、韵律和音乐。 与此同时，整个夜空始终下着流星雨，像由无数静悄悄光滴组成的人工瀑布一般从大空倾泻而下，巨大的红色光滴还持续了足足两个钟点之久，然而村民们的恐惧已转化为恭顺和虔诚，转化为祈求和悔罪之情了，已经进入秩序之中的人们能够以神圣的和谐协调来对付人类的弱点了。这奇迹早在星星雨尚未减弱，变得稀少之前便已发生了，奇迹治愈了村民。当天空渐渐平静下来，似乎已经恢复正常时，精疲力竭的村民们人人都有获得拯救的感觉，他们的祭献仪式平息了天上众神的怒气，使太空恢复了秩序。 村民们没有忘却这个恐怖夜晚，整整一个秋天和冬天总是不断议论这件事。然而不久以后，人们不再用满怀恐惧的语气，而用了平常口吻，并且像是在回顾描述一场人们曾经勇敢抗拒，并最终获得胜利的灾难。人们议论着种种细节，每个人都以自己的方式描述这场吓人景象的怪异之处，每个人都想做第一个发现者。有些村民甚至敢于取笑那几个当时特别惊恐的人。很长期间，这次事件都是全村的热烈话题：村子里出过大事，人们经历了大灾难啊！ 克乃西特从未参与议论，也不像他们那样逐渐淡忘了这件大事。对他说来，这次不祥的经历是一种不可忘却的警告，是一根始终不断刺激他的芒刺。对克乃西特而言，不能因为大难已经过去，已经通过列队祈祷、忏悔祭献得到化解，而把事情置之脑后。时间过去越久，克乃西特反倒越益感觉灾难的重要性，因为他已赋予了整个事件以重要意义。这幅奇异的自然景象，显示了形形式式人类前景的无穷无尽、巨大艰难的问题，谁若亲眼目睹整个事件，也许值得他花一辈子时间进行思索。 克乃西特知道村里只有一个人会和自己持有类似观点，也会用类似目光来观察星星雨景象，这个人就是他的儿子和学生土鲁。唯有这个人也曾是目击者，才可能证实或者校正他自己的观察，也才可能影响自己的观点。但是他当时让儿子在茅屋里睡觉，后来他越是久久地思考自己为何这么做，为何不让唯一可作为证人和合作者的儿子一同观看这场奇异景象，就越是深信自己的做法正确，是一种顺从聪明理智的行为。克乃西特只想保护家人不面对这场吓人景象，包括这个徒弟兼同事，因为他最爱土鲁。所以他向家人隐瞒了星星的坠落现象，不让观看。克乃西特那时候信仰善良的睡眠之神，特别是年轻人的睡神。尤其他知道自己绝不会记错，就在上天显示灾象的最初时刻，他便认为并不会立即危及村民的生命，却是当即感到是一个预示未来灾难的恶兆，这恶兆与任何他人无关，仅仅涉及他呼风唤雨大师一个人。 某种危险和威胁已在与他职务相关的领域内出现了，不论今后再以何种形态出现，他都将首当其冲。让自己对危险保持警觉，当它来临时予以坚决反击，让自己的灵魂时刻作好迎接的准备，却绝不让自己受到羞辱，这便是他的决心。正在临近的可怕命运需要一位成熟的勇敢男子汉去对付，因而，倘若把儿子也牵扯进去，让他跟着自己受苦，或者成为知情人，也许是很不妥当的，虽然他对这个年轻人评价很高，却难以预料，一个缺乏考验的无经验青年能否受得了。 他的儿子土鲁当然闷闷不乐，因为睡觉而错过了这么一场伟大经历。不管有多少抚慰解释，也无论如何抵不了这千载难逢的大事，也许他一辈子也不会再遇上类似的情况，因此土鲁有好一阵子对父亲非常不满。而克乃西特对他日益增多的关怀终于消融了这种温怨。老人逐渐比以往更多地将土鲁带入自己的一切事务之中，更不厌其烦地训练土鲁的预测能力，竭尽全力要把他培养成完善的继任者。克乃西特仍旧很少和儿子谈论那场星星雨，却日益越来越毫无保留地让他窥视自己的一切秘密，一切实践，一切知识和研究成果，允许他陪同自己出巡，研究自然现象，进行实验，这是克乃西特迄今以前从未让人参与的事情。 冬天来了又去了，那是一个潮湿而又暖和的冬季，既没有星星坠落，也没有任何不寻常的大事。村子里太平无事，唯有猎人们频频出门狩猎，他们茅屋旁的木杆上挂满了一捆捆冻得铁硬的兽皮，在寒风里吹得嘎啦嘎啦作响。人们在雪地上铺一条光滑的长木板，满载着木柴从森林里拖回家中。恰恰在这个短暂的冰冻时节，村子里死了一位老年妇女，人们挖不开冻土，只得把冻硬的尸体停放在自家茅屋门口，直到许多天后，土地略略解冻，才举行了葬礼。 第二年春天，这位呼风唤雨大师的预测首次得到印证。那是一个特别糟糕的春天，由于月亮的反常，一切都了无生气，奄奄一息，决定播种日期的种种征象总是收集不齐。原野里花朵少得可怜，村子里枝条上的花蕾都枯萎了。克内西特焦虑方分，却不让自己表露出来，唯有艾黛，尤其是土鲁，知道他是多么五内如焚。克乃西特不仅经常念驱邪的咒语，还进行私人的祭礼，替恶魔烧煮芳香诱人的饮料和杨水，他还在新月之夜剪短自己的须发，把它们拌和在松脂和潮湿的树皮里，然后点火燃烧，制造出浓浓的烟雾。他想方设法拖延举行公开的典礼，全村的献祭仪式，祈祷游行以及鼓乐合奏，他尽可能把驱逐邪恶的春天气候作为个人职务来处理。但是正常的播种时间早已延误多时，情况却毫无好转，他就不得不向女祖宗汇报了。 真是不幸，他在这里也倒了霉。那位女祖宗向来待他友好，简直视他为自己的儿子，这次却没有接见他，她已病倒在床，全部职务都移交给了她的妹妹。这位妹妹却一向十分冷淡呼风唤雨大师，她缺乏姐姐的正直严谨的品性，而比较喜欢戏耍玩乐，她的这种偏好使她对那个魔术家和鼓手马罗很有好感，他很擅长逗她开心，而马罗却是克乃西特的死对头。两人一对话，克乃西特就感觉到她对自己的冷漠和嫌恶，虽然她并没有反驳他的意见。他建议把播种的日期，连同大家举行祭献和游行的时间都略略向后挪移。她赞成和同意了这些建议，脸色却很难看，好似对待一个下属一般。她拒绝了他探视女祖宗的请求，就连他想替老人配些药剂的要求也被否定了。 克乃西特懊丧而归，满嘴苦涩难过。此后半个月里，克乃西特千方百计地试图改变气候状况，促使它宜于播种。然而向来与他体内血流循同一方向流动的气候，这次却固执地和他作对，不论是咒语，还是献祭，都毫无作用。于是克乃西特只得再次求见女祖宗的妹妹。但这一回的延期要求几近恳请宽容了。克乃西特还立即发现她已经同那个逗乐小丑议论过自己和这件事情，因为他们在谈到选定播种日期的必要性，或者在讨论如何安排公开祈祷事宜时，这位老妇人竟然卖弄这方面的知识，甚至还援引了某些专门术语，她只可能从那个曾是自己徒弟的马罗嘴里听到这些话的。克乃西特要求宽限三天，认为那时整个星座的位置会有新变化，播种比较吉利，他择定第三次娥眉月的第一天为开始播种日。老妇人表示同意，并且议定了仪式事项。他们的决定向全村宣布后，每一个人都投入了筹备播种典礼的忙碌工作。 事情就是不如人意，正当一切安排就绪之际，邪魔们又开始作祟。恰恰就在播种大典万事妥当，人人期待那一日来临的前一天，女祖宗逝世了。播种庆典不得不延期，代之以筹办葬礼。葬礼极其隆重。克乃西特身披举办盛大祈祷游行穿的礼袍，头戴尖顶狐皮高帽，走在刚接位的女祖宗和她的姐妹以及女儿们后面。克乃西特的儿子土鲁则作为助手陪同着他，一路敲击着两种音调的硬木响板。人人都对已故者以及她刚上任的妹妹表示了极大的敬意。马罗率领着他的鼓乐队走在队伍的最前列，赢得了大量喝彩。全村人一边哭泣，一边庆祝，一面哀伤，一面吃喝，一路欣赏鼓乐，一路祈祷游行。这一天真是全村的好日子，然而播种日期又再度被拖延了。克乃西特的态度又庄严又镇静，内心却一片黯然。他似乎感到，自己一生的好日子已随着女祖宗一起被埋葬了。 接着，按照新任女祖宗的要求，又举行了极其隆重的播种开播仪式。游行队伍庄严肃穆地绕着田地巡行，新任女祖宗神色庄重地将第一把种子撒在公众的大田里。