time ago, I was plagued with these vapours—and some others—and I went to an Abbot—a very holy man and a seeker after truth, though then I knew it not. Sit up and listen, child of my soul! My tale was told. Said he to me, ‘ Chela , know this. There are many lies in the world, and not a few liars, but there are no liars like our bodies, except it be the sensations of our bodies.’ Considering this I was comforted, and of his great favour he suffered me to drink tea in his presence. Suffer me now to drink tea, for I am thirsty.”
With a laugh across his tears, Kim kissed the lama’s feet, and set about the tea-making.
“Thou leanest on me in the body, Holy One, but I lean on thee for some other things. Dost know it?”
“I have guessed maybe,” and the lama’s eyes twinkled. “We must change that.”
So, when with scufflings and scrapings and a hot air of importance, paddled up