THE REAL STEP

The rumor of a great lion spread throughout the world.
 A man wanted to see the lion and for a year endured
all the hardships of the journey and traveled from place
to place. When he arrived at the forest and saw the lion
 from a distance, he came to a sudden halt. He couldn't
move and couldn't go any further.
    Someone who knew the lion said to the man gently,
"You've come such a long way out of love for the lion.
Know this about him: if you go toward him bravely and
tenderly stroke him, he will not harm you in any way; if
you are afraid, he will be furious. Sometimes he even
attacks people who are scared of him, howling, 'How
dare you have such a black opinion of me!' You've
endured a year of bitter difficulty to get here to see him.
Why are you standing still now that you are so close?
Take one more step toward him!"
     No one could find in themselves the courage to
advanced even one step.Everyone said, "Every step we
 took before this was easy. Here, we cannot move."
      It takes immense faith to take one step toward the
Lion in the presence of the Lion. That step is the majestic
and noble act, one that only the Elect and Friends of God
are capable of. This is the real step on the Path; all the other
 steps are just vanishing footprints. And the faith require to take
it comes only to saints and prophets, to those who have washed
 their hands of their own life.

                                           RUMI