Tale of the 3 sages
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A captain and his soldiers had been ordered, from their general, to clean the kingdom from its hermits, because the new King did not want to have this sort of people living in his kingdom. Several hermits lived in the valley, others in the mountains, in natural caves.

The captain set out on his task with all the rigour and the ardour of a warrior striving for recognition and fame. All the hermits he encountered ran away, as soon as he was approaching, since the captain was proclaiming his mission while moving: "Order to kill all the hermits". Eventually, when virtually all the hermits had ran away, there remained only Three, living in the most remote caves, high in the mountains.

The following text was to be read on the entrance of the first Hermit's cave: "Hermitage of the Sage who has vanquished the fear from death" This Hermit was the instructor of 1'000 hermits of the valley. When the captain entered, he found the Sage quietly sitting in meditation, in a majestic immobility.
"Do you know who you are facing?", barked the captain, "I can cut off your head without turning a hair!" The Hermit quietly raised his eyes towards the captain and answered gently: "And you, do you know who you are facing? I can let my head be cut off without turning a hair."
This answer only but strengthened the ardour of the captain. In a lightning move, the captain cut off the Hermit's head with his sabre. "He had actually achieved what he was saying", said the captain, sniggering with disdain. The soldiers dismembered the corpse and had it for dinner on this evening. There wasn't much to eat, but that was enough for a fair meal.

The following day, they arrived at the second Hermit's cave. Here was written: "Hermitage of the Sage who can defy death". This Hermit was the instructor of a dozens of hermits of the valley. The text on the cave let the captain snigger again. When he entered, he found the Hermit quietly sitting in meditation.
"Do you know who I am?", shouted the captain, "I can cut off your head without turning a hair!" The Hermit opened only one eye to look at the captain and said, smiling: "And you, do you know who I am? I can let you kill this body and produce a new one instantaneously".
The captain giggled, thinking this was the statement of a fool. With the same swiftness, he cut off the Hermit's head with his sabre. While the dead body was falling on the ground, a sphere of Energy appeared in the middle of the cave. It quickly became denser, until it formed a new body, identical to the one that had just been beheaded. The captain stepped back, frightened. The Hermit, in his new body, watched him. Smiling, he asked: "What are you afraid of, my son? Hadn't I told you about who I am?"
Livid, the captain was considering what he had to do. In fury, he attacked again with his sabre and beheaded the new body. But the Hermit immediately created a new body. The captain killed him again, but the Hermit created a new one… This game went on for the whole day. Exhausted, the captain finally declared: "I give up. As soon as I kill you, you materialise a new body. The first Sage was not able to do that, he said he had vanquished the fear of death. How do you do that?"
Smiling peacefully, the Hermit answered: "When the Spirit is free from the hypnotic tyranny of the body-mind, he is quiet and fears nothing, not even death. This is only the Awakening of the Spirit. When the Spirit has mastered all energy and all matter, It is able to create everything, including body-minds. This is the Realisation of the Spirit."

The captain stepped backwards out of the Second cave. He was deeply shocked by the Power of the Sage who could defy death. However, he thought he had to go on with his duty. The next day, still somewhat shaken, the small troop arrived at the third Hermit's cave. In front of this cave was written: "Hermitage of the Sage was has vanquished death." This Hermit wasn't the instructor of any of the hermits living in the valley.
Trying to gather all of his courage, the captain stepped in and found the Hermit quietly sitting in meditation. The captain tried out his usual statement, this time without too much conviction: "Do you know who you are facing? I can cut off your head without turning a hair!" The Hermit didn't open one eye, not even half an eye. He answered quietly: "And you, do you know who you are in front of? I am beyond death."
The captain wondered what this could actually mean. Was this Sage like the second one, who could materialise bodies at will? The captain thought he would only know for sure by handling. Therefore, he made his ample movement of sabre, as swift as light. But… the sabre didn't meet anything on its course: it went through the Sage's body, as if it didn't exist. The Sage hadn't moved. He was sitting there, untouched, without the slightest scratch. The captain tried again, with the same result. It was as if the body had no material consistency. Suddenly doubting about the sheer existence of the Sage, the captain touched him gently with his hand: the body was there, material and real. He could really feel it. Convinced it was a real, material body, the captain tried again with his sabre, but he couldn't meet anything…
Finally, the captain had not other way but to ask: "How do you do that? The second Sage could be killed, but then could create a new body instantaneously. But you, how do you do that?" The Sage asked quietly: "What did the Second Sage tell you?" "He told me the First Sage was Awakened and that he was Realised", answered the captain. The Sage explained: "My child, when the Spirit has mastered what is beyond matter and energy, It is able to destroy everything, including death. This is the Sublimation of the Spirit."

The captain went back to his general, to report on his mission. Trembling because of the two supposed failures – the two remaining hermits in the kingdom -, the general went in turn to report to the King.
As he stepped in, the King asked: "Did your troop find the three Sages living in the mountain?" The general hesitated, he did not understand. Did the King want to wipe out all the hermits of the kingdom, or was he just looking for some Sages? Seeing the surprise of the general, the King explained: "By ordering to kill all the hermits, I just wanted to look for the three Sages. Tell me general, haven't all of the hermits run for their life when the troop approached, except for three?" "Yes, your Majesty", answered the general. The general was about to start explaining that one of the three had been killed, but the King went on: "Didn't one of the three Hermits let his head be cut off, without turning a hair?" "Indeed, your Majesty."
The general was stopped. It seemed better for him to stay quiet and to be content with answering the questions of the King, since his King had obviously not expressed his true intent when ordering the mission. Interrupting the silent thinking of the general, the King explained: "This Hermit who let himself be beheaded was the docile slave of death. A slave who was not afraid of his master anymore, but who couldn't bring anyone beyond the kingdom of death, since he himself had not left it. My Kingdom did not need him. He would have turned my citizens into sweet and docile servants of death, as he was." The King went on: "The Second Hermit was killed several times, and every time he came back immediately in a new body. Is it right?" "Indeed, your Majesty", answered the general. Staring at the general with intensity, the King joined his hands as if he were concentrating: "This Hermit has freed himself from death, without mastering it yet. He and death are facing one another like two rivals with equal strength, no one being able to win. He is truly free without being victorious. Get him and bring him here, so that he can rule the Kingdom in my place. He will be able to bring you all to Freedom." After a few minutes in silence, the King went on: "The third Hermit let himself be reached by gentleness, but the sabre could not find him. Isn't it?" "Yes, your Majesty, this is true" answered the general. The King explained: "This Hermit has vanquished death. He is no more slave, he is no more rival, he his the Lord of death, the King whose Power transcends the world of illusion. This is the One I was looking for, since he is also my Lord. Please bring me to Him, so that I can be his disciple. I know He must be waiting for me."

Before going away, respectfully, the General dared a few questions. "Your Majesty, why did you let the first Sage be killed?" It is with a very compassionate smile that the King answered: "The first Sage was indulging in his Awakening. Only his own death could let him understand that he had to rise higher than victory over the sheer fear of death. Only death can destroy complacency." The General was astonished by this answer, because he had never thought that death could serve the Spirit in such a way. "My Lord", did he ask again, "why give your throne to the second Sage?" Taking a very serious stance, for the first time in his life, the King answered: "I didn't know the answer to this question one minute ago. But now I know. The Sage who has reached Realisation has no more complacency, but his own will can not bring him further. It is only by struggling to free his brothers that he will be able to awaken in him the true aspiration for Sublimation. This desire for Sublimation stands closely to the desire of helping others to free themselves." The general, very attentive, noted: "But he had already a dozens of disciples. Wasn't that enough?" Smiling, the King answered: "No, this was not enough. You need to want the liberation of the whole Kingdom of living beings, the whole Kingdom."
Satisfied, the general was about to leave. The King added: "Complacency can be avoided if the aspirant looks for Freedom right from the beginning. This will allow him, once he reaches Awakening, not to indulge in it and thus to avoid having to die and be reborn with a greater lucidity. Awakening can be a short stage, before Realisation."

translated from French by D. Knubel