A small boy was once playing with his father on the seashore. His father was helping him build a sand castle. Suddenly a strange object attracted the boy’s attention and he ran to grab it. But the nearer he went, the farther the object receded. On and on he ran, but the object appeared to recede faster than ever before.
Tired, the boy stopped after a while. He remembered his father and looked back. How far he had come! He lost interest in the chase and ran back to the place where he was building his castle. He was shocked to find nothing there. No castle—and even, no father.
Before he knew it, his eyes were filled with tears and he began to sob. “Father, father! Where are you? Where are you?”
Only the sound of the waves answered the call in a language no one could understand. Slowly the sun went down and it was dark. The boy knew not where to go. There was not a soul to be seen anywhere. “Where is my father? Why did he leave me all alone? Where has he disappeared?”—slowly sleep overtook the boy and he lay down on the sand.
Before long he felt a tap on his shoulder. A kindly touch. He stared. In the dark an imposing figure stood by his side—and old man with a beard and shining eyes. He took the little boy’s hand in his and said, “Come, child, come. Don’t you want to go to your father? Come, come.”
The boy liked this person. Something attracted him, as it were. Was it the old man’s sparkling eyes? His loving smile? The aura of peace and joy that surrounded him?
“Will you really take me to my father?” the boy asked, although he had already begun following the old man.
The man said nothing. He gave the boy an assuring smile and pressed his hands.
It appeared to be an excruciatingly long walk. And then, all of a sudden, the boy found himself standing at his doorsteps. Excited, he knocked on the door as loudly as he could. The door opened—and there stood his father.
“Father, father, I am here!” the boy said excitedly. The father picked him up in his arms and began showering him with kisses.
Surprisingly enough, the old man was nowhere to be seen. Even more astonishing was the fact that the boy felt no need to search for him. The boy had discovered something. No sooner did he see his father than he realized that his father himself had come disguised as the old man. It was all a part of the game which the father wanted to play with the child.
Sri Ramakrishna said, “God himself comes to us disguised as our Guru.”