I am a monk and let me tell you a story.
A man is driving down the road and breaks down near a monastery. He goes to the monastery, knocks on the door, and says, My car broke down. Do you think I could stay the night? The monk graciously accepts him, feeds him dinner, and even fixes his car. As the man tries to fall asleep, he hears a strange sound. The next morning, he asks the monks what the sound was, but they say, We cant tell you. Youre not a monk. The man is disappointed but thanks them anyway and goes about his merry way.
Some years later, the same man breaks down in front of the same monastery. The monk accepts him, feeds him, and even fixes his car. That night, he hears the same strange noise that he had heard years earlier. The next morning, he asks what it is, but the monks reply, We cant tell you. Youre not a monk. The man says, All right, all right. Im dying to know. If the only way I can find out what that sound was is to become a monk, how do I become a monk? The monk reply, You must travel the earth and find the missing golden claw of the water dragon. When you find the golden claw, you will become a monk.
The man sets about his task. Forty-five years later, he returns and knocks on the door of the monastery. He says, I have traveled the earth and have found what you have asked for. Here is the golden claw of the water dragon, The monk reply, Congratulations. You are now a monk. We shall now show you the way to the sound.
The monk leads the man to a wooden door, where the head monk says, The sound is right behind that door. The man reaches for the knob, but the door is locked. He says, Real funny. May I have the key? The monks give him the key, and he opens the door. Behind the wooden door is another door made of stone. The man demands the key to the stone door. The monks give him the key, and he opens it, only to find a door made of ruby. He demands another key from the monks, who provide it. Behind that door is another door, this one made of sapphire. So it went until the man had gone through doors of emerald, silver, topaz, and amethyst. Finally, the monks say, This is the last key to the last door. The man is relieved to no end. He unlocks the door, turns the knob, and behind that door he is amazed to find the source of that strange sound.
But I cant tell you what it is because youre not a monk.