Silence

A wise man was invited to speak to a group of students. He arrived and asked the assembled students whether they knew what he was going to talk about. They all said, “Yes.” And the wise man said, “Well, if you already know what I’m going to talk about, then there’s no point in my saying it.” And he left.

The students again invited him to speak. Before starting his talk he asked, “Do you know what I’m going to talk about?” They all said, “No.” And he responded, “If you don’t know what I’m going to talk about, then why am I here?” And he left.

The students invited him to speak yet again. This time when he asked whether they knew what he was going to talk about, they were prepared. Half of them said, “Yes,” and half of them said, “No.” The wise man said, “Then those who know can explain it to those who don’t know, and there’s no point in my staying here.” And he left.

One more time the students invited the wise man to speak to them. This time when he asked whether they knew what he was going to talk about they were all silent. This was the moment he was waiting for, and he stayed and began to share his teachings with them.
_{A Wake Up Call}