By: Michael Berg
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Send in the Clown
The purpose of sharing is not to do a good action, but it is to change who we are and to bring blessings and protection into our life. One of the most powerful stories I’ve come across that teaches the impact of true sharing (or what I call ‘transformational sharing’) is “The Clown Suit Story.”
One day two well-known kabbalists were out walking when one turned to the other and said, “Where is that wonderful aroma coming from?” “I don’t know but it smells like Heaven.”
They tracked down the aroma to a small house at the end of a dirt road. They knocked on the door, and when the owner answered, they asked if they could look around to discover what was producing such an intoxicating smell. The man immediately recognized the two wise men and delightedly received them into his home.
They walked from room to room, eventually reaching the man’s bedroom. “It’s coming from in there.” They went inside, their noses leading them to a tiny closet in the corner. Upon inspection, they discovered an old clown suit hidden behind some shoes and boxes. “This is it! The smell of heaven is emanating from this suit. Tell us, where did you get this?”
The owner of the house went red in the face.
I really wish you hadn’t discovered this,” he said, “I’ve been trying to forget about it for a long time.” After some gentle prodding, the man began to tell them the story of the clown suit.
“A few years ago one of the townspeople came to me desperate for money. I told him I would do everything I could, but because I had little money of my own, I had to go knocking on all the doors in my neighborhood begging for help. After hours of going door to door, I still hadn’t raised much money, so despondent and depressed, I stepped into the local tavern.
I sat down at a table and held my head in my hands, not knowing what to do. At the table next to me a group of wealthy men were drinking and having a raucous time, laughing and slapping one another on the back. One of them leaned over to me, a strong smell of beer on his breath, and asked, ‘Why so glum?’ I told him my dilemma, and he quickly came back with an idea.
‘I’ll give you the money, no problem. But on one condition. I have this clown suit that I want you to put on. All you need to do is walk with me through the town, and I will give you the sum you desire.’
‘But it’s after midnight,’ I stammered, ‘we’ll wake everyone up.’ The man roared with laughter, ‘That’s the whole point.’
As you know, the streets of this town are more like alleyways, and the townsfolk keep their windows open at night. It was clear we were about to start a riot. But I was desperate to help this man, so I reasoned with myself that if I rushed through town, perhaps it wouldn’t be so terrible.
‘Okay, I’ll do it.’
Well, wouldn’t you know it, the man brought along his entire contingent of drinking buddies, and they caused quite a scene. Imagine, 30 singing and screaming drunks and me, out in front dressed as a clown, praying the earth would open and swallow me up.
Lights went on everywhere, angry men and women shouted obscenities at us from their windows. More than a few emptied their chamber pots. This went on for over an hour, by which time there wasn’t a man, woman, or child in the town who hadn’t witnessed my disgrace.
Finally, the drunks began to sober up, and they lost interest in their little game. The man was true to his word and paid me as he had promised. I rushed home, my face burning with shame, and I threw the clown suit in the back of my closet. All these years I have done everything I could to forget that night. It was the most embarrassing moment in all my life.”
When the man finished his story, the kabbalists looked at him with bright eyes. “Now we know why this extraordinary fragrance was coming from your closet,” they explained. “Your action of total selflessness and complete sharing shattered your ego so thoroughly that a tremendous amount of Light was revealed. Indeed, so powerful was your action that you are now completely protected, so much so that even after your death you will continue to be protected in the upper worlds.
When you die, instruct your family to bury you in this suit – it will give you an immediate admission to Heaven.”
The lesson of this story, and one I trust you will carry with you this week, is that when we do actions of transformational sharing, we open up gates that cannot be opened by sharing, and that requires no real sacrifice on our part. It requires a total shift in our consciousness about how we understand sharing. Of course, it’s nice to share, but the real value is when we give of ourselves in a way that is uncomfortable.
This week, find opportunities to give (they are everywhere) that require you to go outside of yourself, to shake you out of what is easy and comfortable. Again, it’s not about being a good person but about opening the gates of blessings and protection in your life that can only be opened through transformational sharing.
