One day he will touch the sun. This is what I like to see, bankers doing well in life. Paul Thurston is/was the big head in HSBC’s British division. But from next March he will be in Hong Kong, working as global head of retail banking and wealth management. So, how did this mild-mannered janitor become a superhero?
I have been speaking to Mr Thurston. [I'm always speaking to someone. Will it never end?] This is what was whispered between us, late last night, beneath an astral moon: 'Master, look at that moon, man! Is it yellow? Is it red? Is it blue? Oh, it changes colour, and it seems to be laughing at us. Look at his lovely face! Is he alive? (Yes, Paul, the moon is alive. Yes, it changes colour. Yes, he - I think it is a he - is laughing at us. But this is par for the course in our reality. You should know what goes on by now. So let's discuss a serious matter. Why is your career so glorious? How do you manage to go from strength to strength? Is there nothing that can stop you?) Come on, Master, you don't need to ask those sort of questions. You know how much I love Big Herb. You know how much respect I have for the ghosts of the dead financiers. This is something all bankers should learn: honour the mystic ones on the plane and you will have it made. (It really is as simple as that, isn't it?) Fuckin' A it is! Where would I be without a ghostly caress while I'm sleeping, or a kiss on the forehead from the icy lips which burn? And how do you explain that? (The icy lips that burn? Oh, Paul, that has baffled scholars down the ages. But I know. Those financiers are dead. They died a long time ago. So their lips are as cold as the physical moon.) Right. (But the fire of money still burns within them, and it passes through their lips, so you can still feel it. It's a strange mixture of fire and ice.) Amazing! And these dead financiers, did they all die such a long time ago? (Oh, not all of them. There are some young ones. In fact, you can join them when you pass over, if you want to, and if they will have you.) I imagine they're very choosy, Master. (You imagine correctly, Paul. They are very choosy. And it can be a risky business, applying.) Why? (Well, you wouldn't want to be blackballed. Let's leave it at that.) Okay, Master, let's just leave it at that. Maybe we should stare at the moon for a while longer.'
And that's what we did. We stared at the moon for a while longer, together. Did years pass? It felt like years. Though I'm sure the experience only lasted a few earth seconds. We were there, mystic brothers, as the moon laughed, all the time changing colour. Paul was happy, I could tell. And it wasn't the promotion. I could see in his expression that he was elevated within. Higher than he had ever been, he was. Maybe one day he will get higher than the sun. Who knows? I am not a fortune teller. A lot of people think I am. But that is not my job. I am a facilitator. I have helped Paul. I will always be willing to help him. I will help all the bankers who want to believe, who want to stretch themselves. When a man or a woman burns with the fire of money, he or she looks for more in life, and even in death. The greyness fades. They see the sun, the physical sun, with new eyes. Then, inside, they see the astral moon. Or rather, an astral moon, for there are many moons. To be honest, they see what they want to see. If Paul had wanted an astral sun, it would have been delivered to his consciousness. We are the masters of reality. We get what we want. Heaven or hell. We create it in our minds, our souls. This is the way. It goes on forever.
And while I was with Paul, thinking about him, I thought about myself. I realized that I have created myself, and that I continue to create myself. I have never been given anything. No one ever gives me anything. (Well, no one on earth.) I haven't been supported. There is no one alive intelligent enough to support me because to be supported you have to be understood first. And I do not care how arrogant that sounds. I am alone. Of course, Big Herb looks at me, and he understands. Ganesh also looks at me. And he understands. But they are not men. They are gods. It would be shocking if they did not understand. And God, the one universal god, understands me the most. That is why I have no fear. If I were in the wrong, God would strike me down. However, He lets me continue with my mission. God has given me the freedom to create myself.
I have been speaking to Mr Thurston. [I'm always speaking to someone. Will it never end?] This is what was whispered between us, late last night, beneath an astral moon: 'Master, look at that moon, man! Is it yellow? Is it red? Is it blue? Oh, it changes colour, and it seems to be laughing at us. Look at his lovely face! Is he alive? (Yes, Paul, the moon is alive. Yes, it changes colour. Yes, he - I think it is a he - is laughing at us. But this is par for the course in our reality. You should know what goes on by now. So let's discuss a serious matter. Why is your career so glorious? How do you manage to go from strength to strength? Is there nothing that can stop you?) Come on, Master, you don't need to ask those sort of questions. You know how much I love Big Herb. You know how much respect I have for the ghosts of the dead financiers. This is something all bankers should learn: honour the mystic ones on the plane and you will have it made. (It really is as simple as that, isn't it?) Fuckin' A it is! Where would I be without a ghostly caress while I'm sleeping, or a kiss on the forehead from the icy lips which burn? And how do you explain that? (The icy lips that burn? Oh, Paul, that has baffled scholars down the ages. But I know. Those financiers are dead. They died a long time ago. So their lips are as cold as the physical moon.) Right. (But the fire of money still burns within them, and it passes through their lips, so you can still feel it. It's a strange mixture of fire and ice.) Amazing! And these dead financiers, did they all die such a long time ago? (Oh, not all of them. There are some young ones. In fact, you can join them when you pass over, if you want to, and if they will have you.) I imagine they're very choosy, Master. (You imagine correctly, Paul. They are very choosy. And it can be a risky business, applying.) Why? (Well, you wouldn't want to be blackballed. Let's leave it at that.) Okay, Master, let's just leave it at that. Maybe we should stare at the moon for a while longer.'
And that's what we did. We stared at the moon for a while longer, together. Did years pass? It felt like years. Though I'm sure the experience only lasted a few earth seconds. We were there, mystic brothers, as the moon laughed, all the time changing colour. Paul was happy, I could tell. And it wasn't the promotion. I could see in his expression that he was elevated within. Higher than he had ever been, he was. Maybe one day he will get higher than the sun. Who knows? I am not a fortune teller. A lot of people think I am. But that is not my job. I am a facilitator. I have helped Paul. I will always be willing to help him. I will help all the bankers who want to believe, who want to stretch themselves. When a man or a woman burns with the fire of money, he or she looks for more in life, and even in death. The greyness fades. They see the sun, the physical sun, with new eyes. Then, inside, they see the astral moon. Or rather, an astral moon, for there are many moons. To be honest, they see what they want to see. If Paul had wanted an astral sun, it would have been delivered to his consciousness. We are the masters of reality. We get what we want. Heaven or hell. We create it in our minds, our souls. This is the way. It goes on forever.
And while I was with Paul, thinking about him, I thought about myself. I realized that I have created myself, and that I continue to create myself. I have never been given anything. No one ever gives me anything. (Well, no one on earth.) I haven't been supported. There is no one alive intelligent enough to support me because to be supported you have to be understood first. And I do not care how arrogant that sounds. I am alone. Of course, Big Herb looks at me, and he understands. Ganesh also looks at me. And he understands. But they are not men. They are gods. It would be shocking if they did not understand. And God, the one universal god, understands me the most. That is why I have no fear. If I were in the wrong, God would strike me down. However, He lets me continue with my mission. God has given me the freedom to create myself.
