The Spiritual Quest

The Last Ninja

…a Personal Journey into the Void…

Why did I come here ?

That was the great question that bothered me for ages.

A spur of the moment decision to a far-off place I’ve hardly heard of…Formosa…Taiwan ?

Nonetheless, in less than two days I was gone — the start of a quest — a

journey in search of the self.

Why me ?

A Boer-boy from the flats of the Orange Free State, born and raised in the centre of South Africa, on the immense savannah, later working in the construction pits of the Vaal Triangle Heavy Industrial Area.

The New South Africa still waiting to be born under Madiba, but I was gone !

Never looking back.

With a hundred Taiwan Dollars(3USD) in my pocket I stepped into this murky

underground bar somewhere in the madhouse that’s Taipei.

Eyes still blind when a big voice boomed forth; “I’m the grandfather of all

baboooons !”

Out of the twilight a Chinese man stepped forward, high cheekbones and

spliteyes made him indeed appear to be almost simian.

“Where are you from ?”

“South Africa”

“Ha, ha,ha,” he couldn’t contain his mirth, “ See, I told you, I’m the

grandfather of all baboons.”

He took my arm and steered me towards a beer.

That was Charlie — the man who would become my Chinese father or ‘dry’

father as the Chinese call it.

Very mysterious man(still don’t understand him…much)

“Oh, I’m a garbage collector” was all that I could get out of him, but one

with perfect English in this world of the Bamboo-curtain, where culture

shock very quickly takes a heavy toll.

It was Charlie who got Mario onto me or visa-versa.

Mario, Mario ?

Who will ever know this ‘man’ ?

At the same time hated and respected by the Chinese, because he’s a

Japanese(and half Mongolian on mother’s side and direct descendant of Genghis Khan), yet married to a Taiwanese woman and a confidant of people in very high places. Yet some-one who is

also a friend of the poor mountain tribes of Taiwan and of aboriganal

culture everywhere.

Somebody who might be the last true Ninja.

Somebody who trained US special troops in Vietnam.

“A professional killer” some whispered.

“A very succesful businessman” according to others.

Someone who speaks Spanish, English, Chinese, Russian and off course

Japanese.

But above all — someone who might have entered Nirvana — wherever that may

be.

A man who has died twice in this life.

A living Buddha ?

“ Even after many years with this man I’m still not sure of anything.

Anytime you think, this is it !

Now I’ve got him, just to realize there was nothing there.

Perhaps that’s the key to it all.

Some-one who is nothing — and everything.

With him things never seem to come easy.

His whole teaching can be summed up in one phrase;

Ask yourself”

That’s it; no easy escapes, no quick corners to cut, always he’ll bring

you back to this and the ultimate questions;

“Who are you ?”

“Where do you come from ?” “Where are you going ?”

No matter how frustrated, no matter how angry, no matter how much you

beg and bluster — the mirror is always held up and daring you to look at and

inside yourself.

For it’s there that this battle is fought.

This global war spanning space and time, where every heartbeat announces

the beginning and end of yet another cycle of life and death.

‘Death’, which Buddha named to be the greatest teacher of all.

For what is it worth ? All the struggle and strife, if you cannot face and ultimately conquer

death ?

But how ?

How ?

Isn’t that the universal and eternal cry for all time ? But is there ‘time’ ?

Was there a beginning ?

Really ?

And will there be an end ?

What end ?

And you and me ?

Am I ?

Are you ?

More questions than answers it seem, but gradually a light starts to

seep through…

Hour after hour, day after day, year in and out of confronting yourself, of

chipping away at the graniterock of the ego, at last seems to flash a

light, however briefly and occasionally on the real world, on what really matters.

Not the grasping and holding on to the perceived reality.

The harder we cling the more we suffer.

That plum job, that fat cheque, that beautiful girl, fame, fortune, love

and hate.

All these brief and unsatisfactory.

Change is the only reality.

Eventually, even the mountains and seas will change or dissapear.

Our little world a spark burning for a second in a volcano of billions

of universes.

No matter how hard we hold on, we are bound to lose it all, yet stubbornly

refusing to accept, preffering to suffer to keep the echo of our insatiable

egos alive.

Sometimes, just sometimes you cut through all the mud.

An all-nighter with Mario, drinking, eating, trying to make sense.

“Why do you want fly, Frank ?” he suddenly asked.

“But I don’t !”

He just smiled and later repeated the question.

With day breaking he took us for breakfast, me and Ras (my companion from Denmark, on the same quest as me).

Ras who was born with great knowledge, but who still refuses to accept.

When we got onto my bike at last, Mario came up, unusually caring.

“Remember now to call me before you fly.” is his words as we rode away

thinking we all had too much last night.

Yet, later that same day, speeding down the mountain, a car appeared out

of nowhere.

Suddenly every second seemed to smelt down into oblivion.

In slowmotion we hit the car and went flying clear over it landing far on

the other side, no helmets, clad in shorts and t-shirts.

For those few moments I could feel myself becoming light as a balloon

and got up straight away .

Later I asked Mario;

“Did I call you ?”

“No,” he laughed, “you called yourself !”

Another time sitting outside over dinner, slapping at a pesky mosquito. “No Frank, that’s not the way to do it. “Look! “

He hold up his hand as the mosquito made another overpass.

It magically dropped down onto the table out of mid-air!

“ Did you see that ?” he enquired with a grin.

“Yea, yes,” I stammered, “but I don’t think I understand very well…”

“Ok,” he said with a little sigh,”look again.”

With this he picked up the still groggy insect and placed it on his open

palm. Slowly it flapped its wings and then zoomed off — with the same

result!

In mid-flight it just dropped back onto the table and Mario only lifted his hand !

No matter how you might enquire in a case like this (and there were many), forget any clear-cut answers. Mostly its just a shrug of the shoulders and that little buddha chuckle.

Or how many times have he literally read my mind or seem to know things

that are physically impossible to know ! Then there are all the other powers that he now and again allows you to

have a sleight peep at.

Doing a six hour drive over a treacherous mountain pass on a foggy night in

three. This was after three days of non-stop drinking without any sleep.

Yes, that’s an interesting ability — to shorten distance and all the others? But no use in talking about them — nobody can believe that unless experienced.

Suffice to say that nothing, absolutely nothing is impossible.

I haven’t been home for many years and I won’t stop until I found what I’m

looking for. Yes, indeed, like Mario said, I’ve learnt a lot, but not enough, never

enough.

I will always remember the first time I shot out of my body at incredible

speed and screaming in fear as I approached a star which whiplashed me

straight back into my body.

Or falling through the floor in Bangkok , down until fear pulled me back

and how I looked around that room thankful to be back, and yet how I fell

down again immediately, deeper and deeper till I couldn’t stand it anymore

and screaming hauled my way back to my useless body. Maybe I should have

gone through to see where it was all going to end up — maybe next time ?

(I would like to say that I’ve never touched any form of drug in my life

outside of the ‘normal’, food, drink, sex etc.)

Then there was the time at Shaolin Temple when not being able to sleep I

sat up and started to ‘play’ with the incredible surges of Kundalini or energy

that was becoming quite a regular fixture of my life when suddenly I

realized I could see my own aura around my hands and fingers and later the

same astonishment and even fear when I could look in a mirror to have my

own body dissapear right in front of me to reveal the halo — outtline and the

misty canals of Chi running through the body or the sudden bright spots

that can appear where a chakra is being activated !

Oh well…

“You came here to find me.”

At last one answer.

“ I called you “

“Why ?”

“We knew each other from before — another time and place”

“ Where and when ?”

“ Ask yourself. “

Always accompanied by that little chuckle.

“You know the answer — it’s all there — inside of you.”

Back to the mirror.

Francois Williams

Bit a Background

Born in Africa, was Year of the Snake, growing up wild in the Free State, hunting at 6, fighting at 7, made wine at 17, joined Army at 18, entered the War Zone 1984…then it got interesting…supervisor at chemical factory 23, arrived Taiwan on my 25th birthday.

Sold timeshare Canary Islands in ‘91, bodyguard London ‘92, saw Dianna then back to Taiwan ‘93,met a Ninja, who changed my life…Kagawa Sifu

Shaolin Temple in ‘98, Thailand, Laos, Burma, The Golden Triangle…beauties galore…those were the days…

Shanghai, Shenzhen and more…