Manuscript Found in Accra

“Speak to us of the weapons we must use when all is lost.”

And he answered:

Where there is loyalty, weapons are of no use.

All weapons are instruments of evil because they are not the instruments of the wise man.

Loyalty has its roots in respect, and respect is the fruit of Love. Love drives out the demons of the imagination—which distrust everything and everyone—and, instead, returns purity to our gaze.

When a wise man wants to make someone weak, he first makes that person believe that he is strong. The other man will then fall into the trap of challenging someone even stronger and be destroyed.

When a wise man wants to bring someone low, he first makes that person climb the highest mountain in the world to allow him the illusion that he is very powerful. The other man will then believe that he can go still higher and plunge into the abyss.

When a wise man covets something that belongs to another man, he loads him with gifts. The other man will have so many useless objects to take care of that he will lose everything else, too busy trying to keep what he thinks he owns.

When a wise man cannot discover what his opponent is planning, he feigns an attack. We are always prepared to defend ourselves, because we all live with the fear and paranoia that other people don’t like us.

His opponent—however brilliant he may be—is insecure and reacts with excessive violence to the provocation. In doing so, he reveals what weapons he has, and the wise man thus discovers what his opponent’s strong and weak points are.

Then, knowing exactly what kind of reaction to expect, the wise man either attacks or retreats.

This is how those who appear submissive and weak conquer and defeat those who are powerful and strong.

And so wise men often defeat warriors, but warriors also defeat wise men. To avoid this, it is best to seek the peace and repose that exist in the differences among human beings.

The wounded person should ask himself: “Is it worth filling my heart with hatred and dragging the weight of it around with me?”

He is thus making use of one of Love’s qualities—namely, Forgiveness. This helps him to rise above all the insults spoken in the heat of battle, insults which time will soon erase just as the wind erases footsteps from the sands of the desert.

When you forgive, the person who insulted you feels humbled in his error and becomes loyal.

Let us, therefore, be aware of the forces that move us.

The true hero is not the man who was born for great deeds, but the one who has managed to build a shield of loyalty around him out of many small things.

Thus, when he saves his adversary from certain death or from betrayal, his gesture will never be forgotten.

The true lover is not the one who says: “You need to be by my side and I need to take care of you, because we are loyal to each other,” but the one who realizes that loyalty must go hand in hand with freedom. And without fear of betrayal, he accepts and respects the other person’s dream, trusting in the greater power of Love.

The true friend is not the one who says: “You wounded me today, and I am sad.”

He says: “You wounded me today for reasons unknown to me and possibly to you as well, but tomorrow I know that I will be able to count on your help. And so I will not be sad.”

And the friend responds: “You are a loyal friend, because you said what you felt. There is nothing worse than a friend who confuses loyalty with

accepting our every fault.”

The most destructive of weapons is not the spear or the siege cannon, which can wound a body and demolish a wall. The most terrible of all weapons is the word, which can ruin a life without leaving a trace of blood, and whose wounds never heal.

Let us, then, be masters of our tongue and not slaves of our words. Even if words are used against us, let us not enter a battle that cannot be won. The moment we place ourselves on the same level as some vile adversary, we will be fighting in the dark, and the only winner will be the Lord of Darkness.

Loyalty is a pearl among grains of sand, and only those who really understand its meaning can see it.

Thus the Sower of Discord can pass the same spot a thousand times and never see the little jewel that keeps those who need to remain united.

Loyalty can never be imposed by force, fear, insecurity, or intimidation.

It is a choice that only strong spirits have the courage to make.