Once upon a time, in a faraway kingdom of musicians, there lived an evil sorcerer. Nobody liked him, and he didn't like anybody else. He lived in a rundown castle, casting spells and talking to malignant demons.
One day, he decided to do something very bad. He went into the deepest, darkest part of the forest, cut down the ugliest tree he could find, and made a musical instrument out of it. The instrument had 19 strings and was very difficult to play and tune. So much so that after he sent it to the king, nobody in the whole kingdom could play a single note on it. All it would do was make terrible noises that made people sick and unhappy when they listened to it. The musicians from the kingdom tried their best to make it sound nice, but they just couldn't. Eventually, the king took the terrible instrument, and locked it away.
Years later, news came to the kingdom of a master musician from a faraway land who was traveling and intended to visit the kingdom. The people were very happy; because they always liked it when new music would come to them. The master musician came to the kingdom, and the king sent a messenger to invite him to stay at the castle. The master musician was happy to accept the king's generosity and hospitality.
That night, the king and the master musician were having dinner together, and the master musician asked him if it was true that there was an instrument nobody could play.
The king said "Yes. I have it locked away. It's something an evil sorcerer made; and it is terrible! Its music makes people sick, and nobody can play it. I should have burned it"
The master musician asked if he could try to play it. The king was hesitant; being a kind and wise king, he didn't want people to suffer. But the master musician persuaded him to let him try.
That evening, after news of the master musician's request had spread, a group of brave people attended a recital where the master musician would try to play the evil instrument. They were a little worried; would they get sick like the others? Would the instrument make terrible sounds? The master musician sat in a chair and the instrument was brought to him. Nobody had touched it in a long time. The master blew the dust off it, rubbed some of the dirt from it, took a breath, and played a note.
To everybody's surprise, a beautiful sound came from the instrument! The master musician caressed the instrument, like someone petting and soothing a wild animal. Then, the instrument remembered that it was made from a piece of wood, and it started to sing all the songs of the trees, forest, rain, rivers, birds, and animals. With every melody the master musician played, it reminded the instrument of its origins; and it created the musical essence of nature with every note that came from it. The beauty of the forest was there, in the room of the castle, and the people were enraptured.
After the performance, the king and all the people approached the master musician and asked him how he did it. He said "The musicians before me failed because they only tried playing their own songs on the instrument. They were vain, and never saw past themselves. As for me, I let the music play itself. There was no “I.” Did the instrument become me, or did I become the instrument? Even I don't know - and it doesn't matter. All that matters is the music."
After that, the king invited the master musician to stay in his kingdom. The master musician accepted his offer, and all the musicians from far and wide came to him to learn from him. Soon the world was filled with master musicians, and all ears were filled with the beautiful music they made.
But what became of the evil sorcerer?
News reached him that the master musician would be playing beautiful music on the instrument he'd made. That day, he disguised himself as an old man, and went to the concert to hear him. He was so overcome by the beauty of the music that he renounced his evil ways, spent the rest of his life doing good deeds, and became one of the most well-liked people in the kingdom.