It happened once upon a time that a guru was giving a talk to a group of people in the village where he lived. “God is always with us,” he told them, “and from His kindness He takes care of us. We should recognize His generosity and give thanks to Him.”

When he finished his talk, one man came to him, and said, “Guru-ji, if God takes care of us, why did He let this happen?” And he showed his hand from which two fingers were missing. “I am a hunter,” the man said, “and there was an accident. Now, everything I do in the jungle is more difficult, and it is very hard for me to succeed when I hunt. How can I believe that God is generous and kind?”

“My son,” the guru replied, “there is always a purpose hidden in everything that happens.”

“What purpose can there be in losing my fingers?” the hunter said bitterly, and went away.

A few days later, the man went hunting again, and as he had no luck at first, he went further and further into the jungle, until he came to a region he did not know at all. There, he was captured by tribal people who tied him up and said, “We will sacrifice you to our gods. They will eat your spirit and reward us.”

But when they dragged the hunter to the place of sacrifice, their shaman-priest pointed to his hand and said, “No! Look, this man is imperfect. If we offer him to our gods they will be angry.” And so the hunter was released.

When he returned to his village, the hunter went to the guru and touched his feet. “Guru-ji,” he said, “I begin to understand. It is true that sometimes there may be a purpose that we do not see.”