No, That's Not It

Is it a sunflower? I asked.

Sunflowers don't have legs, said Pliny.

But it's the sort of thing you say in a riddle, I said. Nutella jars don't have hats.

That's what I thought, said Pliny. That was why I couldn't guess the answer.

So it's not a sunflower then. Don't tell me it's a race of people that stand on one leg?

You're getting close, said Pliny.

And they stare all day at the sun? I said.

Yes, said Pliny.

And they never spit, or get a headache?

Yes, said Pliny.

You haven't learnt, have you, I said. You've just listed their attributes without any riddling. Who are these people?

They are the Indian Gymnosophists, said Pliny. Perhaps you have heard of them. They live in India. They are over seven feet high. They never spit, or get a headache, or a toothache, or a pain in the eyes, or any other part. They are hardened by the heat of the sun. They are called Gymnosophists, or naked philosophers, and they remain standing from sunrise to sunset while looking fixedly at the sun, resting first on one foot, then the other.

Philosophers? I said, surprised. What kind of philosophy is that?

The philosophy of needing nothing, said Pliny. It is a philosophy that I admire. As you know I do not hold with luxury.

Except the luxury of relying on secondary sources, I said, unkindly.