The words on the arch [x-post /r/feghoot]

I was travelling through the Himalayan mountains when I stumbled across a monastery. I was tired after a long day of travel, so I decided to enter in, and perhaps pay the monks for some food, and water, and a place to stay for the night. To my surprise, when they welcomed me in, they refused to take my money, and gave me all the food I could eat, all the wine I could drink, and the most comfortable bed I have ever rested on. When I awoke, my gear had been replaced by top-quality stuff, easily worth ten times what my own gear had been worth, and loaded down with provisions. I asked them how they could afford to do this for me, and they pointed at an archway above a door, inscribed with symbols that resembled no language that I knew. They said, "We merely follow the words inscribed on the arch, and all is provided for us, and our guests."

I asked, "So, what do the words say?"

They replied, "Sorry, we can't tell you, you're not a monk."
I left that day, and the gear kept me cool in the warmth, warm when it was cool, it repelled all water, and it seemed lighter than should be possible. I checked the Internet, and could find no record of these kinds of materials, and no record of the monastery, either. I decided that I had to know their secret, so I made my way back to the Himalayas,and, after a few weeks of searching, found the monastery again.

They welcomed me with in the same style as the last time, and the food and drink were even better this time! I asked them what I would have to do to become a monk, and to learn their secret. They pointed me through the archway, saying that I must go to the far end of the cavern, and when I reached the end, all would be revealed to me. Anything I needed to cross would be provided for me, but I would have to come back and ask for it.

So, I entered the cavern, and ascended a long stairway up. No sooner had I reached the top of that stairway than there was another long stairway going down! Then, at the bottom of that stairway was another long stairway going up, then another stairway going down, then another stairway going up, and one more going down. I was lucky to still be wearing the clothing and boots that the monks had provided for me, because at this point, I was sore, and exhausted, and sweaty: I don't know how bad it would be if I was wearing normal clothing.

At the bottom of this stairway was a lake, stretching as far as the eye could see. I felt the water, and it was ice cold: no way I could swim it. I would have to go back and get a boat.

So I went up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and arrived, exhausted, back at the monastery. They fed me, and clothed me, and I rested.

The next day, I asked them for a canoe and a paddle, which they kindly provided, but they told me, "You must bring everything back each time that you return."

So I picked up the canoe and paddle, and carried them up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and paddled across the lake. On the other side of the lake was another stairway going up, so I continued, and found that they conformed to the same pattern as before: three staircases up, and three down. So, I went up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and then I came to a top of a tall, completely smooth wall. There was no way that I could jump down and survive, and certainly no way that I could climb back up, so I had to go back for a rope: there was even already a place to anchor it.

So, I went up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and crossed the lake in the canoe, and carried the canoe and paddle up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and arrived, even more ehausted this time, back at the monastery. They fed me, and clothed me, and I rested.

The next day, I asked them for a rope, a canoe, and a paddle, which they kindly provided, but they told me, "You must bring everything back each time that you return."
So I picked up the rope, canoe and paddle, and carried them up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and paddled across the lake. I then carried the rope up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs.

I tied off the rope to the anchor, and descended the rope down to the base of the wall. I found myself at the base of another foot of stairs, and, you guessed it, it was the same pattern. So, I went up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and at the foot of these stairs, I found a huge chasm. There was a drawbridge on the other side that could swing down to span it, and there was a mechanism on this side to lower it, but a key pin which allowed the mechanism to function was missing - the winch would turn, but the drawbridge would not swing down.

So, I went up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and climbed up the rope. I untied the rope, and carried it up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and crossed the lake in the canoe, and carried the rope and canoe and paddle up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and arrived, absolutely exhausted to every fiber of my bones this time, back at the monastery. They fed me, and clothed me, and I rested.

The next day, I asked them for a pin for the winch, a rope, a canoe, and a paddle, which they kindly provided, but they told me, "You must bring everything back each time that you return."

So I picked up the pin, rope, canoe and paddle, and carried them up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and paddled across the lake. I then carried the pin and rope up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs. I tied the rope off and descended, and carried the pin up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up hte stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs.

I fitted the pin into the drawbridge's mechanism, lowered the draw bridge, locked it into place, and crossed. On the other side of the bridge was more stairs! So, I went up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and found myself at the end, finally, of the cavern, and there was a great orb. I touched the orb, and I suddenly knew that if I saw the archway again, I would be able to read it, and I would know the secret of the monks.

So, I went up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and raised the drawbridge, and removed the pin. I carried the pin up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and climbed up the rope. I untied the rope, and carried the pin and the rope up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and crossed the lake in the canoe. I carried the pin and rope and canoe and paddle up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and up the stairs, and down the stairs, and arrived, on death's very door, back at the monastery.

I looked up at the archway, and understood its message, and I was suddenly rejuvenated, made whole. To this day, I have lived by the words on that archway, and everything has been provided for me.

So, do you want to know what the words on the archway are?

Sorry, I can't tell you: you're not a monk.

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OP: /u/Nimelennar