His mind suffered greatly.
Courageously, Sheriar held on and did not move from inside the circle for 30 days. Only ten more days were left for the completion of the chilla, but it became too difficult for him to continue. A moment longer in the circle was more than he could endure. It was not possible for him to continue; he stepped out. All his years of penance and austerity had resulted in apparent defeat. Disheartened and half-dead, Sheriar dragged himself near a river and collapsed weeping. He fell unconscious into a deep slumber.
Age too was weeping. "How pitiful! Eighteen years of unimaginable asceticism had ended in bitter disappointment. Could God not have mercy on this sincere pilgrim? Is this man to meet with such disappointment the rest of his life? What is to become of him? He wanted to die, but God denied him even this. Is there anything in his destiny besides his unfulfilled ideals?"
Yes! Assuredly there is.
A divine voice spoke, stirring Sheriar from sleep: "O Sheriar! He whom you seek — He whom you wish to see — His attainment is not your destiny. It is your son who will attain it. And through your son — you."
Sheriar looked around, but no one was there. Dazed, he heard the echo fading, " Your son ... your son ... through your son."
He was puzzled and questioned, "Is this the voice of God? Is God commanding me? ... I have no son, no wife!"
After a while he thought, "But what is wrong in living a family life if it is God's command? His wish means everything, so there is no question of right or wrong."
With these thoughts, Sheriar again fell asleep and slept soundly for three days. When he awakened, he remembered the words he had heard and, not knowing how to fulfill the divine injunction, began walking southward toward Poona. Some power was guiding him to follow its course, but he did so indifferently. Day after day, he trudged on with a feeling of abject resignation and journeyed more than 400 miles.
Led safely to the city of Poona, he found the house of his sister Piroja, who had emigrated from Iran. As he crossed the threshold of her home, he was so emaciated and worn out that he sought only to erase the exhaustion of the many years of wandering. Tears of joy welled in Piroja's eyes as she opened the door and saw her brother.