The Man Idol

An ancient Hindu story:

A shipwrecked merchant drifted to the shore of Ceylon, where Vibhishana was the King of the Monsters. At the sight of him Vibhishana became ecstatic with joy and said, “Ah! He looks just like my Rama. The same human form!” He then had rich clothes and jewels put on the merchant and worshiped him.

The Hindu mystic Ramakrishna says, “When I first heard this story I felt an indescribable delight. If God can be worshiped in images of clay, should he not be worshiped in people?” 

(The Song of the Bird by Anthony de Mello)