r Joe's benign death and sacred burial, his chosen successor, Anna, is abandoned at the storm-ravaged hermitage as the others, including her husband, are wooed away by the masterful Chen. Loyal Jacob, the holy bodyguard, goes to Austria to raise money to care for Anna and her children and takes the holy man's teaching with him. A Dutchman with his band of thugs pillages what is left in the hermitage, holy man artifacts to sell at auction. After a summer alone on the mountain, where she struggles with the idea of her appointed role, Anna moves to the town below. Time will tell if Anna is or is not the next "holy man" and if the Dutchman and Chen between them will wreak further havoc on the hermitage and on Anna.

In short, elegant teaching chapters, weaving tales of both the good and nefarious characters, the story shows how all who knew Joe continue to be affected by his kindly teaching, sometimes in spite of themselves.