The Brothers Karamazov
Alyosha hears Zosima’s last lesson of love and forgiveness for everyone, saying that humans should not judge each other but have trust in God. He says that Alyosha reminds him of his older brother, who died when he was young. When Elder Zosima was young, he had been a wild and impious man in the army. He had challenged another man to a duel because of a girl. Before the duel, however, his heart was changed, and after the other man shot at him, he did not shoot his gun at the other person. He left the army and joined the  shortly after. He talks about how much he loves the Bible and how people should all love each other. When he has finished his speech, he suddenly goes down to the floor, opens his arms as if he is embracing (hugging) the world, “praying and kissing the ground—as he had taught others to do—quietly and joyfully he gave up his soul to God.” Zosima’s last lesson is very different from Ivan’s arguments, and the story about the guilty man who repented (was sorry), becomes free, and is forgiven is almost an opposite with the story of the Grand Inquisitor, where an innocent man is put in jail and judged. Zosima dies happy, and his final act is a symbol of everything he taught in his life.