Once
a king called upon all of his wise men and asked them, "Is there a
suggestion which works in every situation, in every circumstance, in every
place and in every time. All wise men got puzzled by the king’s question. .
After
a lengthy discussion, an old man suggested something which appealed to all of
them. They went to the king and gave him something written on paper. But the
condition was that king was not to see it out of curiosity. Only in extreme
danger, when the king finds himself alone and there seems to be no way, only
then he’ll have to see it. The king put the paper under his diamond ring.
After a few days, the neighbors attacked
the kingdom. It was a surprise attack by the king’s enemies. The king and his
army fought bravely but lost the battle. The king fled on his horse with the
enemies following him. His horse took him far away in the jungle.
He could hear many troops of horses following him and the sound was coming
closer and closer. Suddenly the king found himself standing at the end of the
road. Underneath there was a rocky valley thousand feet deep. The sound of the
enemy’s horses was approaching fast. The king became restless. There seemed to
be no way.
Then suddenly he saw the diamond in his ring shining in the sun, and he
remembered the message hidden in the ring. He opened the diamond and read the
message. The message was very small but very great. The message was –
"This too will pass."
The king read it. Again read it. Suddenly something struck him- Yes! It too
will pass.
Only a few days ago, I was enjoying my kingdom. I was the mightiest of all the
kings. Yet today, the kingdom and all my pleasures have gone. I am here trying
to escape from enemies. However when those days of luxuries have gone, this day
of danger too will pass. He became calm.
He kept standing there. The place where he was standing
was full of natural beauty. He had never known that such a beautiful place was
also a part of his Kingdom. The revelation of the message had a great effect on
him. He relaxed and forgot about those following him.
After a few minutes he realized that the
noise of the horses and the enemy coming was receding. They moved into some
other part of the mountains and were not on that path. The King was very brave.
He reorganized his army and fought again. He defeated the enemy and regained
his lost empire. When he returned to his empire after victory, he was received
with much fan fare at the door. The whole capital was rejoicing in the victory.
Everyone was in a festive mood. Flowers were being thrown on the King from
every house, from every corner.
People were dancing and singing. For a moment King said to himself," I am
one of the bravest and greatest King. It is not easy to defeat me..:
With all the reception and celebration he saw an ego emerging in him. Suddenly
the Diamond of his ring flashed in the sunlight and reminded him of the
message. He opened it and read it again: "This too will pass" He
became silent. His face went through a total change -from the egoist he moved
to a state of utter humbleness.
If this too is going to pass, it is not yours. The defeat was not yours, the
victory is not yours. You are just a watcher. Everything passes by We are
witness of all this. We are the perceiver. Life comes and goes. Happiness comes
and goes. Sorrow comes and goes.
Now as you have read this story, just sit silently and evaluate your own life..
Think of the moments of joy and victory in your life. Think of the moment of
Sorrow and defeat. Are they permanent? They all come and pass away. Life just
passes away. There were friends in the past.
They have gone. There are friends today. They too will go. There will be new
friends tomorrow. They too will go. There were enemies in the past. They have
gone. There may be enemies in the present. They too will go. There will be new
enemies tomorrow and.. they too will go.
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