This Too Shall Pass

A friend shared a story and asked that I pass it along.

There was a king who presented a challenge to his court sages, "I have a ring with one of the finest diamonds in the world and I want to hide a message under the stone that can be useful in a situation of extreme despair.  I will give this ring to my heirs. What message is worthy of such importance?"

The sages knew how to write treatises, but struggled to find such a message.They pondered and discussed but did not come up with a message.

The king complained of their failure to his faithful old servant who had raised him from infancy. The old servant responded,

“I’m not a sage, I’m not educated, but I know of such a message. Once I served a visiting holy man whom your father had invited to the palace. He gave me a message. I will write it to be placed under the diamond, but I ask that you only read it if you come under extreme despair. Take it from the stone only when it seems there is no other way.

  

The king followed the servant's instructions.

After years of prosperity and peace, enemies attacked the king's country and he lost his kingdom.  He fled on his horse alone, distracting his enemies from further destruction. They pursued him until he came to the end of the road where a deep cliff lay before him. There was no time to retreat. He had no way out.  He was in complete despair.

He pried loose the diamond and found the message from long ago. It read: “This too shall pass.”

The clatter of horse's hooves quieted until he no longer heard nor felt danger.   Apparently the pursuers had turned in the wrong direction. 

The king's heart filled with gratitude for the servant and the unknown holy man. The words were powerful. He returned to his kingdom, gathered his army and restored his reign.

Upon his arrival, his family, his subjects, held a magnificent feast for the entire kingdom-- for the people loved their king. The king was happy and proud.

His old and trusted servant spoke softly to him: “Even in this moment, look at the message again.”

The King questioned him, "My people are celebrating my return, I'm not in despair, nor in a hopeless situation."

“Listen to this old servant. The message is not only for times of disaster, but in moments of victory too.”

The king opened the ring and read: "This too shall pass."

Again he felt silence fall over him even though he was in the midst of great revelry.

 His pride dissolved, for he understood the message.

The old servant said to his king; “Do you remember everything that happened to you? Nothing  is permanent. As night changes to day, so do moments of joy become despair. Accept them as the nature of life.”

The aforementioned friend then asked each of his friends to whom this story was sent, to respond after pondering the meaning of the story. My thoughts:

Sorrow and joy are bedfellows, and one cannot exist without the other; for it is only through pain that we can truly understand joy, and only through absolute happiness can we understand sorrow. We must be thankful for both as they allow us to experience the full cycle, the clear meaning, and utter magnificence of an abundant life.

Try writing your own response.

I singled out one other person to send the story to. Early the next morning, she responded, This is the exact story I needed today, thank you.

Ponder for a moment: which one of your loved ones or acquaintances needs to read this story today. Copy and paste and send it with love. See what happens.