This, too, will pass!

I was reading a book and chanced upon a story. The story goes like this:

There lived a king who was continuously torn between happiness and despondency. The slightest thing would cause him great upset or provoke an intense reaction and his happiness would quickly turn into disappointment and despair. A time came when the king finally got tired of himself and of life. He sent for a wise man who was heard to be enlightened. When the wise man came, the king said to him, "Can you give me something that will bring balance, serenity and wisdom into my life? I will pay any price for that."

The wise man said, "I may be able to help you. But the price is so great that your entire kingdom would not be sufficient to pay for that. Therefore it will be a gift to you if you will honour it."

A few weeks later the man came and handed the King an ornate box carved in jade. The king opened and found a ring inside with the following letters inscribed on it, " This, too, will pass". The wise man said, "Wear this ring always. whatever happens, good or bad, touch this ring and read the inscription".

The man went away.

Soon an enemy kingdom attacked the King and the king's army though fought bravely, completely lost to the enemy kingdom. The king escaped on his horse and after a long ride, reached a rocky mountain at the sunset. Tired, dejected, humiliated, while he was looking for a cave to hide, he remembered the ring. "This too, will pass" as he read, he thought, "Till yesterday I was the King with so many people serving my most trivial wishes and that passed!"

"This, too, will pass!" as he read, he got back some energy. The distant sound of enemy horses too faded away. He slept well.

In next few weeks, he reorganized his army and with the invigorated army he went back to his kingdom. His army fought and captured almost all his lost territory. The people celebrated and made many praises for him and his ego came back. He felt he is invincible and none will ever defeat him. He was caressing his sword fondly. Eventually his eyes fell on his ring.

"This, too, will pass!" He became humble.

The author sums up: Nonresistance, Non-judgement and non-attachment are the three aspects of true freedom and happiness. Recognizing the ephemeralness of what's happening to us is the key to that. This is the same teaching that Patanjali Yoga sutra and Buddhism's eight-fold way gave to us.

If you ever feel inquisitive of meditation, here is a beautiful page that describes the concept and the process: http://www.meditationiseasy.com/mCorner/techniques/step%20by%20step%20explaination%20of%20vipassana.htm

Finally wishing all of you a very Good Morning, everyday!