Once upon a time there was a king who said to the wise men of the court: – I am making a beautiful ring. I have gotten one of the best diamonds possible. I want to keep hidden inside the ring a message that can help me in moments of total desperation., and help my heirs, and to the heirs of my heirs, forever. It has to be a small message, so that it fits under the diamond of the ring.
All who listened were wise, great scholars; they could have written great treatises, but give him a message of no more than two or three words that could help him in moments of total desperation...
they thought, They looked in their books, but they couldn't find anything. The king had an old servant who had also been his father's servant. The king's mother died soon and this servant took care of him, therefore, He treated him like he was family.. The king had immense respect for the old man, so he also consulted it. And he told him:
-I am not a wise man, not a scholar, not an academic, but I know the message. During my long life in the palace, I have met all kinds of people, and on one occasion I met a mystic. I was your father's guest and I was at his service.. when he was leaving, as a gesture of gratitude, He gave me this message – the old man wrote it on a tiny piece of paper, He folded it and gave it to the king.. "But don't read it," he told her.- keep it hidden in the ring. Open it only when everything else has failed, when you can't find a way out of the situation-
That moment didn't take long to arrive.. The country was invaded and the king lost the kingdom. He was fleeing on his horse for his life and his enemies were chasing him. He was alone and the pursuers were numerous. He came to a place where the road ended, there was no way out: In front there was a precipice and a deep valley; falling for him would be the end. And he couldn't return because the enemy blocked his way.. I could already hear the horses trotting. I couldn't go forward and there was no other way...
Suddenly, he remembered the ring. He opened it, He took out the paper and there he found a tremendously valuable little message.: He simply said “THIS TOO WILL HAPPEN.”.
As he read “this too shall pass” he felt a great silence fall over him.. The enemies who were chasing him must have gotten lost in the forest, or they must have taken the wrong turn, but the truth is that little by little he stopped hearing the trot of the horses.
The king felt deeply grateful to the servant and the unknown mystic. Those words had been miraculous. folded the paper, put it back in the ring, He gathered his armies and reconquered the kingdom. And the day he entered the capital again victoriously there was a great celebration with music, dances… and he felt very proud of himself. The old man was next to him in the car and told him: -This time is also suitable: look at the message again.
-What do you mean? –asked the king-. Now I am victorious, people celebrate my return, I'm not desperate, I am not in a no-win situation..
-“Listen,” said the old man.: This message is not just for desperate situations.; It is also for pleasant situations. It's not just for when you're defeated; It's also for when you feel victorious. It's not just for when you're last; It's also for when you're the first. The king opened the ring and read the message: “This too shall pass”, and again he felt the same peace, the same silence, in the middle of the crowd that celebrated and danced, but pride, the ego, had disappeared. The king was able to understand the message. had been illuminated. Then the old man told him:
-Remember that everything passes. No thing or emotion is permanent.. Like day and night, There are moments of joy and moments of sadness.. Accept them as part of the duality of nature because they are the very nature of things.