Four Wives
Once upon a time there was a rich King who had four
wives. He loved the fourth wife the
most and adorned her with rich robes and treated her to the finest of
delicacies. He gave her nothing but the
best.
He also loved the third wife very much and was always
showing her off to neighboring kingdoms.
However, he feared that one day she would leave him for another.
He also loved his second wife. She was his confidant and was always kind,
considerate, and patient with him.
Whenever the King faced a problem, he could confide in her, and she
would help him get through difficult times.
The king’s first wife was a very loyal partner and had made
great contributions in maintaining his wealth and kingdom. However, he did not love the first wife. Although she loved him deeply, he hardly took
notice of her!
One day, the King fell ill and he knew his time was
short. He thought of his luxurious life
and wondered, I now have four wives with me, but when I die, I’ll be all
alone.” Thus, he asked the fourth wife,
“I loved you the most, endowed you with the finest clothing and showered great
care over you. Now that I’m dying, will
you follow me and keep me company?”
“No way!” replied the fourth wife, and she walked away
without another word. Her answer cut
like a sharp knife right into his heart.
The sad King then asked the third wife, “I loved you all my
life. Now that I’m dying, will you
follow me and keep me company?”
“No!” replied the third wife. “Life is too good! When you die, I’m going to remarry!” His heart sank and turned cold.
He then asked the second wife, “I have always turned to you
for help and you’ve always been there for me.
When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?”
“I’m sorry, I can’t help you out this time!” replied the
second wife. “At the very most, I can
only walk with you to your grave.” Her
answer struck him like a bolt of lightning, and the King was devastated.
Then a voice called out: “I’ll go with you. I’ll follow you no matter where you go.” The King looked up and there was his first
wife. She was very skinny as she
suffered from malnutrition and neglect.
Greatly grieved, the King now took notice of her and said, “I should have
taken much better care of you when I had the chance!”
In truth, we all have four wives in our lives:
Our fourth wife is our body.
No matter how much time and effort we lavish in making it look good, it
will leave us when we die.”
Our third wife is our possessions, status, and wealth. When we die, it will all go to others.”
Our second wife is our family and friends. No matter how much they have been there for
us, the furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave.
And our first wife is our Soul; often neglected in pursuit
of wealth, power and pleasures of the world.
However, our Soul is the only thing that will follow us wherever we go.
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