There was a rich merchant who had 4 wives.
He loved the 4th wife the most. He adorned her with rich robes and
treated
her to delicacies. He took great care of her & gave her nothing but
the
best.
He also loved the 3rd wife very much. He's very proud of her and
always
wanted to show her off to his friends. However, the merchant is
always in
great fear that she might run away with some other men!!
He too, loved his 2nd wife. She is a very considerate person, always
patient and in fact is the merchant's confidante. Whenever the
merchant
faced some problems, he always turned to his 2nd wife and she would
always
help him out and tide him through difficult times.
Now, the merchant's 1st wife is a very loyal partner and has made
great
contributions in maintaining his wealth and business as well as
taking
care of the household. However, the merchant did not love the first
wife
and although she loved him deeply, he hardly took notice of her.
One day, the merchant fell ill. Before long, he knew that he was
going to
die soon. He thought of his luxurious life and told himself, "Now I
have 4
wives with me. But when I die, I'll be alone. How lonely I'll be!"
Thus, he asked the 4th wife, "I loved you most, endowed you with the
finest clothing and showered great care over you. Now that I'm dying,
will
you follow me and keep my company? "No way!" replied the 4th wife and
she
walked away without another word. The answer cut like a sharp knife
right
into the merchant's heart.
The sad merchant then asked the 3rd wife, "I have loved you so much
for
all my life. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me
company?"
"No!" replied the 3rd wife. "Life is so good over here! I'm going to
remarry when you die!" The merchant's heart sank and turned cold.
He then asked the 2nd wife, "I always turned to you for help and
you've
always helped me out. Now I need your help again. When I die, will
you
follow me and keep me company?" "I'm sorry, I can't help you out this
time!" replied the 2nd wife. "At the very most, I can only send you
to
your grave." The answer came like a bolt of thunder and the merchant
was
devastated.
Then a voice called out: " I'll leave with you. I'll follow you no
matter
where you go!!" The merchant looked up and there was his first wife.
She
was so skinny, almost like she suffered from malnutrition. Greatly
grieved, the merchant said, "I should have taken much better care of
you while I could have!"
Actually, we all have 4 wives in our lives...
The 4th wife is our body. No matter how much time and effort we
lavish in
making it look good, it'll leave us when we die.
Our 3rd wife is our possessions, status and wealth. When we die, they
all
go to others.
The 2nd wife is our family and friends. No matter how close they had
been
there for us when we're alive, the furthest they can stay by us is up
to
the grave.
The 1st wife is in fact our soul. Often neglected in our pursuit of material wealth and sensual pleasure. It is actually the only thing
that
follows us wherever we go.