MIDDLE EASTERN PARABLE OF THE MERCHANT WITH FOUR WIVES  







Once upon a time................... There was a rich merchant who had 4

wives.  He loved the 4th wife the most and adorned her with rich robes 

and treated her to delicacies.  He took great care of her and 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 off her 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 me 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: "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 ? 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.



Guess what ? It is actually the only thing that follows us wherever we 

go.  Perhaps it's a good idea to cultivate and strengthen it now rather than 

to wait until we're on our death bed to lament.