There was a rich merchant who had four wives. He loved the fourth wife the most, and adorned her with rich robes and treated her to delicacies. He toke great care of her and gave her nothing but the best.
She also loved the third wife very much. He is very proud of her and always wanted to show her off to his friends. However, the merchant was always in great fear that she might run away with some other men.
He, too, loved his second wife. She was a very considerate person, always patient. And in fact, was the merchant’s confidante. Whenever the merchant faced some problems, she always turned to his second wife. And she always helped them out tide him through the difficult times.
Now the merchant’s first wife was a very loyal partner, and has made great contributions in maintaining his wealth and business, as well as taking care of his 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 felt ill. Before long, he knew that he was going to die soon. He though of his luxurious life and told himself: “now I have four wives with me. But when I die, I will be alone. How lonely I’ll be!”
Thus he asked the fourth wife: “I love you most, endowed you with the finest clothing, and show great care over you. Now that I am dying, would you follow me and keep me company?”
“No way!” replied the fourth wife and she walked away without another word. The answer cut like a sharp knife and right into the merchant’s heart.
The sad merchant then asked the third wife: “I have loved you so much for all my life. Now that I am dying, will you follow me and keep me company?”
“No!” replied the third wife, “life is so good over here, I am going to remarry when you die.” The merchant’s heart sank and turned cold.
Then, he asked the second wife: “I always turn to you for help. You have always helped me out. Now I need your help again. When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?”
“I am sorry. I can not help you out this time.” Reply the second wife, “at the very most, I can only send you to your grave.”
The answer came like a bolt of lighting and the merchant was devastated.
Then a voice called out: “I will leave with you. I will follow you no matter where you go.” The merchant looked up and there was his first wife. She was so skinning, almost as 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 four wives in our lives.
A: the fourth 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.
B: our third wife, our possession, status and wealth. When we die, they all go to others.
C the second wife is our family and friends. No matter how close they have been there for us when we alive. The furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave.
D the first wife is in fact our soul, often neglected in our pursuer of material, wealth and sensual pleasure. Guess what? It is actually the only thing that follows us wherever we go. Perhaps it is a good idea to cultivate and strength it now rather than to wait until we’re on our deathbed to lament.
