There lived a successful man who had four wives. He loved his fourth wife the most and adorned her with beautiful dresses, and treated her to delicacies. He took great care of her and gave her what she wanted.
He also loved the third wife very much. He was very proud of her and always wanted to show her off to his friends. But, the merchant was always in fear that she might run away with some other men.
He loved his second wife too. She was a very considerate person. It was her with whom the man talked and shared his thoughts. In times of need, he turned to his second wife, and she would help him out and tide him through difficult times.
Although the first wife was a very loyal partner, he hardly gave her much attention. Although the first wife loved him immensely, he was so busy with his three wives that he hardly spent time with her.
As the years passed by the merchant fell ill and was on his death bed. All his life, the man had his four wives beside him, now, he wanted someone to accompany him after his death. Thus, he asked his beloved fourth wife, “I loved you the most and showered great care over you. Now that I am dying, will you follow me and keep me company?” “No way!” replied the fourth wife, and she walked away without any other word.
The man then asked the third wife, “All my life, I have treasured you with love. Now I’m dying. Will you follow me and keep me company?” “No!” replied the third wife. “Life is so good over here! I will find someone else when you die!”.
He looked into the second wife’s eyes and before he could ask her to come along with him. She said, “I’m sorry, I can’t come along with you out this time! At the most, I can only accompany you to your grave”. The answers from his three wives came like a bolt of thunder, and the man’s heart sank, and he felt cold.
“ I will come with you. I will always accompany you through life, death and beyond .” a voice called out. The man looked up, and his first wife stood next to him. She was thin, skinny, weak and malnourished. All his life, he never paid attention to her. He was grieved at the sight of her and regretted that he hadn’t taken more care of her whilst he had the chance.
We all have four wives in our lives.
- The fourth wife represents our body. We all need to die, and no matter how much we take care of our body, it’ll leave us when we die.
- The third wife is our wealth and possessions. They all go to others when we die.
- The second wife is our family and friends. No matter how close they had been there for us when we were alive, the furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave.
- The first wife is our soul. It is often neglected in our pursuit of material, wealth and pleasure. It is the only thing that will remain with us wherever we go.
Thus, it is good to nourish our soul now rather than regret it later.
