This Too Shall Pass.

Has anyone here read Jorge Bucay's excellent book "Let Me Tell You a Story"?

This book amazed me to the point where I was buying it for everyone, and I mean everyone in my surroundings: my aunt, cousins, mom, ex-boyfriend, friends, etc. I considered it a must-read for everyone.

All the stories were profoundly instructive and offered a different perspective on things. They provided a fresh new outlook.

For those who haven't heard of the book, it's about the search for happiness. In this book, Demian finds Jorge, an unconventional psychoanalyst who approaches Demian’s life dilemmas through stories. I was blown away by the simplicity and am still grateful to both Demian and Jorge, who are true characters and have turned these sessions into a book.

Among all the stories, there was one in particular that, of course, I found charming and instructive, but at the time, I didn't fully “approve of it”. Because at the time, it wasn’t in alignment with what I thought life was all about. Because I did not know how to live with my own emotions. And had wrong perception or instructions on how to deal with them The story is called "The Bipolar King," and I'll share it with you below, before I share my POV on it today.

Story of "The Bipolar King"

"Once upon a time, there was a very powerful king who ruled a distant land. He was a good king, but he had one problem: he was a king with a split personality.

There were days when he rose with shouts of joy, euphoric, happy.

Those days seemed beautiful to him from the morning. The gardens of his palace seemed more beautiful to him. His servants somehow became kind and efficient. At breakfast, he claimed that the best flour was produced in his kingdom, and the best fruits were harvested. On those days, the king reduced taxes, distributed wealth, provided services, and enacted laws for the peace and well-being of the elderly. On those days, the king yielded to all the requests of his subjects and friends.

But there were also those other days.

They were black days. In the morning, he realized that he would rather sleep a little longer. But when he noticed, it was already too late, and sleep had already left him. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't understand why his servants were so moody, and he was not satisfied with the service at all. The sun bothered him more than the rain. The food was lukewarm, and the coffee was cold. The mere thought of receiving visitors in his study increased his headache. During those days, the king thought about all the obligations he had and feared how he would fulfill those obligations. Those were the days when the king increased taxes, seized land, had his enemies arrested…

In fear of the present and the future, under the pressure of past mistakes, on those days, he enacted laws against his people and most often used the word "no."

Aware of the problems caused by these mood swings, the king summoned all the wise men, seers, and advisors of his kingdom.

"Gentlemen," he said. "You all know my mood swings. You have all benefited from my euphoria and suffered from my anger. But I suffer the most from all this because every day I have to solve what I did at another time when I saw things differently.

Gentlemen, I want you to work together to find a solution, whether it's a potion or an exorcism, that will prevent me from being so absurdly optimistic that I'm unaware of the dangers and so ridiculously pessimistic that I oppress those I love and do them harm."

The wise men accepted the challenge, and several of them worked on the king's problem. However, no alchemy, no magic, and no herb helped them find a solution to the given problem. Ultimately, the advisors came before the king and admitted failure. That night, the king cried.

The next morning, a strange guest asked to see the king. He was an unusual man of dark skin dressed in a worn tunic that was once white.

"Your Majesty," said the man, bowing. "Where I come from, they speak of your troubles and maladies. I have brought you a solution."

Bowing his head, he handed the king a leather box. The king, somewhat surprised but full of hope, opened the box and looked inside. Inside was only a silver ring. "Thank you," said the king enthusiastically. Is this a magical ring? Of course it is, but its magic doesn't work just by putting it on your finger. Every morning when you wake up, you must read the inscription on the ring and remember those words every time you see the ring on your finger.

The king took the ring and read aloud: “You must know that this too shall pass.”

- from the book “Let Me Tell You a Story” by Jorge Bucay.

Such a beautiful one. So where was my problem with it? 

Reflections on "The Bipolar King"

Of course, like all the other stories in the book, this one had a lesson too. But considering that before I used to think that the "normal" state of being was exclusively a state of excitement, happiness, constant satisfaction, I somehow disagreed with the idea "happiness too shall pass."

Even though we strive for it, life has its ups and downs.

Reading this story over a decade ago, I didn't understand that. And with that perspective, it was even harder for me to overcome hardships & low states of being when they occured.

Sometimes, the pleasure is just being at peace without any special reason for it.
Sometimes, the pleasure is being sad but allowing that sadness to exist too, instead of suppressing it because it's uncomfortable to us.
And it took me some time to figure that out.

Embracing Every Moment

To me, that sentence and message, "This too shall pass," is no longer just a relief for periods of difficult situations, but also a reminder that we shouldn't take the beautiful moments for granted because everything is temporary. Literally everything.

I think the new energy doesn't allow the suppression of any emotions, messages, words... but rather reflection, attention, sitting with them, befriending them, and at the end of the day, some form of expressing them. 

And I believe that applies to both beautiful and less beautiful states and situations in our lifes.
Because that is - life.

So, in times of difficulties, hardships, I hope you can see the bigger picture and remember that life consists of ups and downs, 

that both come with messages and lessons, and that both will pass. 

And that's why both should be experienced.

With hope or perspective, remember. This too shall pass.

xx

Maria