This too shall pass

“I would like a ring that will make a happy person sad… and a sad person happy,” said the King to his ministers.

The ministers went about the land looking high and low, near and far, but they could find no one who knew of such a ring. The weeks turned to months. The months to years. They had searched every jeweler in the known lands.

Returning home, one of the ministers came to old man selling his jewelry on the side of the road. The old man seemed happy despite his poor circumstances. The minister was used to the fineries of the court and immediately noticed that there was nothing of gold or silver, the gems were all plain and worthless. The old man had no jewelry of any value. Yet, the minister had exhausted all the other jewelers on his route. This was his last hope before returning to the King.

“I search for a ring with the power to make a happy man sad and a sad man happy,” said the minister.

The old man smiled with delight. “Come back in an hour,” he said.

The minister was doubtful. Yet, he came back in an hour with a sad face, expecting to return to the King as a failure. The old man gave him a plain iron ring with an inscription. As soon as the minister read the inscription, his frown turned into a smile.

He immediately set off to give the ring to his King.

“Your majesty, I have found the ring of power!” proclaimed the minister to the court.

The King’s face exploded with a smile from ear to ear. He had wealth and power, but this was a new power that he would now possess.

When the King read the inscription, his smile dropped, his head bowed humbly.

From that day forward, the King wore the plain iron ring on his hand as a reminder. He lived a life of balance, sharing wisdom with his people.

The inscription on the ring, “This too shall pass.”

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As with many folk tales that have survived in the oral tradition, there are many versions of this story. You can find an early version from 13th century Persia. Later, you can find the story as a Jewish tale of King Solomon. Sometimes King Solomon is humbled by the wisdom; sometimes he is the one imparting the wisdom on another. The story was even mentioned by Abraham Lincoln in a speech. Here, I’ve created a version of the folk tale complied from several different ones, plus a little imagination.

Wisdom as old as this has been passed on through time, not on a ring, but through story.

“This too shall pass.”