Once upon a time there was a king who told the court sages:

"I'm making a precious ring. I bought one of the most beautiful diamonds in the world. I want to hide in the ring a message that can serve in moments of desperation and it will be for my heirs forever. It must be a short sentence, which can come under the diamond of the ring.

All those who listened were wises and sages, they could write treaties, but a message with no more than two or three words that could have helped in difficult moments ...

They thought, but could not find anything.

The king had been raised by an old servant. The king's mother had died early, and this servant had taken care of him, and was therefore treated as if he were one of the family. The king felt an immense respect for the old man, so he also consulted him. And the old man said:

"I am not wise, neither scholar, nor academic, but I know a message. During my life in the palace, I met all kinds of people and, on one occasion, I met a mystic. He was invited by your father and I was at his service.

To thank me he gave me this message. The old man wrote something on a piece of paper, folded it and handed it to the king. "But don't read it." he said: "Keep it hidden in the ring and open it only when there is no other way out."

This didn’t take a long time to come. His reign was invaded and the king lost the battle. He was running away on his horse and his enemies were following him. He was alone and there were many enemies. He arrived in a place where the road ended completely without exit. Before him a precipice with a deep valley, falling would have been his end. He could not go back because the enemies had blocked the path. He could already hear the sound of their horses. There was no way out.

Thinking, he remembered the ring. He opened it, took out the piece of paper and read the short but precious message, which simply was: "This too will pass."

As he read the message, he felt that a great silence was falling around him. The enemies that were pursuing him had perhaps been lost in the forest or had gone the wrong way. The horses were certainly not heard anymore.

The king was deeply grateful to the servant and the unknown mystic. Those words were miraculous. He folded the piece of paper and put it back under the diamond ring. He gathered his army and regained the kingdom.

The day he returned to the palace victorious, he had a great party with songs and dances, and he felt very well.

The old servant stood beside him in the carriage and said to him:

"Even this moment is appropriate, look at the message again.”

"Why? Now I'm victorious, people celebrate my return, I'm not desperate, I'm not in a situation with no way out." said the king.

And the old servant said: "Listen to me, this message is useful not only when you are defeated, but also when you are victorious. Not only when you are the last, but also when you are the first".

The king opened the ring and read the message:

"This too will pass".

Again he felt the same thing, a silence that surrounded him despite being in the crowd that celebrated and danced. His pride and ego were gone. The king understood the message. He was enlightened.

Then the old man said:

"Do you remember everything that has happened to you? Not a single thing or emotion is permanent. As there are day and night, so there are moments of happiness and moments of sadness. Accept them as a natural part of things, because they are part of life."