Once upon a time, there lived a king who had a mischievous son notorious for his destructive antics. Fed up with his behavior, the king decided to send him away to a distant land. The boy, now stripped of his royal privileges, resorted to begging and endured nights of hunger. Over time, he became accustomed to his new life, forgetting his princely upbringing.
Years passed, and the aging king yearned for his son's return to inherit the kingdom. During one of his beggarly wanderings, the now-grown man found himself at the palace gates, where the king caught a glimpse of him and recognized his lost son. But before the king could reach him, the man fled in fear, believing his begging had angered the palace.
Back at the palace, the king confided in his wise prime minister, who advised patience and a prudent approach. Following the minister's counsel, the king's men located the man and offered him a humble position in the royal barn, which he accepted for want of a better life. As the man toiled in the stable, the king would visit him, praising his hard work and dedication.
Moved by his diligence, the king gradually promoted the man to higher positions, from the treasury to the council of ministers. Despite his rise, the man remained humble, attributing his success to luck and unexpected turns of fate. Eventually, the prime minister expressed his desire to retire and urged the king to appoint the man as his successor.
With great joy, the king crowned the man as the new ruler, sharing his son's forgotten past. As the man settled into his role as king, fragments of his beggarly life began to resurface in his memory, haunting him even in the midst of luxury. Despite his newfound power and wealth, he couldn't shake off the echoes of his humble beginnings, forever living in the duality of his past and present.
Our conscious and unconscious minds play a profound role in shaping our experiences and perceptions. While our conscious mind may store memories and information that we are aware of, it is often the unconscious mind that holds deeper, hidden layers of our psyche.
Just like the boy in the story, who quickly forgot his princely upbringing but was haunted by the memories of his beggar life, we too may find that our unconscious holds onto past experiences and emotions, influencing our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors even when we are not consciously aware of them.
Agnanam, ignorance, indeed, can veil the inherent royalty or godliness within us, preventing us from fully realizing our true potential and divinity. Through self-awareness and introspection, we can begin to unravel the layers of our unconscious mind, gaining deeper insights into ourselves and uncovering the richness of our inner being.
Dr. SV Prabhath
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