Overcoming Grief - Lessons from King Senajit's story

How to face the grief of a loss?
Loss of wealth, loss of position, loss of a friend, or relative!

King Senajit was in deep grief because his young son had died. A wise man came to his court and told the king, 'Don't you understand, your majesty? You and I, we all have to return to where we came from. Today, you grieve for your son. Tomorrow, you will be gone, and people will grieve for you. Isn't it ridiculous?'

Senajit said, 'But grieving for a loss is natural, how can you avoid that?' The wise man replied, 'I have no grief about anything. I don't consider my own body as mine. I treat the whole world as mine, considering everything as belonging to everyone else as much as it belongs to me. Nothing is mine exclusively. This is how everything in the world is – sons, grandsons, relatives, friends, places, money, skills. Don't feel attached to them; separation from them is certain. It's like two floating pieces of wood coming together amidst sea waves for some time. After some time, they have to drift apart. Your son came from somewhere, and he has gone back. Did you know him before he was born? Did he know you before he was born as your son? Two strangers, been together for some time, that's all.'

'Grief is a disease caused by desire and attachment. You were happy to be with your son, but it is that happiness itself which has given rise to this grief. Sorrow follows joy, and when the sorrow is gone, joy comes back. It's a cycle. Money, friends, or objects of pleasure cannot give you happiness. If you are destined to get happiness, then only you get happiness. Enemies or unfortunate circumstances are not the cause of your misery. If you are destined to be miserable, then you will be miserable, no matter what. Destiny is nothing but the consequences of your own past karma from previous births.'

'The most foolish and dumb don't suffer. The most intelligent also don't suffer. Only those who are in between suffer. Sorrow will never touch a man who is wise and who has realized the true nature of the world. The wise man fears no one. No one needs to be afraid of him. He has no desires. He has no aversions.'