9-3 人有四妻

Four Wives

There was a rich merchant who had 4 wives. He loved the 4th wife the most and adorned 1 her with rich robes and treated her to delicacies1. He took great care of her and gave her nothing but the best.

He also loved the 3rd wife very much. He's very proud of her and always wanted to show her off to his friends. However, the merchant was always in great fear that she might run away with some other men.

He too, loved his 2nd wife. She was a very considerate person, always patient and in fact was the merchant's confidante2. Whenever the merchant faced some problems, he always turned to his 2nd wife and she would always help him out and tide him through difficult times.

Now, the merchant's 1st wife was a very loyal partner and had made great contributions in maintaining his wealth and business as well as taking care of the household. However, the merchant did not love the first wife and although she loved him deeply, he hardly took notice of her.

One day, the merchant fell ill. Before long, he knew that he was going to die soon. He thought of his luxurious 2 life and told himself, “Now I have 4 wives with me. But when I die, I'll be alone. How lonely I'll be!”

Thus, he asked the 4th wife, “I loved you most, endowed3 you with the finest clothing and showed great care over you. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?” “No way!” replied the 4th wife and she walked away without another word.

The answer cut like a sharp knife right into the merchant's heart. The sad merchant then asked the 3rd wife, “I have loved you so much for all my life. Now that I'm dying, will you follow me and keep me company?” “No!” replied the 3rd wife. “Life is so good over here! I'm going to remarry when you die!” The merchant's heart sank and turned cold.

He then asked the 2nd wife, “I always turned to you for help and you've always helped me out. Now I need your help again. When I die, will you follow me and keep me company?” “I'm sorry, I can't help you out this time!” replied the 2nd wife. “At the very most, I can only send you to your grave.” The answer came like a bolt4of thunder and the merchant was devastated5．

Then a voice called out, “I'll leave with you. I'll follow you no matter where you go.” The merchant looked up and there was his 1st wife. She was so skinny, almost like she suffered from malnutrition 4. Greatly grieved, the merchant said, “I should have taken much better care of you while I could have!”

Actually, we all have 4 wives in our lives:

A. The 4th wife is our body. No matter how much time and effort we lavish 56 in making it look good, it'll leave us when we die.

B. Our 3rd wife? Our possessions, status and wealth. When we die, they all go to others.

C. The 2nd wife is our family and friends. No matter how close they have been there for us when we're alive, the furthest they can stay by us is up to the grave.

D. The 1st wife is in fact our soul, often neglected in our pursuit of material, wealth and sensual pleasure.

Guess what? It is actually the only thing that follows us wherever we go. Perhaps it's a good idea to cultivate and strengthen it now rather than to wait until we're on our deathbed to lament 67.

注释：

1. delicacy 7 [5delikEsi] n. 美味，佳肴

2. confidante [7kCnfi5dAnt] n. 知己的女友

3. endow [in5dau] vt. 给予，赋予

4. bolt [bEult] n. 闪电，霹雳

5. devastate 3 [5devEsteit] vt. 压倒，使垮掉

6. lavish [5lAviF] vt. 滥花，浪费，非常慷慨地施予

7. lament [lE5ment] vi. 衰悼，悲痛，痛哭，悲叹

人有四妻

一个富商有四个妻子。他最爱他的第四位妻子，给她穿华丽衣袍，给她吃美味佳肴。他精心地呵护她，总是给她最好的东西。

他也非常爱他的第三位妻子。他颇以她为荣，总是在朋友面前炫耀她。但是，商人也总是提心吊胆，害怕她可能会跟别的男人跑走。

他也爱他的第二位妻子。她非常体贴，总是很耐心，事实上是商人的知己。不管什么时候商人遇到问题，他总是找第二位妻子，而她总是帮助他走出困境，渡过难关。

商人的第一位妻子是个十分忠诚的伴侣，为看管商人的财富和生意，为照料整个家务做出了巨大的贡献。但是，尽管第一位妻子深深爱着商人，他却不爱她，几乎忽略了她。

一天，商人病了。没过多久，他得知他将不久于人世。想到自己奢华的生活，他不禁自言自语：“现在我有四个妻子在我身边。但是等我死后，将是孤身一人。我该是何等的孤独呀！”

于是，他问第四位妻子：“我最爱你，给你穿最好的衣物，对你最为照顾。现在我快要死了，你会跟随我，给我做伴吗？”“没门儿！”第四位妻子回答，没再说一句话就扬长而去。

她的回答像一把尖刀直插进商人的心脏：悲哀的商人于是问他的第三位妻子：“我这一生是如此地爱你。现在我快死了，你能跟我走，给我做伴吗？”“不！”第三位妻子回答。“这里的生活多美妙！你死后我会再结婚的！”商人的心一沉，变冷了。

于是他问他的第二位妻子：“我总是求助于你，你也总是帮我走出困境。现在我又需要你的帮助了。我死后，你能跟我走，给我做伴吗？”“对不起，这次我不能帮你了！”第二位妻子回答。“我最多能送你到墓地。”这回答如闪电雷鸣，击垮了商人。

这时一个声音响起：“我要随你而去。不管你去哪里，我都会跟着你。”商人抬头一看，是他的第一位妻子。她骨瘦如柴，看上去好像是长期营养不良。商人感到莫大的痛苦，说道：“我本应该更好地照顾你！”

事实上，我们在生活中都有四位妻子：

A.第四位妻子是我们的身体。不管我们如何慷慨地花时间和精力让它保持良好形象，我们死时，它便离我们而去。

B.我们的第三位妻子？我们的地位和财富。我们死时，它们都属于别人了。

C.第二位妻子是我们的家人和朋友。我们在世时，不管他们和我们是怎样的亲近，他们最多能伴随我们到墓地。

D.第一位妻子实际上是我们的灵魂，在我们追求物质、财富和肉体上的享受时，它常常被忽视。

想到过吗？事实上，不管我们走向哪里，惟一永远和我们相伴的是灵魂。所以现在我们不妨更多地给灵魂以培育，以力量，而不是等到临终之时，悔恨哀叹。