The Old Man By The Border Lost His Horse
The Old Man By The Border Lost His Horse. How Do We Know This Is A Bad Thing ?
塞翁失馬焉知非福 Sai Weng Shi Ma refers to a famous story from the Huai Nan Zi about how difficult it is to foresee the twists and turns that result in misfortune turning into to fortune, and fortune leading to misfortune.
《淮南子•人间训》：“夫祸福之转而相生，其变难见也。近塞上之人，有善术者，马无故亡而入胡，人皆吊之。其父曰：‘此何遽不为福乎？’居数月，其马将骏马而归，人皆贺之。其父曰：‘此何遽不为祸乎？’家富良马，其子好骑，堕而折其髀，人皆吊之。其父曰：‘此何遽不为福乎？’居一年，胡人大入塞，丁壮者引弦而战，近塞之人，死者十九，此独以跛之故，父子相保。故福之为祸，祸之为福，化不可极，深不可测也。”
There once was an old man skilled in divination, who lived by the border of a hostile country,
One of his horses strayed into the foreign lands and did not return. The neighbors consoled him for his loss. But the old man said, “Why should I assume this is not a good thing?”
After several months, the horse came back from the land of the Xiongnu, accompanied by another fine horse! Everyone congratulated the old man (it appears he is fortunate indeed!) His family had a wealth of fine horses, and his son loved riding them.
Yet the old man said, “How can we be hastily conclude this is fortunate?”
One day, the son fell off the horse, and broke his leg, and again, everyone consoled the old man. But the father said, “Why should I hastily assume that this is an unfortunate event?”
One year later, a war began, and all able-bodied men took up arms and went to war. Of the men from his town, nine out of ten died. It was only because of the son’s broken leg, that he did not fight. The father and son were spared the greatest tragedy.
Therefore, misfortune begets fortune, and fortune begets misfortune. This goes on without end, and its depths can not be measured.
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In the last month of chaos and destruction in Western North Carolina, the story of the Old Man By The Border reminds us that sudden and devastating events will result in many changes, not all of them misfortune! While i certainly do not mean to minimize the destruction and heartache of so many, a wise man from 2200 years ago reminds us that there are blessings in disguise around us and ahead of us -notably in moments that are the most difficult. Sometimes we just have to wait long enough to see wisdom in the big picture.
As we return to normalcy personally for our family and for everyone at the Alternative Clinic, I wish for all of you to find solid footing on this incredible path of being human, and trust the twists and turns may just reveal a path you never imagined – and, it may just be fortuitous after all. JulieAnn Nugent-Head October 2024