Triumph and Disaster: The Greatest Impostors

The Three Princes of Serendip

There were three brothers, princes, in fact. These were highly educated boys – hothoused in the academia of the day with unique specialities. Their dad was getting older and was ready to live an old man’s lifestyle so offered the throne to his boys – each refused.

Being the son of a farmer, I empathize with their refusal to take on the kingdom. But like my father, their dad decided that knowledge was power and change was required in their land (modern day Sri Lanka). So he sent them off to learn the truths of the rest of the world before one of them would eventually become ruler.

The princes stumbled around their enforced education seeing the world and various different people and in Iran, they encounter a man who asks if they’ve seen a camel on their travels. They had not, but through a series of clues, they deduced that indeed the camel had been in the vicinity and pointed him towards the direction they suspected it had gone.

The camel owner, fruitless in his search and now suspicious of the three, caught up with the trio and accused them of stealing the camel. They attempted to escape but were arrested by their ruling emperor of the time and sentenced to death.

Lo and behold, on the day of the trial, when all looked bleak, an old, blessed lady prayed for the brothers and unbeknownst to the growing crowd, she saw a bird swoop from the sky and then, everyone saw the camel reappear.

The camel owner, an honest man albeit with a healthy belief in swift justice, insisted the innocent brothers were released.

The emperor (who, by this time, was quite invested in the siblings) asked the brothers how they knew so much about the camel without having seen it. They knew intricate details such as its pregnant passenger and the nature of the cargo it carried.

The brothers tell the emperor that the presence of ants (honey) and flies (butter) on either side of the tracks (evidence of her restricted mobility), as well as the “carnal concupiscence” inspired by the scent and/or taste of her urine, was what led them to their almost paranormal predictions about the camel and its whereabouts.

The emperor was impressed at the sagacity of the brothers’ and after being thoroughly pampered by him in his palace, they were given senior roles within his kingdom.

Yet what we will suffer now is nothing compared to the glory He will be reveal to us later. Romans 8:18

Walpole referred to this story in the 18th century when he wrote to his friend coining the word “serendipity” (Serendip is the Persian word for Ancient Sri Lanka). He spoke of the brothers happening onto things that went on to play a significant role in creating a good outcome later.

They say the story is the template for the detective novel and various other shows and movies which build on your almost involuntary participation in (often traumatic) life events leading you to knowledge and experience that creates good down the line. Slumdog Millionaire being the classic.

Some argue you can create your own serendipity. I guess it feeds into the capitalist notion that ensuring you’re in the right place, at the right time, doing the right things, will pay off. .

And sure, the more you put yourself out there, the more likely you are to “bump into” situations in which you either learn from or apply your learning to facilitate a positive outcome. That’s just math.

But also privilege. The brothers were knowledgeable because they had a privileged background where survival wasn’t an immediate concern. Therefore, education could play the huge role that it did in their lives. It requires resources to take yourself around the world, just to be in the right place at the right time.

“If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster And treat those two impostors just the same” Rudyard Kipling

Triumph and disaster are mere moments in one’s lifetime. Like everything else, they too shall pass.

Those moments serve as opportunities, almost as like a fork in the road. You could turn here and set on a whole new route. Or you could keep going in the same direction.

Maybe the Internet experience provides an opportunity for us all to be part a reality where you can create your own serendipity. I remember struggling through thoughts of birth and death one February, and I wanted to write the story of Kisa Gotami, and someone with whom I was acquainted online wrote it instead about her own grief. She told my story when I couldn’t.

When we realize the power of our triumphs and disasters in determining the rest of our path, we can be part of creating our own reality.

Messiaoux said:

“There is no reason for anything to be or to remain the way it is; everything must, without reason, be able not to be and/or be able to be other than it is”

This we can choose.

—

This post was previously published on MEDIUM.COM.

***

You may also like these posts on The Good Men Project:

Escape the Act Like a Man Box

What We Talk About When We Talk About Men

Why I Don’t Want to Talk About Race

The First Myth of the Patriarchy: The Acorn on the Pillow

—

Photo credit: Shutterstock