The cycle of evil.

There is always an amazing atmosphere at local markets here in France. The locals turn out not always to purchase the local produce but to meet with friends and exchange banter. The  markets open early and so do the crowds. Everything is open including all the local bars but at this time the big sale is on expresso coffee and a lass of cold iced water.

I love sitting watching it all happen around me as I savour my expresso and  consume my croissant. Those markets have been the focal point of local communities for years and will no doubt continue for long after I am gone.

As I sit I imagine those markets years ago. The same bustle and noise and chatter. The dress would of course be different but no doubt there would still be those like me a watcher and listener to life.

One such story comes to mind as I think on this.

There was once a king who was so cruel and unjust that his subjects yearned for his death or dethronement. It was all they ever talked about, the time he would no longer be there.

However, one day he surprised them all by announcing that he had decided to turn over a new leaf.

“No more cruelty, no more injustice,” he promised, and he was as good as his word. He became known as the ‘Gentle Monarch’. Months after his transformation one of his ministers plucked up enough courage to ask him what had brought about his change of heart.

And the king answered, “As I was galloping through my forests I caught sight of a fox being chased by a hound. The fox escaped into his hole but not before the hound had bitten into its leg and lamed it for life. Later I rode into a village and saw the same hound there. It was barking at a man. Even as I watched, the man picked up a huge stone and flung it at the dog, breaking its leg. The man had not gone far when he was kicked by a horse. His knee was shattered and he fell to the ground, disabled for life. The horse began to run but it fell into a hole and broke its leg. Reflecting on all that had happened, I thought: ‘Evil begets evil. If I continue in my evil ways, I will surely be overtaken by evil’. So I decided to change”.

The minister went away convinced that the time was ripe to overthrow the king and seize the throne. Immersed in thought, he did not see the steps in front of him and fell, breaking his neck.

The cycle of life goes on and on but it is possible to break free from the habits that makes us less than we can be.