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The Mad King By Jim & Benita Babeckis There is an old myth about a mad king. Although he is the ruler of vast domains, the mad king has forgotten them. Instead of living in his castle, the mad king has descended to the dankest, darkest dungeon under the palace, preferring to live there with the rats and rotting remains. He sits for long hours amidst the stench and decay brooding about his misfortunes. His ministers try to persuade him to come up to where there is light and beauty but the mad king regards them as mad and refuses to listen. He will not be taken in by fairy tales of wealthy kings and beautiful palaces. Just an old fairy-tale for children, you might say, yet there is an amazing amount of research throughout the various fields of psychology to show how little of our natural potential we really use. How much like this mad king are we, never taking the time to acknowledge the beauty of a sunset, or an autumn day with opulent hued leaves of red and gold, the amber stalks of grain waving in a gentle summer breeze. The tiny buds pushing through the earth after a long winter’s sleep. The skeletal arms of ice-laden branches silhouetted against the dark moonlit winter sky. How much beauty goes unnoticed? How much life is missed planning for a future that, for one reason or another never comes? How much of our suffering is self-created, clasped tightly to our chests in crazed fear and ignorance. In this story of the mad king, his ministers carry torches with them as they bring the king fresh clothing and food. Even in his madness he must notice this. In our world, things sometimes happen that don’t fit into our narrow views of reality and we are forced to notice them. The so-called psychic phenomena are like that, constantly challenging our narrow views of reality. How much more sensible to cultivate and train these abilities to become "all that we can be" rather than anemic ostriches with our heads buried in the sand.
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