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Hello, I'm Mariam. Today's story is a fairy tale about a young woman whose identity is put to the test using just a little green pea. Yep, this is the story of The Princess and the Pea. Our story begins a long time ago. There's a handsome prince who desperately wants to marry a princess. He travels the world to find one and there are plenty available but
But he loses sleep over how genuine they really are. So there he is, back at home in his castle, feeling lonely and worried about the situation. That night, there's a big storm. Thunder, lightning, torrential rain. But the prince sleeps through it. He doesn't hear someone knocking at the door. But his mother, the queen, does. And she goes to see who it is. MUSIC
She opens the door and finds a young woman soaking wet and windblown. Who are you? she asks. I'm a princess and I need a place to sleep, she says. Hmm, the queen thinks. Are you really? She lets her in and then rushes up to one of the spare bedrooms. The castle can sleep hundreds, so there are plenty to choose from.
She takes all the covers and sheets off the bed and places just one green pea at the bottom. Then the queen gets 20 mattresses and piles them up on top of the pea. The king gives her a hand because they are rather heavy. Despite all the noise, the prince is sleeping like a baby and has no idea what they're up to. So there is the bed with a pea at the bottom and 20 mattresses on top.
To make it cozier, the queen puts 20 soft feather eiderdowns on top of that. Then she invites the alleged princess to get some sleep. The princess is a bit surprised at what she sees, but as she is so tired, she cautiously climbs onto the top of the bed and quickly falls asleep. Next morning, the king and queen eagerly ask her if she slept well.
No, sorry, I didn't sleep a wink, the princess replies. There was something hard in the bed and I just couldn't get comfortable. Then they noticed she is covered in bruises. Wonderful, says the queen, because she thinks that only someone as delicate as a princess could feel a pee through all those mattresses and eiderdowns.
It's not the most scientific of tests, but it has convinced the queen and she rushes off to tell the prince to marry her. He says he'll sleep on it. But the queen tells him there's no time to lose and they are married the next day. A happy ending. And the pea, so I am told, was put in a museum for everyone to see. I wonder if that's true. Well, I hope you enjoyed today's story and join me soon for another one. Bye for now.
Yoga is more than just exercise. It's the spiritual practice that millions swear by.
And in 2017, Miranda, a university tutor from London, joins a yoga school that promises profound transformation. It felt a really safe and welcoming space. After the yoga classes, I felt amazing. But soon, that calm, welcoming atmosphere leads to something far darker, a journey that leads to allegations of grooming, trafficking and exploitation across international borders.
I don't have my passport, I don't have my phone, I don't have my bank cards, I have nothing. The passport being taken, the being in a house and not feeling like they can leave...
You just get sucked in so gradually.
And it's done so skillfully that you don't realize. And it's like this, the secret that's there. I wanted to believe that, you know, that...
Whatever they were doing, even if it seemed gross to me, was for some spiritual reason that I couldn't yet understand. Revealing the hidden secrets of a global yoga network. I feel that I have no other choice. The only thing I can do is to speak about this and to put my reputation and everything else on the line. I want truth and justice.
And for other people to not be hurt, for things to be different in the future. To bring it into the light and almost alchemise some of that evil stuff that went on and take back the power. World of Secrets, Season 6, The Bad Guru. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.