Are we chasing a mirage all our lives?
Are you happy? Most of us would answer, ‘Yes…sometimes.’ Our happiness comes in flashes – moments of joy interrupted by bouts of sorrow. It’s like eating chocolate with the foil. You enjoy the chocolate, but every now and then you have to spit out the wrapper. Why can’t life be all chocolate and no foil?
To begin with, where is happiness? Most of us believe it lies outside – in people, possessions, achievements or experiences. But does it? Imagine you land in New York after a long flight from Mumbai. A fellow passenger lights a cigarette. He is happy. Another passenger walks away. The same object gives intense pleasure to one person and immense discomfort to another. If happiness were in the object, shouldn’t everyone experience the same joy? As long as a desire remains unfulfilled, the mind is agitated and unhappy. The moment the desire gets fulfilled, the agitation ceases. You are happy. So, could it be that happiness is in the mind and not in the object? When the oasis is elsewhere, where do you look for happiness? You seek happiness through four avenues. Sense contact, action, relationships and intellectual pursuits.
Take sense pleasures. The first mango of the season tastes heavenly. But by the end of the season, your favourite fruit has lost its charm. The more you indulge, the less you enjoy.
We all act, work. What are you working for? Paycheck, profit? Watch the thousands of people going to work on a Monday morning. Does anyone look excited?
They all pull long faces. Is it possible to look forward to working hard? Relationships bring more joy. Two people deeply in love forget heat, hunger and discomfort when they are together. Yet the same relationship can become the source of conflict and bitterness.
Intellectual achievement gives far more happiness. A student may sacrifice every comfort to earn a doctorate from a prestigious university. But before long the mind whispers, “What’s next?” Every achievement gives temporary satisfaction, but never lasting fulfilment.
The world entices us to want more, buy more and become more. Yet every new desire quietly postpones our happiness. The fewer the desires, the greater is happiness. And when desire finally comes down to zero, you get infinite happiness. Then nothing adds to it nor can it be depleted.
How do you reduce your desires? As children, we wanted toys. Today they hold little attraction. We grew to something more exciting. As you upgrade your desires, the lower ones lose their grip over you. Desire comes when there is a void. Thoughts arise in your mind to acquire things to fill that emptiness. These are called desires. Yet no matter how much we acquire, the feeling of incompleteness returns. Why? Because you were never empty. Move from selfish pleasures to shared happiness. Celebrate the success of your family as your own. Discover your spiritual nature – the limitless Self that the Gita reveals. You enjoy infinite bliss!
Jaya Row will be conducting talks in Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and Bengaluru. For details, WhatsApp 99200 54000
Disclaimer
Views expressed above are the author’s own.
