We are all living in a world where we strive for our living. That, you all agree... May you belong to a middle class family or an aristocrat dynasty, you still struggle... If not economically, then maybe socially. Or academically. Maybe any reason... But life is all about challenges and what we are here for is facing those challenges in the best possible way...
Let us go deep into the aspect now... Ask yourself - "What do I want in my life?" or "What are my dreams and aspirations?" You may come up with varying answers, and the range of answers to this question is of course, almost infinite. Someone may want to become a successful writer, while some other person may even have the desire of winning a Nobel Prize. This seemingly infinite range of answers is what creates all the trouble in our lives. This is what gives rise to most of the evil. Do you want to know how? Read on...
A word quite acquainted to our minds, about which we wouldn't have even thought, is "END". You may be wondering how. Most of the time, we are all oriented towards the end result of our actions. We all are always trying hard to achieve a good outcome. For example, we study for long night hours to get good "marks", we work sincerely in our office to achieve "promotion". Think it the other way round. What if the end result is not achieved despite our strongest efforts? What if we don't succeed in getting to the end result even after striving so much? You may be quite familiar with such situations. You may not get good marks even after studying the whole day... We all feel dejected in such a situation.
Why? Because we didn't achieve our end goal... Because, we couldn't get to our target.
Our dreams, our aspirations, our targets were what mattered most to us, and since they could not be fulfilled, we are upset. Our desires are the reason why we are sad... Isn't it so?
In another situation, consider that you have alternate options for achieving the same target. Like cheating in an examination, or flattering the boss. If you choose these options, you are going to achieve your end target in a fairly easy manner. Then, your dreams will be fulfilled. You will be happy, most probably... Or not?
Let us extend the situation. You are trying to flatter the boss, but a very sincere employee is winning his heart without any flattery. Of course, you would find your position in danger. Even after choosing an alternate path, you are not going to get to your target. You would want to deviate a little more from the path. You'll try to disparage the efforts of your "Opponent". That's where the main problem starts. In an attempt to achieve your target, you have started harming others and started going on an immoral path...
Our dreams and our aspirations were something that we wanted, and in order to achieve them, we started walking on an immoral path and creating problems for others... Don't you agree?
Interestingly, and ironically, "Our whole life revolves around the END". We are so end-centered, that we try to reach to the end the whole time, and when we do reach the end, we find that we are not happy to achieve the end or in another situation, the time just passes without you, ever reaching the end...
The problem is that our thinking is so narrow, that we don't want to see things beyond what our eyes show us. Think upon it again, "What do I want in my life?" or "What is my dream?"
Whatever the answer to this question, ask yourself, "What after I get to this dream?"
Keep on asking the second question to yourself, and you'll stop at just two words - HAPPINESS and SATISFACTION. These are the only two things we ever want in our life... Our dreams and our target are just "Means" to achieve these end targets. What we think of as "End" in the form of our targets and aspirations are not the "End". That's quite funny, that despite being so "end-centered", we cannot identify the correct "End" of our actions.
Now ask yourself, weren't you going to be happy if you had accepted your bad score in examinations in a positive manner? You go on to the extreme point by choosing immorality for achieving success (in the end, happiness and satisfaction); couldn't you be satisfied by your present situation?
I don't say you don't make targets to achieve greater goals, but making it your life is not something sensible. Relying entirely on them and behaving as a maniac to achieve them is not what you have to do. If you get to the target, it's great, but even if you can't, why don't you see what all you learned in the process of achieving your target? Why don't you see it as a stepping stone for further achievements?
Don't you feel that in the process of achieving Happiness and Satisfaction, we are losing our small, happy moments and are never satisfied of our own selves?
Do think about it... After all, it's life you have to think about before,
THE END
