Few days back, I was waiting at the stop sign for a local commute train to pass. One car after another... the whole train just passed in no time and even before I could realize. I could see the rear end of the train, going further away from me, while I was still waiting for the light to go green. For some reason I felt a reflection of my life, going away and away, and I just can't do anything about it. It doesn't make any sense to think about the end when the delusion is that we still have a long way to go. TRUE, but that 'long way to go' would go in no time, just like that train went past me in like a flash.
All this talk may sound depressing but it also helps to bring ourselves to 'awareness', so that mind and body prepares for a meaningful track ahead.
I heard Deepak Chopra talk the other day where he said ‘if you imagine death is chasing you all the time, your priorities will change’. Obviously your mind will tend to do things you always wanted to do, and you will try to become the person you always wanted to be. As now you know that you can’t leave that for tomorrow. That’s not the only way, but is surely one of the effective ones. You talk to 10 people you really admire for whatever reasons and they all have their own ways of dealing with things in life and they all effective as you see it right in front of you.
Another point, which was bought out by my yoga guru very recently is what in the end gives us the maximum satisfaction??? Is it the money we have made??? Or is it fame we have achieved??? Is it the skills we have learned??? The problem is that they all can be quantified and anything which can be quantified can’t keep you content for a long time, as you would like to seek more, and this cycle never stops. To me if I know that the answer is not in any of the above so why do I keep chasing it and wasting my life. Well of course I have to survive in this world, have certain responsibilities to take care of, and have to contribute my part to this practical world so that it keeps intact.
It has been emphasized by so many philosophers and so many philosophies before, what gives meaning to our lives is not anything but the love we spread around...love for our family, significant others and friends of course comes first but should not be limited to only few. Coming to think about it, it’s something we all have in plenty and will never run out… no matter how much money Hugh Hoffner makes or how many women he hangs around with, he could never expect to get the kind of love and respect Bob Marley got...he is close to 90 and still doesn’t get the point… I know that when I will die people will not remember me for how great I was to myself, but how good I was to others and how useful was my contribution towards others.
Sudden change in the way you look at life doesn’t comes easy specially with all the distractions and challenges that take significant part of our thought process but with application of simple concepts like accepting things the way they are, being grateful for whatever we have, with right people around and consciously making an effort to spread love around, slowly but surely ...
No comments:
Post a Comment