Who would ever want to travel on a path that leads to unhappiness? No one. We all want to be happy at all times. However, one would like to learn the path to unhappiness so that one may avoid it. Our scriptures show this path. One marvels at our scriptures. Our forefathers had studied every aspect of life in great depth and have given to us wisdom to live happily in the Upanishads, Bhagvad Geeta and other scriptures. Many times, the answers are given in simple words in the form of ‘Sutras’. ‘Sutra’ is a statement which is brief; having minimum words which is free from ambiguity, is meaningful, multifaceted, without any superfluous words and is flawless.
The answer to the question as to which is the surest way to unhappiness is given in the following Sutra, which reads as under:
It means – “Ignoring what you have and longing for what you do not have is the surest way to unhappiness.”
How true! So lucidly explained! Simple as these words may sound, they hold the key to human happiness. The root cause of all our unhappiness is that we are never appreciative of what we have, never satisfied with what we have and are therefore never happy. As they say “the grass is always greener on the other side.” We are not thankful to the Almighty for all that He has given us. We have no sense of gratitude. We are always seeking more. Our desires are endless. Our ‘trishna’, our thirst is never ending.
When one’s cup is half full, one only looks at the empty upper half and cribs. “My cup is already half-empty”. Only rarely, a few are happy and rejoice saying “My cup is still half full”. One has to remember that one’s cup is ever full. It is upto us whether to cry about the cup which is half empty or feel happy that our cup is half full.
The desires around us are so strong that once they catch hold of us, it is difficult to escape from their clutches. There is a story of two shepherds. They were grazing their sheep on a bank of a raging river. Suddenly, one of them saw a black shining woolen object floating down the river. Thinking that it was woolen blanket, as it very much looked like one, one of them jumped in the river and swam upto it. When he reached it, to his horror, he discovered that it was not a blanket but a bear which was very much alive. Before he could swim away from it, the bear grabbed him. Both were being pulled by the strong currents. The Shepherd on the shore shouted “Leave the blanket, leave the blanket”. Our friend, whom the bear would not let go, shouted back, “What do I do?” I have left the blanket. But the blanket is not leaving me!” This friend’s plight is the one in which all of us are. When our desires take hold of us even if we want to leave them, they would not let us go. Ultimately, we drown under the burden of our desires.
Our attitude of comparing is one of the reasons for this situation. If I do not get something, it is alright so long as my neighbor does not get it. But if my neighbor gets the latest refrigerator, I must have it too. I would be unhappy till I have one. The media plays havoc with our desires. 24×7 we are bombarded with views of “beautiful things,” without which, we are told, life and living are incomplete. We succumb to this pressure, and go on acquiring objects which may not be of real use to us and forgetting in the process that we acquire an attitude which guarantees lifelong unhappiness.
We have no time to thank God Almighty for all that He has given to us. We have lost the art of ‘counting our blessings’.
Unknowingly, all of us have been treading on this path of unhappiness. What we must now do is clear. Tell ourselves that ‘things’ may bring comfort but not lasting happiness. We must stop in our tracks. Fortunately, a U-Turn on this road to unhappiness is permitted. We must turn around, retrace our steps and be on the right road to happiness. God is always more than willing to help us. I would like to end with the lines of a song of the bye-gone era which conveys the right message.
