Secret of happiness
Yesterday I got an email from one of my training student that he got a good
job in one of the leading Indian IT companies and he was supposed to report in
two week's time. From his email it was obvious that he was very happy about it.
At the end of the email he requested me to share with him if there are any
openings in a still better organization. His request surprised me. He just got
such a good opportunity and even before starting on his new job he is thinking
about searching "still better" job. Though I was surprised, I could understand
his situation. I myself being in IT industry for more than a decade know how
people hop jobs one after the other. I have seen my friends and students having
so many reasons for changing their jobs including:
"The work is boring and monotonous"
"I work hard but company doesn't care for me"
"The other company is offering too lucrative salary and perks"
"I want to go abroad for earning money"
and many more...
I understand that these reasons might be very much valid in a given situation
but if you see the common theme behind these reasons it is - "seeking something
better". We all want to be more and more happy and we feel that "something
better" is going to add happiness to our life. It reminded me what Paramahansa
Yogananda used to say.
Mankind is engaged in an eternal quest for that "something
else" he hopes will bring him happiness, complete and unending. For those
individual souls who have sought and found God, the search is over: He is that
Something Else.
Yoga teaches you to train the mind and body for obtaining happiness from
whatever situation you are in. Unlike the common belief that happiness exists in
external things such as money, luxuries and relationships, Yoga asks you to
search for the happiness within. It sounds difficult at first glance but we all
can try to learn this attitude. After all we are the beneficiaries. We may not
be able to master this technique with the same magnitude as saints, monks or
Yogis but even a small progress will pay us a lot. Let me tell you a short story
to explain my point...
Once upon a time there was a king ruling his prosperous territory. Though he
was a king living happily, he still wanted to be more happy. But he couldn't
understand how. He had all the luxuries that can be bought with the help of
money but still he was craving for more happiness.
One day a Sadhu arrived in his kingdom. The Sadhu was welcomed by the people
and soon he got many followers there. The news of his arrival reached the king.
The king though of asking him about becoming more happy.
The king went to the cave where the Sadhu was staying and bowed down before
him. The king said "I have all the luxuries that money can give but I want to be
more happy. I think a wise man like yours will be able to guide me in the right
direction." The Sadhu smiled and replied "O Rajan, I can make you world's
happiest person if you stay with me for two weeks." The king was pleased. He
sent all his servants back and declared that he would return only after two
weeks.
The Sadhu was very powerful. Through his miraculous powers everyday he used
to produce heavenly food for them to eat. The food used to be much more
delicious that the king ever ate. The king was very happy with the treatment
that the Sadhu gave him and was eager to know the secret of happiness. Days
passed just like that.
One day the Sadhu declared - "O King! From today onwards we will not eat
anything". The king was shocked but he didn't said anything as he was eager to
know the secret. Days passed by. Day after day the king became weaker and
weaker. Hunger and thrust became unbearable to him. Surprisingly the Sadhu was
unaffected by this fast. He was joyous as before. A stage reached when the
king collapsed crying for food and water. The Sadhu took pity on him and chanted
some mantras. Suddenly a plate appeared full of food. The food was simple and
much inferior as compared to what they used to eat earlier. Seeing the food the
king smiled with relief.
After finishing the meal the Sadhu asked - "You were happy when I gave you
the heavenly food. You are happy right now even though the food I gave you was
of much inferior quality. Tell me honestly at which movement you felt more
happy?" The king had to admit that he is feeling much more happy right now as
compared to his happiness in the past. "So you see your happiness is not
dependent on the quality of food but on the condition of your mind-body
equipment. Your luxuries can never give you complete happiness. The secret of
happiness lies in tuning your mind-body equipment in the right way. Then the
external factors will not bother you much and you will be happy forever."
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