Give it a thought - What is my aim in life?
"The aim of life is to LIVE" - isn't it too mundane! Well, we all live a life so how can it be an AIM!
Hmm... some fancier aim-
- To be another 'Satya Nadella or Sundar Pichai' : CEO of a top-notch company.
- To be another 'Warren Buffet' : wealthiest person of the world.
- To be another 'King of Bollywood-SRK' : best actor.
- To be another 'Dhirubhai Ambani' : from nowhere to 'karlo duniya muthi mein'.
- To be another 'Narendra Modi' : powerful Prime Minister.
- to be an Engineer, Doctor or an Architect.
- to be a Fashion designer or model.
- to be a Lawyer, Judge or an Advocate.
- to be a big fat businessman.
- entrepreneurs
- Army , Air force , Navy.
- Teacher or Professor
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| "An aim in life is the only fortune worth finding." |
So, what should be the purpose of my life? Earn money , make a living out of it. Gain recognition in society. Set an example for youth. AND DIE! (and be remembered forever and ever, hopefully!)
Hmm.. this is how I imagine my life - trying to run after things that would eventually make my life happy and easy. YES! EVENTUALLY! We live our life in pursuit of happiness.
Some find happiness in little and simplest of things - by lifting others, in a child's smile, giving others, saying thank you etc. That's their aim!
Again comes the question -
How should I decide my aim in life when in the end everything will be incoherent. (Such a view reflects muddled thinking, Yeah I am confused.) Aim high or low. Materialistic attainments or unworldly.
I think my aim in life should to live happy and make others too ... forever and ever!
.. and in between accommodate those fancy dreams of mine.
-Suvina
Post your views! As abstract as possible ;)
In pursuit of Happiness
ReplyDeleteThe phrase “in search of happiness” at first sight seems to be a contradiction because how can an intangible thing like ‘happiness’ be pursued. The word ‘pursuit’ denotes tracking of something, but how can a thing which cannot be seen be capable of being tracked! That ‘Happinesss’ is a state of the mind is proved by research of nuero scientists and psychologists. It is the stimulation of the left prefrontal cortex which induces happiness while calming the right prefrontal cortex reduces sadness.
How these areas of the brain are stimulated is shown in our daily lives. After birth a child finds happiness in every new toy which he or she gets, but then this state of happiness is transitory because soon after playing over a while the child gets fed up and the toy is thrown away. Similarly adults find ‘happiness’ in bigger and more expensive toys be it cars, electronics, jewellery, clothes or cosmetics etc. However the nature of this ‘happiness’ too remains transitory as the levels of happiness derived reduces dramatically over a length of time.
This scenario applies even to those who hitch the star of their ‘happiness’ to achievements and recognition in real life. Initially the achievement of goals provides great happiness and impels people to pursue greater and higher goals in life. The pleasure is intensified if the achievement of goals also results in greater financial rewards. The societies in developed countries such as USA are materialistic civilizations where the pursuit of achievements, money and power override all other considerations. But then evidence is coming in of people being dissatisfied in the midst of plenty and turning to the pursuit of ‘happiness within’ be it in Varanasi, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Vrindavan or Mathura.’ Can we visulize a successful young American family with two small children happily trudging barefoot on a hot tarred road at 3 pm of a hot summer day in Vrindavan while we sought refuge in the cool environs of our car AC.
Should one settle for mundane goals of materialistic achievements or set the sight higher and aim for the highest of the highs. If it be the latter, the road to happiness lies to the discovery of ourselves within. Even spritually, the battle of Kurukshetra is fought daily not on the killing fields in Haryana but within us where in everyday life we combat human vices, filth, cheating, human grossness and greed. Not succumbing to corruption; not coveting that which belongs to others; refraining from thievery, lying or anger are only some but not all that we fight, because vices like Kauravas are innumerable. Action alone is thine, leave thou the fruits strictly alone, said Krishna in Bhagwad Gita. Karma performed without attachment and offering the action as a sacrifice in a spirit of detachment paves the way for effortless success and happiness in life. But this skillful path cannot be tread without wilful determination. On the other hand, there is no redemption for those succumbing to human avarice. The stalk of human character like a lotus flower needs to be strengthened through constant meditation if we are to discover the true state of an everlasting happiness within.
I liked first two para of your comments.. It’s all “chemical feelings” within body 😄.
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