Skip to main content

The Happiest people!

Renowned Buddhist philosopher, author, educationist and my mentor in life, Daisaku Ikeda recently quoted Elizabeth Cady Staton, a pioneer of women's rights in US: "The happiest people I have known have been those who gave themselves no concern about their own souls, but did their uttermost to mitigate the miseries of others".

Ikeda who is fondly called sensei (or teacher by his followers) shared this with people from George Mason University who had come to Japan to confer on him an honorary doctorate, as an expression of his commitment to sharing with the rising generations the ideals of freedom and equality that George Mason propounded.

This lead me to think, why are so many people coming and conferring such awards on sensei (he has more than 250 such doctorates conferred on him including one by Delhi Univ, which was conferred on him in a ceremony where Anil Wilson; who was the Principal of St. Stephen"s Delhi when I was studying there, was presiding)?

In my mind, it is because somewhere they see that Soka-Gakkai's movement of kosen-rufu (or world-peace) is trying to achieve something that human-beings across ages have dreamed of.

The Indian freedom struggle was also one such struggle wherein the genius of our nation emerged. But then where did those lofty ideals that our grandfathers and great grandfathers believe in disappear? My Nanaji used to say that the same people who were willing to lay down their lives for the country under Gandhi, later became corrupt thinking after all those sacrifices we made, what did we get in return?

Today, isn't it this attitude of just thinking about one-self and one's family, which has now sunk deep in our culture, responsible for what we face everyday when we have to deal with corruption, apathy and inefficiency. The same people who once had deep belief in such high nobles, ended up becoming so selfish. Why?

I think it is because they lost sight of this profound insight towards life that sensei is trying to point out here. As long as we stay unconcerned about the miseries of others and only care for ourselves, we will not achieve true happiness. Think about it, the day 9/11 happened, did we feel happy or sad? The day 26/11 happened, no matter how great our life might have been at that time, how did we feel? I could be the richest man in the world (like Bill Gates) and living in the best of conditions. Why does something still stir in my life when I see others suffering?

The sooner we as humans understand this I guess the better. We are born alone. We die alone. But till we are alive, lives of people in our environment affect us and so we need to take responsibility of those lives rather than turn a blind eye! Ms. Staton, your observation is profound indeed! And sensei, as usual, thank you for pointing to me the correct path of life!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Live true to yourself

How does one live true to oneself?  For years this thought troubled me. While the concept seems very fascinating, what is the true me? A small town boy who went on to study in the huge metropolis of Delhi in an extremely snobbish and elitist liberal arts college? A young man who went on to study in a large public funded university in North East US amidst a WASP majority? And then in his late 20s came back to settle in a numbing cosmo called Mumbai working in the ultra competitive field of Wealth Management?  Add to the complexities here - born as the son of a Collector. Grew up as a privileged kid amidst the 80s and 90s. Saw the height of powers a man can attain as the son of a Chief Secretary. And how all that power vanishes once the post goes away.  Life is never easy for anyone. Growing up is a process of gradual self discovery. But when one is born in a family with extremity of anything - power, money, fame - The way one thinks about life changes. Throw into the cauld...
Post a Comment
Read more

Stuck in a bubble?

While sitting in a workshop, a big realization dawned on me. All of us in our lives have to face every day realities. A number of these realities are a result of who we are as a person at a particular point of time. A colleague who is disliked in office for his aggressive nature might be the most loving of friends in everyday life. And even though this person might not want to be so aggressive in the workplace, his habits formed as as result of sub conscious impulses might hold him hostage leaving him helpless and frustrated. So how accountable are we really for our own behavior? Wise men say that discipline and mind control are the characteristics required to win over these challenges. Even then is it not purely a percentages game? Even the mightiest crumble in the face of some odds or the other. So ultimately should we not be more tolerant of ours as well as the negativities of others and instead of disliking them for these, try as far as possible to embrace them and work in the sp...
Post a Comment
Read more

Thoughts Beliefs Actions

Thoughts. Where do they come from? What is their source? If we delve deep into psychology, there are various explanations. As a practicing Buddhist, what I have learnt in my 25 year journey is that at any point of time, who we are i.e. how we think is a sum product of all influences on us from this lifetime and maybe even past (if one were to believe in the Hindu/Buddhist theory of an eternal life.  Life as we know it - is what we experience, observe and feel on a moment to moment basis. Time and space are the two dimesions that matter the most in this experience. Why do I say this? Because while we are three dimensional creatures, in reality we have the soul of a "gypsy". No matter how many chambers and buildings might confine us and disconnect us from true nature, our mind wanders.  Sitting on a plane? What are you thinking? If this is not your fist flight and flying does not scare you, you might be thinking of family, the vacation you are planning etc. So in three dimesion...
Post a Comment
Read more