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HAPPINESS
One on the
most convincing pieces on happiness
Khushwant Singh at his
best. The rationale applied to each preference is absolutely top
class.
EIGHT CLUES TO HAPPINESS
By- KHUSHWANT
SINGH
Having lived a reasonably contented life, I was musing over
what a person should strive for to achieve happiness. I drew up a list of
a few essentials which I put forward for the readers' appraisal.
1.
First and foremost is GOOD HEALTH. If you do not enjoy good health you can
never be happy. Any ailment, however trivial, will deduct from your
happiness.
2. Second, AHEALTHY BANK BALANCE. It need not run
into crores but should be enough to provide for creature comforts and
something to spare for recreation, like eating out, going to the pictures,
travelling or going on holidays on the hills or by the sea. Shortage of
money can be only demoralizing. Living on credit or borrowing is demeaning
and lowers one in one's own eyes.
3. Third, AHOME OF YOUR
OWN. Rented premises can never give you the snug feeling of a nest which
is yours for keeps that a home provides: if it has a garden space, all the
better. Plant your own trees and flowers, see them grow and blossom,
cultivate a sense of kinship with them.
4. Fourth,
ANUNDERSTANDING COMPANION, be it your spouse or a friend. If there are too
many misunderstandings, they will rob you of your peace of mind. It is
better to be divorced than to bicker all the time.
5. Fifth,
LACK OF ENVYtowards those who have done better than you in life; risen
higher, made more money, or earned more fame. Envy can be very corroding;
avoid comparing yourself with others.
6. Sixth, DO NOT ALLOW
OTHER PEOPLEto descend on you for gup-shup. By the time you get rid of
them, you will feel exhausted and poisoned by their
gossip-mongering.
7. Seventh, CULTIVATE SOME HOBBIESwhich can
bring you a sense of fulfilment, such as gardening, reading, writing,
painting, playing or listening to music. Going to clubs or parties to get
free drinks or to meet celebrities is criminal waste of time.
8. Eighth, every morning and evening, devote 15 minutes
toINTROSPECTION. In the morning, 10 minutes should be spent on stilling
the mind and then five in listing things you have to do that day. In the
evening, five minutes to still the mind again, and ten to go over what you
had undertaken to do.
RICHNESS is not Earning More, Spending
More Or Saving More, but ...
"RICHNESS IS WHEN YOU
NEED NO MORE" |
