Have you earned your quota of happiness?

Have you earned you quota of happiness?

I read this article posted by Vidya on her blog. I completely agreed with her views that one essentially needs to be happy from within in order to give happiness to the world outside.

Today we had a program called 'Learning from unusual sources' where we had the privilege to meet Dr. Neha Vakharia, a trustee of O.A.S.I.S. She has dedicated her life to serve the under privileged people in the slums of Bangalore. Oasis movement is involved in the propagation of various concepts and lifestyle for the development of better human beings and a society at large. It was an extremely touching session that we had today. I made a comment saying, "We need to be happy ourselves from within before we give happiness to the world outside." Dr. Neha too indorsed my thoughts.

After the session was over, I had a small talk (almost a debate) with my PAL over the comment I made during the session. But my PAL had a different view. She quoted me with the example of Charlie Chaplin, the greatest comedian of all times, whose personal life was an utter tragedy. She was suggesting that my comment wasn't a universal truth. There could be exceptions to it. That left me thinking for a while. It was already getting late and I had to leave the office. But she did manage to leave that 'worm' in my head to bug me for the rest of the evening.

But on the way back, I reflected deeply over it. The more I thought of it, my conviction only grew stronger and deeper. I figured out that I was probably right in a sense. I felt that whatever may be the case, you essentially need to earn your 'quota of happiness' in life, before you give it back to this world. I feel it is something similar to the Conservation of Energy kind of thing. You can neither create one nor destroy it, but only transfer it from one from to another. I feel that Chaplin found happiness in entertaining others. I believe that he wouldn't have given his best in acting, if it hadn't helped him earn his 'quota of happiness'. Though his personal life might appear to be a tragedy for the entire world, for Charlie, entertaining others was the only way to get his 'quota of happiness', which he seldom found in his personal life. It probably helped him subdue all the bitterness he got to taste in his personal life. I feel that Charlie Chaplin tried all his life relentlessly, to prove this very point!

If I could draw a parallel with this thought of mine, I would quote what our Vedas and Upanishads have talked about the 4 different phases (ashrams) of life.

1. Bramhacharya Ashram
2. Grihashta Ashram
   
3. Vanaprasta Ashram
4. Sannyasa

The above 4 ashrams need to be practiced in the same order, to achieve salvation or eternal happiness. In order to appreciate the essence 3rd and 4th phases of life, one need to experience the materialistic and family bound happiness, before even deciding to move to the others. It also explains why people who are forced to take up the role played in 4th phase of life soon after the 1st phase, find it extremely challenging to control their innate needs.

It is human nature in general that largely certifies my claims. I for one, surely believe that unless you are happy, you can't make others happy. Our mind sort of tries to do this balancing act. When it feels that the 'unhappines quotient' is on the rise, it tries hard to find unusual ways to release that negative energy out of our body and gain some positive energy in the form of happiness. If you observe, the most happiest of the faces in this world are the ones that hide the bitterest of the pains in life. It is just that their mind might have discovered an unusual way of earning its 'quota of happiness'!

I am not sure if I am right or wrong. I would love to hear from you readers on this topic. Kindly pour in your thoughts as well.

~IT's My Life