Stop the pursuit of happyness

A young man with a fine voice is asked to take part in a pageant play, though he tries to beg off, saying he always gets embarrassed under such circumstances.
He is assured it will be very simple, and he will have only one line to say: "I come to snatch a kiss, and dart into the fray. Hark! I hear a pistol shot..." and then stride offstage.
At the performance he comes onstage, very embarrassed already by the tight-fitting colonial knee-breeches he has been made to put on at the last moment, and becomes completely unstrung at the sight of the beautiful heroine lying back on a garden seat, awaiting him, in a white gown.
He clears his throat and announces: "I come to kiss your snatch -- no! -- snatch a kiss, and fart into the dray -- I mean, dart into the fray! Hark! -- I hear a shistol pot -- no! -- a shostil pit, a pistil shit. Oh, bat shit, rat shit, shit on you all! I never wanted to be in this damned play anyhow!"

No one wants to be miserable, but they don't realise that their very wanting to be happy is the root cause of their misery. 'I want to' is the biggest disease haunting the world today, not AIDS, not hepatitis B. People don't want to be happy right now and right here. They set goals to be happy. And the ridiculous goals read like this: "I will be happy when I buy a car." Does he really become happy when he buys a car? No. Instead of driving down merrily in his car, he sets another goal to become happy and the car becomes irrelevant. His next goal becomes something like: "I want to own a house or a palatial mansion (depending on the person's imagination)" and he strives towards it. And he goes on and on till he realises that all his life he was 'wanting' something or the other but didn't exactly want to live. Because the moment you possess something, you don't want it anymore.

The same is the case with marriage. Till you marry, you have dreams of how you would lead a life of bliss. And you do for a couple of months (it's reduced to a couple of days) and the marriage turns sour because of your very longing to be happy with your spouse. The spouse no more becomes important, but what he/her does becomes important. They slowly try to change the person to his/her demands because there was no happiness in the marriage. And the goal has turned on to something more materialistic to become happy: setting up a house, providing a good education for the child, buying a new house, etc, etc, etc... When do we learn that happiness is not a thing to be pursued but a state of mind that can only be lived?

Sages have understood the dilemma of the human being and have advocated meditation as the tonic to get rid of the evil. But people neither have the time nor the inclination for meditation because they feel if they stand and stare they would be left out of the rat race. And a rat race is it. Because it is like moving around in circles not knowing for what.

Was too caught up with streamlining my blogging activity that I couldn't find time to go for an extended spiritual marathon. But however, I did my regular hourlong breathing exercise and followed it by another hour of sitting meditation. In the evening I made up for the morning's biking by going on a 15 mile bike ride in and out of the city.

Now you are talking!!

Moskowitz met Finklestein on the street one day and said, "Finkelstein, have I got a bargain for you! An elephant! A whole living elephant for just one hundred dollars."
Finklestein said, "Are you crazy? What do I want with an elephant?"
"It's a beautiful elephant," continues Moskowitz, "all grey, ten feet tall, complete with a trunk."
"But I have nothing to feed it on," cried Finkelstein. "I live in a three-room apartment. I have no place to put it in."
But Moskowitz went on: "Two beautiful tusks, maybe two feet long. It is a magnificent beast. They don't make them like that anymore."
"Moskowitz," said Finkelstein, almost screaming, "I have a three-room walk-up apartment on the fifth floor. Where will I keep an elephant?"
"You are a hard man, Finkelstein," said Moskowitz. "I will tell you what, I will throw in a second whole elephant for only $50 extra."
Finkelstein smiled and said, "Now you are talking!"

Life, the way we are living, is about how smart we are in outwitting the other person. Never mind it ain't make a difference to our life or our outlook towards life. It gives that momentary massage to the ego. And we get a mighty kick out of it. If only we realise that a greater and grander thrill can be had from elsewhere, especially dancing, we wouldn't want to impress the other person. Isn't it? Ask any dancer and he will vouch for it. Because in dance, or cycling, or running for that matter, you have a feeling that your body is melting and that you are just a pillar of energy. The lightness gives an ultrahigh that can't be equated with anything else in the world. That is why great sages all over the world, especially the Sufis have been advocating dance as a form of meditation.

To take a detour from the usual running and biking, I danced away the whole morning. And what a wonderful relief it was. I occasionally dance away my blues and there is nothing like a solid one hour dance. The Shamans claim that dancing you fall into ecstasy. The more you dance, they say, the more on gets merged with the godliness. And as I occasionally dance away to glory in the middle of the night, I can say with pride that I have reached such ecstatic heights.

In the evening I went on a regular bike ride inside city on my way back home. The heat and the pollution, however, are playing havoc and I've been sweating profusely getting drenched in the sweat by the time I reach home. But what to do I love it.

Oh, my God, what a lovely morning!

One tranquil afternoon in the deep forest, Doobeedoo, the very handsome frog, is preparing to go for a little hop around the pond. He is feeling pretty good about things today, and a little 'out there', so he puts on his flashy new white Yves Saint-Laurent swimsuit.
He goes out and takes in the beautiful morning. The sun is streaming softly through the tall pine trees.
Doobeedoo takes a big breath of fresh air and smiles. Then full of life, he says to a passing deer, "I am God!"
He hops on for a while, and when he comes across a family of dragonflies, he puffs out his chest and says, "I am God!"
A little further on, he comes to Doreen the duck. He makes big eyes at her and in a spiritual tone says, "I am God!"
Doreen looks at the frog and says, "What?"
Doobee says again, "I am God!"
"I have been watching you," says Doreen, "and you have been telling that to everyone around the pond. Are you serious, or is it just that flashy white Yves Saint-Laurent swimsuit?"
"I am God!" says Doobee again.
"Enough of your silliness," says the duck. "Away with you, you smart-faced jerk!"
At this, Doobee pulls down his white swimsuit and exposes his machinery.
Doreen looks in amazement and says slowly, "Oh my God!"

Life is a rollercoaster ride of fun and laughter. And if we can set aside our self-imposed seriousness and take a dip in the mirth surrounding all around us, the world would be a lot more healthy and happy.

The morning was lovely and the sweet sounds of the birds and the glorious sun rise, pulled me out of my bed. I put on my shoes and went for a refreshing bike ride to the park for my daily dose of morning freshness. Ran round the park for more than an hour, got on the bike for a 10-mile ride and ultimately collapsed into an hour-long meditation -- the best that can ever happen after a glorious morning workout. Only that it is not a work out but a wonderful act of play.

Later in the evening I went for a long marathon-like bike ride into the interior areas of the city to explore the sights and sounds of a bustiling metropolis that lies hidden for the outsiders. There is a medieval feel to Pune's inner city. Time seems to stand still here. And it is a lovely lesson in cultural diversity.