Satisfaction

SATISFACTION

'A man who is always satisfied with himself is seldom so with others, and others as little pleased with him.'

Satisfaction is everyone's ultimate goal. We work so hard because we want to fulfill our dreams & satisfy ourselves. I believe that we should leave 'satisfaction' for our old-age & enjoy & chase our dreams while we're still young. Of course 'young' & 'old' are a matter of perspective! In our everyday life, we've to satisfy others, much less ourselves. We study, we work, we earn - to satisfy. And when a person is completely satisfied with one's life, job etc. he has nothing to do because he is satisfied. He'll miss his struggle that earned him his satisfaction. He'll miss the inspiration that gifted him his satisfaction.

When people are satisfied, their dwells a certain sense of 'emptiness' which cannot be filled with any other thing than salvation. God created man to work not to rest. But satisfaction doesn't comes-by so easily. We've to work hard enough to satisfy our lust of lives. We need to say no to our laziness & shed some sweat to woo this bird called - 'satisfaction'. Nearly 98% people are 'dis-satisfied' with their lives because they still don't know what they're looking for. So the first step is introspection - to know where we stand, followed by setting a goal - to know where to reach. With it comes the most defining aspect: self-control. We all know that 'All that glitters is not gold' but what we don't realize is - gold or not, it does catches our eyes. In our journey too we'll come across many 'glittery' things that'd try to detour us from the path & in extreme cases even create a delusion. Now, delusion is the biggest enemy of satisfaction as it gives us a sense of satisfaction whereas we've not even started thus, we should practice self-control. If we continue going on our path, regardless of glitters, hurdles, puddles etc. satisfaction is guaranteed. Usually this 'guaranty' is used in old-age as only a few have reached the point of satisfaction, but everything has exceptions. Satisfaction is like a 'pen-ultimate' victory & we all know how good the victory sounds when earned by oneself. But as 'with great victories comes great sacrifices' we must be ready to make those as & when required. Satisfaction squeezes a man like a lemon & something as great cannot come to us without a cost. We just need to be firm & carry as much we can afford to lose.

Personally, I believe that satisfaction is the most selfish act/aspect of humanity because we ultimately work to satisfy ourselves not someone else but as only the wounded can realize the pain, only a person can write his fate leading to satisfaction. Satisfaction is a matter of choice & never chance. People actually don't get lucky, they just firmly intend to get so. We just have to work out our own salvation with utmost sincerity & dedication.

Finally I'd like to conclude this topic by some wonderful verses:

'Man was made in the image of God, and nothing will satisfy man but God, in whose

image he was made.' - 1372.497

'God has so made man’s heart that nothing can ever fill it but God himself.' - 3157.391 

'Now, remember, you will never know the fulness of Christ until you know the 

emptiness of everything else but Christ.' - 3073.2 

'Do you think God would make us so dissatisfied with this world if he did not mean to

satisfy us with another and a better one?' - 3234.44

HAPPY SATISFYING

Man Is Not A Gadget!

MAN IS NOT A GADGET!

"A new gadget that lasts only five minutes is worth more than an immortal work that bores everyone." - Francis Picabia 

Gadget's have simplified our day to day lives like anything. Whatever we ever dream't of has come to life in the form of a gadget. In the earlier era it were the James Bond, Stars Wars & Star Trek that freaked everyone with a sense of an 'impossible' but it did turn out to be 'i-m-possible' thingy. Today even the poorest man who can't afford a house carries a mobile phone with him. Artificial robots have already conquered the huge factories especially those of automobiles & computers. Their parts are so small that a human can never fit it. We've iPods to carry our music everywhere. It is in fact that every 3rd out of 10 thing is a gadget. Automated doors, escalators, microwave, mobile, ipod, remote, dvd etc. 

Now let's face it, we're literally too lazy that we need a machine to wash our clothes, cook our meal. But we're not lazy at all when it comes to updating our status' on facebook or twitter - be it having a haircut, delivering a child, or simply sleeping! The truth its been too-much of technology bestowed upon us, created by us, that has made us handicap against the most common things. In earlier times people used to have dinner together at the dining table but now TV has replaced it, the tea is made using a microwave & even the newspaper have been digitized!! It has thwarted our natural abilities to work on the most basic life necessities. We can't learn new things until we learn to get out of ourselves. 

But when it comes to life-saving, these gadgets have a light years to travel. Diseases like Cancer, Malaria, Diabetes, AIDS & even common cold is deprived of these gadgets 'Mission Accomplished' list. So what's the use of these gadgets? The answer to it is, Living in a delusion of the 'world-is-in-your-hand' philosophy. There are obviously more diseases like these to which the vaccines are available but what-if one is suffering from it? Then these gadgets would be of no help. And besides, these gadgets are costing us our environment. 

A person checks his mobile more frequently than he checks himself. I'm not against gadgets as I'm using one to send out my message too, but the point I'm trying to make here is that we should not let gadgets take control of our lives. These gadget's are like alcohol, once you see them you want more of it. We've a huge list of friends on facebook or twitter but how many of them do we really talk to? In a 2006-Hindi Film there was a dialogue that said,  "We know of the whole world via the internet but we're unaware of our neighbours, There are millions of phone lines & signals been transmitted every second but not a single line or signal that can express us or connect us with someone we really need."

Technology must evolve but not at the cost of us, our environment. The motto of Matrix Revolutions was 'Everything that has a beginning has an end', this might just be true. And the day it turn's out to be true, we'd be completely paraplegic & handicapped just as our gadgets and on that day we would've payed for what we had created. So 'tis better we wake up early than the 'Apocalypse Now!' moment.

"No computer, no gadget, no trickery. I am an animal, it is a plant. I will beat the weed!" - Matthew McConaughey 

An Epitome of Remorse

AN EPITOME OF REMORSE:  

"SHOULD'VE ___"

'When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.' - Alexander Graham Bell

The most widely used sentence starts with "I should've ___" The blank is sometimes filled with  'known' or 'done' etc. The funny things about it is that it represents all the three tenses viz Past, Present, Future; yet it is used as a messenger of regret, remorse, guilt etc. It is said in 'Present' about the 'Past' & hence it helps in being cautious in the 'Future'. 

We have to make choices, decisions on which some or the other vital thing of our lives depend on. And these choices aren't always the wise ones! 'Nobody is perfect' which is justified by their decisions. So after making a wrong decision, which everyone does at some point in their lives, we think that things should work out as we intend them to be but as 'Nobody is perfect' hence we're cuffed-up with our own decisions. We regret those decisions in the future which is kind of ironic. The feeling of 'wrong-doing', regret never lets us rest till we confess it or simply accept it. Now a man is full of wishes & hopes and bitterly enough of hubris too so some may even find accepting it to be a difficult cup-of-tea.

The first step towards regret is accepting a decision-gone-wrong. Then comes the time of analyzing the mistakes or loopholes in the decision or deed. Sydney Harris said, "Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time; it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable." Sometimes a man thinks it best to do 'nothing' but be a mere spectator whereas on the other hand it draws upon its apocalyptic effect resulting into a poor judgement by the man. The man soon realizes it & here comes the world-famous line 'I should've done something'. Regrets serve no logical purpose other than mental satisfaction but as it has been seen over the course of time, mental satisfaction is the ultimate salvation.

'I should've been there' - represents the self-anger of the person who didn't quite find it apt to be present at a certain event or a life/death occasion.

'I should've done/said something' - indicates the person being handicap to a certain situation in the past which he regrets gratefully in the present.

In both these scenario's, it is clear that the person's carelessness, laziness to act has cost him something precious. The phrase 'I Should've...' is the witness of a person's defeat by none other than himself. He failed to prioritize things  at 'that' prompt time for which he has to pay in the present/future. But the other fact is that a person wakes up pretty late, like directly on the D-Day. Most times it's "too-late" but in some cases people realize it in time.

So for leading a better 'ever-after', a person should look at all the pros/cons with a good temperament. Temperament - here is the most important factor & 95 % people on earth lack it. The person should re-analyze his deeds or decision soon-after & then release the arrow from it's bow. But the buck doesn't stops here. Sometimes we hurt people unknowingly. The person should again introspect, whether the arrow hit the spot or not. A good introspection is the key to living a healthy & wise life. Analyzing our actions from time-to-time molds us in such a manner that we can quickly find the mistake in our actions & it also gives us time to untangle the knot, easily. Remorse is fulfilled with redemption & after a good, just introspection; our instincts solicit our punishment. 

 In the New Testament, Paul says, "Work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure."

It is better late than sorry! 'We should do what we must not what we can', if we obey it sincerely there'd be no place for guilt.

Who Will Die When You Cry

WHO WILL DIE WHEN YOU CRY

'The smile that is worth the praises of earth is the smile that shines through tears.'

I've been reading Robin Sharma's "Who Will Cry When You Die' for quite some time & it made me re-think that when a person cry, something always dies with it. Sorrow is after-all counted in the darkest of the emotions. A person can believe anything or nothing when consumed by sorrow. A child always cries during the birth, so it won't be wrong to say that no one is 'born-happy' in this world. Any infant cannot smile till a few months. Sobbing also gains some sympathy in most cases.

So why do we cry? What is the reason for crying? The answer is not as simple as the question itself. Sometime's the silver lining takes a little longer to shine hence a person cries or the person is beaten-up by someone or simply that the person wants to shed off all his emotions in the form of tears. Tears speak more than the tongue but less than the eyes. In Robin Sharma's book, he has given 101 simple solutions to the most complex problems that we face in our daily life. When a person cries, his soul cries along-with his body. The body language of the person clearly indicates that no matter if the tears are of joy or sorrow, the person is extremely vulnerable to emotions at that time. That person calls for support from within & expects his wish to be fulfilled. Just moving the hand around that person's back will, literally, earn you his respect alongside peace. People don't remember those who help them in their bright times, its the darker one's that's always under scrutiny. Someone's death, hurt or bad-deeds are responsible for tears of sorrow, NO. Sometimes a person just cries to lighten their heart like by being nostalgic we laugh, by remembering something we can also cry & this is not sorrow. It is just meant to relieve that person from his mental torture. So when a person cries, his head, heart & soul gets lighten-ed up. He loses all the inhibitions & walks on a road leading to peace. But crying is not an indication of being weak but instead the person feels relaxed & hence can concentrate even better after crying. All the tears wash away his fears. 

So who dies when one cries? The answer is simple, its the inhibitions, the fear, the hubris, the arrogance & the problem itself of the person that dies. Tears have enough power to carry them away deep into the abyss of the past. In a movie there's a dialogue that, "We should never let our past to be forgotten because by that we're letting it to be re-formed again in the future in the form of a monster. 

Our main job is to be as humane as possible & we should not be afraid of crying because as I've said it, it kills our biggest 'mental-foe'.

Happy Crying

Human Being: An Object

HUMAN BEING: AN OBJECT

'The moment a person forms a theory, his imagination sees in every object only the traits which favor that theory' - Thomas Jefferson

We (humans) have always objectified things according to what we think. As I've expressed in my previous posts, we see only what we want to see. We use various adjectives to describe things. We cannot resist without commenting on things in mind, if not loudly. We're like our own 'self-renowned' critics but when it come's unto ourselves, its another story. Till the time humans are present in this world, everything & anything will be under their scrutiny.

The point I'm trying to make here is like the one I made in my earlier post: Human Mind: Behavior, we're too judgmental about those around us. On seeing an iPhone everyone wants to have it but when an owner of one praises it, we get judgmental & begin to dictate its draw-backs. No matter how innocent a person is, he/she likes to ogle on the people of the opposite gender. The moment a person judges a person, that person is objectifying the other. For Ex: If a guy says to a girl, "You look beautiful", the guy is objectifying that woman. But the buck doesn't just stops here, we're also provoking others to objectify others. Any time a woman put on lipstick and nice clothes, she is objectifying myself. It's more subtle than what these people are doing, but it's the same dynamic. By objectifying people we're doing injustice to others as then the object means more than the rest.

The truth is everyone wants to be praised hence they objectify themselves because that's the only way of using the objectives right. I think that 'objectifying' is an another name of flattery. It is a bit ironical that some of the objectives end with -ly like lovely, nicely etc which also ends with -ly in 'ironically'. Objects are treated like objects but now even humans are treated like objects. But is isn't a bad thing or a curse to objectify as it is our 'Human Nature'. There has to be a limit to objectifying things as sometimes we get trapped in our own trap. People just cannot bear themselves getting objectified negatively by others but the point of the fact is that if you can do it, so can they..!! The rules apply to all, without exceptions. One mustn't joke if the he cannot take it positively. So instead of 'objectifying' things, we should rather introspect & see what we lack & what makes you to objectify others. Once this question is answered, the word 'objectifying' wouldn't exists.

No matter how much we 'objectify' or 'flatter' others; understanding, compassion, kindness & love are the only revolutionary ideals. When we compromise those, we become what we despise & lose our humanity. We should never let the chaos & injustice make us so blind with anger that we become the part of the problem.

Jealousy

JEALOUSY

Any living creature in this world is always afraid of competition. They're afraid of coming out of it, losing. Seeing someone getting something you already wished for, is painful for some. Even animals are jealous of each other's fodder. Jealousy is always selfish.

Jealousy starts as a 'wanting' or 'craving' in mind. It is something which makes the person feel that his/her life cannot meet its destiny without it. It can be anything ranging from a materialistic thing to a person. You want that 'something' so badly that it veils your perspective towards those in possessing of it. Our perspectives are always colored by what we hope, what we need & what we love. This state of 'longing-for something/someone' plants the seeds which later turns into a monster called Jealousy. It's a part of our nature. We cannot see anybody fulfilling their dreams. In short, jealousy can be metaphorically termed as an antonym of happiness (of others). Metaphorically, in jealousy there is more 'self-love' than love. A normal person dies just once but the envious dies everytime his envied person is applauded. That's a crucifying feeling for the envious. Seeing the one you hate the most winning can be pretty tough. Jealousy often tames our dedication to ourselves, it always takes us into a world where only hatred prevails.

The only cure for 'jealousy' is 'self-control'. Some saints have dedicated their whole life for practicing self control. Children tend to like anything that is bright in color, even some adults can't resist the sight or even the smell of chocolate. But self-control doesn't comes so easily, you need to apply efforts & work against your desires. In M. Night Shyamalan's 'The Village', it is shown that if humans are kept away from money, hubris etc, even a blind person can cross the roads that even the 'wise-and-civilized-people' forget sometimes. A self-made person will always be proud of himself whereas the other's would envy him. But instead of being envious, the latter should try to achieve the same with the help of their own efforts. There is no achievement bigger than that achieved by the one himself. Once you apply your sincere, unbiased efforts, you start achieving your dreams & every achievement becomes a means of celebration.

Thus as is said a million time, without jealousy the world would've been a much better place to live in. But someone very rightly said that 'In order for light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present' i.e. without bad we can't know the good, without right or wrong, we can't understand perfection.

Happy Self-Controlling..