AWAKE ASPIRE AND ACHIEVE

AWAKE ASPIRE AND ACHIEVE

 

The king of the entire world is unhappy. He alone is truly happy who meditates on the Name of God." This text is from the Sukhmani, a sacred scripture of the Sikhs.

 

The king of the entire world is unhappy! Happiness is not in wealth and power. A Maharani once told me: "I am unhappy." Kings and queens are not happy. They are too "big" to be happy. They are not simple: they are not free.

 

To be happy, you must (1) Awake, (2) Aspire, and (3) Achieve.

 

Awake: Happiness is not bhoga, sense enjoyment. Who wandering in pursuit of pleasures, was ever happy? This night-wandering, this sleep of the senses, must go. Hence the ancient teaching: "Uttishtha! Jagrata!" "Stand up! Awake!"

 

Aspire: Many are unhappy, for they have clipped their wings. Ambition, power, ease and enjoyment hold men down. Happiness is in the realm which transcends enjoyment. Aspiration becomes an achievement some day.

 

Achieve: Happiness is not a passive experience. And happiness is not merely a quest. Happiness is a conquest. And none may achieve it without meeting the challenge of sorrow and suffering. They discipline, they purify, and they strengthen us. They teach us sympathy and love. And without love none may be truly happy.

 

 

 

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