As the years roll by and the greying takes over me: I have realised that I am no longer the person I used to be. My tolerance has taken over. I once chose to remain quiet; now I am speaking the truth. Where I have battled and argued, I prefer to stay silent. I understand the value of my voice, and there are situations and my relationships that no longer worth my time, energy and focus.
I say that my Happiness has shifted. I have found the courage to let go of what I can’t change. I can’t change or do I even care to change? Do I?
“MY HAPPINESS IS MY RESPONSIBILITY.”
In life, change is a pattern on the continuum. So if the place has turned stale and weary of persistence, why not shift to a better rendezvous? This holds true for situations, people and relationships as well.
Imagine a situation where you are in a state of abundance of Happiness for a long time. A stage comes when that Pleasure no longer gives satisfaction. A similar situation occurs when after some time, you stop getting the fragrance of the perfume you are wearing.
A famous Bollywood movie star did exceptionally well in films. But then started singing and then went ahead and started conducting TV shows. He is still experimenting; running after Happiness, trying new things and ventures. Is it Mental Happiness or Monetary satisfaction, I don’t know?
It’s like living in a place where there is always just one temperature, one set of clothes and one style of living. I love the change of seasons and the distinctiveness in the shifts in moods and the styles of living.
Happiness is a direction, not a place. It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy it, that makes Happiness a great way to live.
Change the way you look at things and the way you look at change. Change is aching, but nothing is as tender as leaving a place you don’t belong. Those who cannot transform their minds and attitudes cannot alter anything. Things are tough before they are comfortable.
Why should I be scared of change? It’s leading to a new beginning — a better one, for sure!
“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things”… HENRY MILLER.
Start experimenting today. This is your life, and you should have total control of how to bring about the needed alterations to kick off your mundane roster. Of course, respect your age and commitments, and then see how fruitful life becomes: it adds meaning to your LIFE.
We either make ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves strong. The amount of work is the same.
The choice is ours. right?
After going through a series of my favourite DAN BROWN works, I found myself inspired by the golden phrase, “Sometimes all it takes is a tiny shift of perspective to see something familiar in a totally new light.”
In school, I learnt: “We all know that we will die, but we don’t know How, When and Where we will die”. ( Moral science)
A friend was diagnosed with a malignancy. He did not cry or mourn in the corner, but changed his outlook to … “I am happy; at least, now I know what I will die of.” A Change of Perspective!
All changes, even the most longed for, have a melancholy in them. What we have behind us is a part of ourselves. We must die for one life before we can enter another.
While shifting from Haridwar to Agra at a ripe age, my Father was initially unhappy that his friends were being left behind. He was afraid of compromising his Happiness. But in Agra, he built even better and more caring relationships. He was a happy man in his last days because he experimented and came out as a winner.
“The individual person is responsible for living his own life and for ‘finding himself’. If he persists in shifting his responsibility to somebody else, he fails to find out the meaning of his own existence.” THOMAS MERTON.
It is an individual battle, and you are the winner and the loser in your own way. Happiness is the truth and is bound to come by patience, not by running after it. Sometimes the truth is so profound that it takes someone with the same wisdom to see it, while others can’t see past the level they have never moved from.
Happiness is demanding. It takes effort and positivity to follow the shifting horizon. The ground beneath is shifting at every moment. How do you survive the drifts?
One way is to get sucked into the whirlpool by sticking to the old and decadent ways, OR you take a giant step forward by taking some risks with an affirmative mindset.
“Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”
MAHATMA GANDHI.
Happiness is unless you let go unless you forgive yourself unless you forgive the situation, unless you realise that the situation is over, you can not move forward.
Enjoy the drift of the waves in the sea of tranquillity and the harmony of the musical syllables. The ups and downs are part of the journey.
“The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are”.
SHIFTING OF HAPPINESS is a NATURAL DRIFT … Standstill can be painful and weary.
I like and agree to your view point Dr.Anuj that at times we have to shift our perspective to see things fully. Change is evolutionary we too evolve and mature in our thoughts.
Bhagavad Gita has helped me see things clearer. Shri.Krishn helps Arjun out of extreme misery of killing his relatives only by changing his Drishta and Drishya. That is once Arjun sees from the eyes of his soul (Drishta) the drishya is what we would see as the audience of the war . No misery for Arjun only the sense of duty , the audience will surely want Arjun to kill the Kaurav completely. Best part is what Shri Krishn adds further, Joy and misery both are fallacies, imaginary…they are as unreal as this world.
But if we look from our perspective Happiness or misery arise by the combination of senses and the subjects we come across and we behave as their compulsive consumers . And if we drop that ego of our existence and have faith in that eternal power lodged in our soul, that soul becomes the drishta ( the observer), as you said change the perspective. We no more get perturbed by the imaginary — our own creations of happiness or its deficit.
I think that is what going ahead or moving on is all about, as you have put it…
“Happiness is a direction, not a place. It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that makes Happiness a great way to live.”
It’s not Agra or Haridwar, it’s your father and his wisdom, he would be happy everywhere.They see differently with a beautiful vision.
And us, we are humans…
We stumble we fall we get hurt we rise again we try again we keep learning we keep growing.
Thanks to you doctor for making us see Happiness with this depth.
Regards
hello Harsh,
I am speechless at your rendition of the subject and your perfect analysis. You seem to have read Gita thoroughly and understood the zest in the best possible way. I enjoy your quotes and references from the book.
Yes, we are the compulsive consumers of happiness and misery with little choice.
however, change of perspective is the best option to lead a satisfactory life.
true, we stumble, fall and learn.
thanks for your brilliant feedback.
regards.
Great write up . I am trying to follow you to change my perspective of happiness
Thank you so much sir for the kind words. You are an inspiration to me.
regards