Last week, I was in the Lake District in north-west England being interviewed by the BBC. It was conducted across two days, not in an indoor studio but as we rambled along the most picturesque part of the famed British countryside. For those of you steeped in literary knowledge, you may recall that this part of England was home to the Romantic poets; Shelley, Wordsworth and Coleridge, who are the best remembered of the lot.
I had much time on my hands and I began responding to the question that is most often asked; If one is not to solely pursue Happiness, what should be one’s attitude in life?
In a sense, I did try to touch upon that point in my last column by stating that we should be happy even in Unhappiness. But perhaps that answer was too simplistic and philosophic.
In plain terms, I think the concept is to try to be like the mystics; to be unmoved by experiences whether happy or sad. It is akin to the state of being an official observer at a diplomatic event; he just observes, he does not participate, or get moved, by the proceedings. We get moved by emotions because we allow ourselves to participate and get enmeshed by happenings. We must become like true mystics who transcend all feelings, Love or Hatred, Happiness or Unhappiness. In short, we must become detached. Many will recognise in this concept the essence of Buddhism, and indeed of many Indian faiths such as Hinduism and Jainism, which also dwell on the virtues of such a detached view of life.
Apart from attachment, it is also unfulfilled expectations which trigger much Unhappiness. So on another plane, we can place ourselves in the role of a karmayogi in which we work without any thoughts about the benefits from our actions. We should do our work well because that is our karma, and not for any special recognition. We should similarly do good deeds, not for any gratitude but because that is the way it ought to be. By not expecting anything in return, we are whittling away any potential unhappiness. That is the noblest, and most clear example to emulate.
I began this column with a reference to poetry and I will end with a quote from the legendary inspirational poem IF by the Mumbai-born Nobel laureate Rudyard Kipling. It sets up timeless rules for adults everywhere. And, it is still relevant in these karmic times.
‘If you can dream — and not make dreams your master,
If you can think — and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same…
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And — which is more — you’ll be a Man, my son!’
The writer is a renowned
film and theatre actor