The Journey through Life

What is the goal of an athlete? Yes, obviously it’s the gold medal or the World Cup Trophy. Does he stop once he has won it? Never. He will always strive for another.

That is how life is. Everyone has dreams waiting to be realized.
They work really hard at achieving them. After one dream is fulfilled, there arises another all in a sequence. And we never stop dreaming. There is no limit to human imagination. The human brain works in numerous ways helping us to overcome challenges that we never thought possible unless we gave it a thought. The absolute need for us to reach our goals makes us depressed. All we see is the beginning and the end. Never do we see what lies in between. Yes, I am talking about the journey - the journey that actually makes it possible.

I read a book once entitled ‘The Peaceful Warrior’. It has a really good description about the importance of the journey as compared to the goal. In the story, the master tells his student to get ready for a surprise in the next morning. The student can’t sleep all night with the excitement of the surprise and he is ready early in the morning with lots of enthusiasm. The master then tells his student that they would go trekking up the hill since the surprise lies there. And they begin their journey towards their goal (the top of the hill) for the surprise. On their way towards the hill, the student keeps asking what it was and the master just answers, “It is something you won’t regret”. The student is tired but his will to reach the top of the hill for the surprise just keeps him going. Finally they reach the top and the student asks him “Are we there yet?” The master says “Yes”, and points towards a worn-out stone and says, “That’s the surprise.” The student, frustrated, asks his master, “You brought me all the way up the hill for this stone that has no value?” The master only answers, “You were excited when we began until I pointed out to you the stone. Now, why are you frustrated? You came here never knowing what awaited you. If you knew, would you have even started? But look at the enthusiasm you showed throughout the journey. Remember, it’s never important what your goal is. All that is important is your journey towards the goal that keeps you going.”

Our journey through life is very unique. Our goal is undefined - always another step towards self-actualization.  It’s never a straight road – there are lefts & rights, sharp turns and, sometimes, we might even need to take a U-turn, if necessary. But that, my friends, is not important. All that is important is how we live every single day of our lives. The depth of life matters more than its length. And more importantly, we need to accept the fact that perfection is only a myth. No one ever reaches perfection. There is always a scope to better one’s self. We just need to let love flow into our lives without any pre-conditions. And that is when we will be happy with ourselves and with one another.

I wish you all a very Happy Journey through Life.