Do we live in the present or in the past? Ideals,
thoughts, ideas evolve with progress. However, some people don't change. They
are still stuck with the old school thought process. Imagine someone following
the ideals of Gandhi or Einstein today without any modification based on
today's world!
To check my understanding of the importance of the people
who made a difference to the world, I requested my business partner, Manish
Bengani, to help me.
Manish and I were waiting for our train at New Jalpaiguri
railway station when we were discussing this. He took a piece of paper and a
pen and walked away to interview people. His results shocked him. When asked
whether they know Albert Einstein, and what he is famous for, only one out of
11 people knew the correct answer!
In another experience, courtesy Manish again and a friend
of his, he found that two kids (poor and in not so good clothes, but studying
in a school run by some NGO) heard about Mahatma Gandhi. But what they said was
again a reflection of the thought process today, "Gandhi ek budda tha, mar
gaya!" ("Gandhi was an old man, he is dead now!")
I don't think the kids meant any disrespect, they were
not aware, or knew little. Manish's friend did a good thing in educating those
kids about Gandhi, but it was an eye opener for us!
So what is the truth? Getting stuck with old thoughts
don't allow us to move ahead. Lectures on ideals and who did what a hundred
years ago don't work anymore. We need to wake up and look at things with a new
light. Even Gandhi brought change, and so did Einstein. If they would have been
stuck with already existing ideas and situations we wouldn't even have heard
about them!
Money and happiness are correlated. The old school folks
are not ready to accept it.
I remember when I was younger and my family did not have
enough money. My parents ate once a day and ensured that I could get all three
meals everyday. Penury isn't a happy feeling. All the optimism and belief in
God and ideals of philosophical teachers did not help in killing hunger. Ask a
hungry man about the importance of food. Food has to be bought, and it requires
money, even if very little.
When I grew up and started earning, I could feel the
difference at home. The "smiles per hour" increased. I could buy a
pair of jeans at last after wearing the only pair I had for 5 years. I could pay
the essential services bills on time and that meant less tension for everyone.
My father felt happier as he had less pressure to earn, and my mother could pay
of all the debt she had accumulated buying food on credit. I was happy to see
that my sister could now get a good education.
Ideals don't feed people. Hope generated by positive
thinking has to be translated into action, which in turn generates money. You
can then get food and clothing. You can go to the college you want to and
travel to places.
Do you think money can buy happiness?
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