Most of us want to do 'something' in life. 'Something'. Meaningful. We all want to survive after our own death. This mamy take the form of 'path-breaking' research that makes mankind move onward in giant leaps or it may be in small everyday things that most of us do everyday in making our children see a brighter tomorrow or our colleagues live a better today or our clients have one more thing to cheer about. These may be so enmeshed in our lives as to be completely ignored!
Did you do something meaningful today? Was it a meal cooked with your heart and soul into it? Was it a mega- project that you gave up your nights and days for? Was it something earth shattering or something that you could easily overlook?
Maslow defined his hierarchy in which he placed human needs in the form of a pyramid at the bottom of which were basic needs like food and shelter. It is after these needs are met that humans start looking for love and self- worth. And at the top of the pyramid, comes self-realisation. Till you are rich, money is important. It ceases to matter once you have it in your pocket. What if it ceases to matter even before that? What if we could pre-empt the feeling that comes with the achievement of of each Maslow destination?
Were someone to ask me who won the Nobel peace prize this year, I would have to think and even then, would be able to answer only after having looked it up. Ask me, however, which of my high school teachers had the most impact on me and i could not only name him but describe him so well that you could paint a portrait of him!
Will my office remember me were I to depart from this world? Who would be truly affected by my absence? My children and my family. Me? I am passionate about these people in my life. If I were to make a mission statement for myself it would read something like this- My mission in life is to encourage my children to do what they can I want to give them wings to soar and deep roots to stay connected.
Do we take the time to examine what really is it that is important in our life? Do we live our priorities every day? Steven R Covey says," It is easy to say No when you have a deeper Yes burning inside you." Well, I have a deep Yes burning inside me. I am able to say No to frivolous social gatherings because I want to be with me family. I can say No to that dinner party because I value my childrern's time and togetherness.
One of our colleagues lost his teen-aged daughter tragically to Dengue fever a couple of years ago. Will his life ever be the same? His sorrow and his disbelief stay with me even today. I could not believe it when I heard of it. I felt that sorrow. I lived it in those few hours that we spent in their home mourning the loss of a young talented and bright life.
Man runs after that elusive entity that he cannot identify and realises too late that life has passed him by.What is he running after? What will he do if he catches it? I do not want to live like that. I want to live such that each day is a reflection of my deeply held values and is in tune with my deeply burning Yes.
Life goes on. It must. We can only hope for it being worthwhile in the choices we make. We can only live fully if we live passionatetly.
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6 comments:
My passion is no different from yours! I live for my child. As parents, we are not only responsible for fulfilling their physiological needs but also need to be there when they need us!
“Till you are rich, money is important. It ceases to matter once you have it in your pocket. What if it ceases to matter even before that? What if we could pre-empt the feeling that comes with the achievement of each Maslow destination?”………Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs also taught in management books with reference to motivational theories, has been subjected to much research .It has been noted that the need for Self actualization emerges only when the physiological & other needs have been met
Till each is met, the other does not manifest.At higher levels only the strength of each need varies with the individual. Most people struggle their entire life trying to meet these basic needs and yes, often loose out on a lot in life as a result. It is only necessary that one strikes the right kind of balance –which is difficult, considering that most allow their need to turn into greed! It is important not to get caught up in the “rat race”- for even if you were to win- you are only a rat at the end of it!
Dear Quest!
Reading your post made me think I had written it myself! Whoever you are, you seem to think EXACTLY like me!
Though I agree that each level of Maslow's hierarchy does not appear till the previous one is met- what I am proposing is to be able to rise above EACH level and pre-empt that level to able to live life as it ought to be lived. Rather than getting lost in trying to survive from day to day! Begin to LIVE. ;-)
Indian teachings say that kick that Maslow's pyramid so hard on it's butt that it topples upside-down. Realize yourself and you would discover that you don't really need much to eat or wear, and sometimes nothing at all. Sadhus are supposed to approach life as an inverted pyramid - not really needing much to wear or eat, and eating out of alms.
But do we really know our purpose? Do we really know what self-realization is?
And untill I know that I have to be the ratus ratus running the race .... & searching.
Yeah,dyslexicon!Imagine, we all turning sadhus with our families! If all and sundry turned so, who would provide with the alms???On the other extreme one doesn't have to struggle up a lifetime trying to buy a Ferrari and then sell it off and go in search of thyself??? Balance is all that we should seek. Only, we are unable to draw up lines!With the myriad roles that we have to play, we need to do justice to each one!
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