Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Epilog - The Search For Happiness

"Has the rich man found happiness?"

As promised, if indeed the rich man got the answer from the Master, he should give his bag of his whole fortune to him as reward. He would then lose all that he had AGAIN. Would he still be happy or not happy? The question seems to be too materialistic and any answer whatsoever may spoil the whole story. But it's a real question for the real situation in the real world. It's a question too difficult for the writer. The writer has to go and find another (cleverer) Master for an answer!

The rich man would reply, "Well. Your answer is good, but not as good as what I wanted .............. Here's $5000. Thanks very much for your time." It might be a truly happy ending for everyone!

Sunday, March 3, 2013

The Search For Happiness

A very rich man had a lot of money. He could buy everything he wanted to have. But he was not happy at all, for which he was very annoyed.
One day, he had a strange idea. He put all his wealth including jewelry, gold and all his valuables into a bag, and carried it to start off a journey. He was trying to search for someone who could tell him how to find happiness, and in return he would give him his bag as reward. He travelled afar to lots of places, asked lots of people and spent tirelessly lots of time in order to search for an answer. Despite the effort, he was unable to find anyone who could give him a satisfactory answer.
Finally he came to a small village. A local resident told him he could try to visit a Master living there who was a very clever man and might be able to help him with an answer. So the rich man was very excited and went up to see the Master who was sitting in a small room meditating. He approached the Master and said earnestly, "Master. All the wealth in my whole life is in this bag. If you could tell me the method to find happiness, this bag will be yours." The Master didn't say a word. He stood up and suddenly grabbed the rich man's bag of fortune and ran away from the house very quickly. The rich man was shocked and didn't know how to react. He then became desperate. He tried to chase the Master but as a new comer to the place, he was not able to do so. He went back to the house, feeling he was cheated. He was very sad as he felt he lost all that he had.
Half an hour later, the Master suddenly returned. He handed back the bag to the rich man and said, "Here is your bag. All the things are still inside untouched." Seeing he got back all he had, the rich man cheered up again. The Master asked, " Do you feel happy now?" To which, the rich man nodded. The Master then continued, "Good. You have already got your answer now."

Happiness does not rest on what and how much you own. Appreciate what you are having is the key. At most times, happiness is already around us, but we just failed to realize.