In one of the articles of a local weekly magazine a few years ago, someone raised a question, "If Buddha were born today, would he need a BMW?" My response was as follows:
It is all about 'Standard of Life' versus 'Quality of Life'. While 'Standard of Life' depends upon others' approval, 'Quality of Life' entirely depends upon our own internal yardsticks. One may live a very high standard of life (flashy car, expensive clothes, decorative palatial homes, etc.), yet the quality of his / her life may be very low (full of stress, disease, unhappiness). Similarly, the quality of life could be very high, irrespective of the standard of life.
In the absence of clearly defined goals based on proper assessment of individual capacity & affordability, we tend to mimic others. When we see everyone competing to raise his / her standard of living, we also follow blindly. Modern techniques of marketing thrive on such a situation in society, where 'needs' are constantly created often beyond our 'means'.
Buddha indeed had much more than a BMW as a young prince, yet he found them unnecessary in meeting his life's goal. He was after the 'highest' quality of life. If we too wish to raise quality of life, we must pause and ponder: "What is my real goal? What do I need to realise it? Do I have the required means? Can I afford them? If not, what can I do to earn them? etc." The 'Standard of Life' would then become inconsequential and incidental.
It is all about 'Standard of Life' versus 'Quality of Life'. While 'Standard of Life' depends upon others' approval, 'Quality of Life' entirely depends upon our own internal yardsticks. One may live a very high standard of life (flashy car, expensive clothes, decorative palatial homes, etc.), yet the quality of his / her life may be very low (full of stress, disease, unhappiness). Similarly, the quality of life could be very high, irrespective of the standard of life.
In the absence of clearly defined goals based on proper assessment of individual capacity & affordability, we tend to mimic others. When we see everyone competing to raise his / her standard of living, we also follow blindly. Modern techniques of marketing thrive on such a situation in society, where 'needs' are constantly created often beyond our 'means'.
Buddha indeed had much more than a BMW as a young prince, yet he found them unnecessary in meeting his life's goal. He was after the 'highest' quality of life. If we too wish to raise quality of life, we must pause and ponder: "What is my real goal? What do I need to realise it? Do I have the required means? Can I afford them? If not, what can I do to earn them? etc." The 'Standard of Life' would then become inconsequential and incidental.
1 comment:
no laaa.. Budhaa dont care about luxury of life, what He care is about quality of life.
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