The Secret Of Happiness

There once was a very wealthy and successful man. He had more money than he could ever spend and he was admired and looked up to by his community. Still, he knew that something was missing in his life. He wasn't happy. All his life he had pursued happiness and strived for happiness but had never been able to find it.


Then one day he heard about a hidden temple in Nepal that had a special room that contained the secret to happiness. He immediately sold all that he owned and set out to find this hidden temple. After many years of searching and countless hardships he arrived there. He was weary and pennyless, but he knew that none of that mattered now that he had found the temple.

He asked a wise, smiling monk if he could enter the special room. The monk agreed and showed him the stairs leading to the room. He climbed them with legs shaking with anticipation and slowly opened the door. He stared into the room with sunlight streaming through the window and saw what he had come so far to find. There hanging on the wall was the secret of happiness. The man gazed at his reflection in the mirror and laughed.

It is time that we all realized that we are the secret to our own happiness. Happiness is a choice that we make within. God loves us and gives each one of us the ability to fill our lives with love, joy, peace, happiness, and oneness with Him. We need only choose to do so moment by moment and day by day.

It doesn't matter what our outer circumstances are either, because the Kingdom of Heaven is within us. Don't spend the rest of your life searching the world for happiness then.

Just look in the mirror and laugh. Just let the happiness flow from your heart, mind, and soul until it fills your life and the lives of all those around you..
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Just lovely, na?

More from The Secret

Absolutely inspirational-and,believe me,it works...if you believe without skepticism-and, patiently, of course.

A Secret Scrolls message from Rhonda Byrne
Creator of The Secret

From The Secret Daily Teachings

When you close your eyes and you visualize having money and imagine doing all the things you want with that money, you are creating a new reality. Your subconscious mind and the law of attraction do not know whether you are imagining something or whether it is real. And so when you imagine, the law of attraction receives those thoughts and images as though you were actually living them, and it must return those visions to you.

When you are in the place where what you are imagining feels real, you will know that it has penetrated your subconscious mind, and the law of attraction must deliver it.

 

May the joy be with you,

Rhonda Byrne
The Secret... bringing joy to billions

Life

This is something a colleague had told me, in the first month of my arrival in Dxb. He said' please be careful-people are known to come here, they go crazy, losing their health to make wealth, and then losing their wealth to make up their health'...and, I totally agree- so many people get lifestyle illnesses,courtesy the mad urge to rush,rush,rush all the time.Isn't it high time we put a brake on things, slowed down, enjoyed all that nature has given us, FOC(free of cost) and stopped thinking of getting that car,that LED TV,that laptop,that cellphone...and,then,in a few months, thinking of replacing these things again,with the latest technology products....and, this materialistic thinking comes a full circle. And, it's not just here-I see it now in India,too,whenever I'm there.Believe me, I've seen people from the 'supposedly' lower strata of society, like watchmen, sweepers,even beggars-looking happier than those who earn in the thousands or lakhs every day. A sad fact of the materialistic world, I'd say-do you agree? And, if you do, what'll you do about it?Me,I want to be back to the simple life, and the sooner the better...just waiting for The Secret to work, as always.:)Cheerio and good luck.

Inspiration from Chetan Bhagat

Very nicely said, Chetan. I specially loved the 'prepaid card with limited validity' part...:)So true- life's to be taken with a tinge of humour, always,don't you agree?

the 90-10 Principle

This article's long, but, definitely worth a complete read. Read, relate with your daily life events and see if you can think of bringing about a change for your own good...I did,and it feels great. Just a little change in your way of thinking and it's positivity all the way!  Good luck!:)

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The 90/10 Principle

Author : Stephen Covey

                    
Have you read this before? Discover the 90/10 Principle. It will change your life (at least the way you react to situations). What is this principle? 10% of life is made up of what happens to you. 90% of life is decided by how you react. What does this mean? We really have no control over 10% of what happens to us. We cannot stop the car from breaking down. The plane will be late arriving, which throws our whole schedule off. 

A driver may cut us off in traffic. We have no control over this 10%. The other 90% is different. You determine the other 90%.  How? By your reaction. You cannot control a red light., but you can control your reaction. Don't let people fool you; YOU can control how you react.

Let's use an example. You are eating breakfast with your family. Your daughter knocks over a cup of coffee onto your business shirt. You have no control over what just what happened.  What happens when the next will be determined by how you react. You curse.  You harshly scold your daughter for knocking the cup over. She breaks down in tears. After scolding her, you turn to your spouse and criticize her for placing the cup too close to the edge of the table. A short verbal battle follows. You storm upstairs and change your shirt. Back downstairs, you find your daughter has been too busy crying to finish breakfast and get ready for school. She misses the bus. Your spouse must leave immediately for work. You rush to the car and drive your daughter to school. Because you are late, you drive 40 miles an hour in a 30 mph speed limit. After a 15-minute delay and
throwing $60 traffic fine away, you arrive at school. Your daughter runs into the building without saying goodbye. After arriving at the office 20 minutes late, you find you forgot your briefcase. Your day has started
terrible. As it continues, it seems to get worse and worse. You look forward to coming home, When you arrive home, you find small wedge in your  relationship with your spouse and daughter.

                    
Why? Because of how you reacted in the morning. Why did you have a bad day?

                   A) Did the coffee cause it?
                    B) Did your daughter cause it?
                    C) Did the policeman cause it?
                    D) Did you cause it?
                    
The answer is D. You had no control over what happened with the coffee. How you reacted in those 5 seconds is what caused your bad day. 

Here is what could have and should have happened.

Coffee splashes over you. Your daughter is about to cry. You gently say,  "It's ok honey, you just need, to be more careful next time". Grabbing a towel you rush upstairs. After grabbing a new shirt and your briefcase, you come back down in time to look through the window and see your child getting on the bus. She turns and waves. You arrive 5 minutes early and cheerfully greet the staff. Your boss comments on how good the day you are having.
                  

Notice the difference? Two different scenarios. Both started the same. Both ended different. Why? Because of how you REACTED. You really do not have any control over 10% of what happens. The other 90% was determined by your reaction.

                   
Here are some ways to apply the 90/10 principle.

                  
If someone says something negative about you, don't be a sponge. Let the attack roll off like water on glass. You don't have to let the negative comment affect you! React  properly and it will not ruin your day. A wrong reaction could result in losing a friend, being fired, getting stressed out etc.

                    
How do you react if someone cuts you off in traffic? Do you lose your temper?  Pound on the steering wheel? A friend of mine had the steering wheel fall off) Do you curse? Does your blood pressure skyrocket? Do you try and bump them? WHO CARES if you arrive ten seconds later at work? Why let the cars ruin your drive? Remember the 90/10 principle, and do not worry about it.

              
You are told you lost your job. Why lose sleep and get irritated? It will work out. Use your worrying energy and time into finding another job.

                    
The plane is late; it is going to mangle your schedule for the day. Why take out your frustration on the flight attendant? She has no control over what is going on. Use your time to study, get to know the other passenger. Why get stressed out? It will just make things worse. Now you know the 90-10 principle. Apply it and you will be amazed at the results. You will lose nothing if you try it.

                    
The 90-10 principle is incredible. Very few know and apply this principle. The result? Millions of people are suffering from undeserved stress, trials, problems and heartache. There never seem to be a success in life. Bad days follow bad days. Terrible things seem to be constantly happening. There is constant stress, lack of joy, and broken relationships. Worry consumes time. Anger breaks friendships and life seems dreary and is not enjoyed to the fullest. Friends are lost. Life is a bore and often seems cruel. Does this describe you? If so, do not be discouraged.

                  
You can be different!    Understand and  apply the 90/10 principle. It CAN change your life.

Sight

'We don't see others as they are.
  We see them as we are'.

It's simple, yet so true. It's so much nicer to look at things with a happy eye rather than a jaundiced eye, don't you agree?Forget others- they'll surely appreciate you. It's you, your inner self which will feel joyous when you praise someone instead of making a snide remark. And, that will reflect on your outer personality as well. Try it! Once, twice...and, soon you'll be a better human being than you've ever been.

Inspirational Thoughts

Do read through the full set:

This speech of Azim Premji, Chairman, Wipro Corporation, was delivered at a Program: "Shaping Young Minds Program" organized by the All India Management Association (AIMA) in collaboration with the Bombay Management Association (BMA) on February 9, 2004 at NCPA in Mumbai.


I am very happy to be here with you. It is always wonderful to be with young people. As my hair turned from black, to salt and pepper and finally salt without the pepper, I have begun to realize the importance of youth. At the same time, I have begun to truly appreciate some of the lessons I have learnt along the way. I hope you will find them useful when you plan your own career and life.

First
The first thing I have learnt is that we must always begin with our strengths. There is an imaginary story of a rabbit. The rabbit was enrolled in a rabbit school. Like all rabbits, it could hop very well but could not swim. At the end of the year, the rabbit got high marks in hopping but failed in swimming. The parents were concerned. They said, 'Forget about hopping. You are, anyway good at it. Concentrate on swimming.' They sent the rabbit for tuitions in swimming. And guess what happened? The rabbit forgot how to hop! As for swimming, have you ever seen a rabbit swim? While it is important for us to know what we are not good at, we must also cherish what is good in us. That is because it is only our strengths that can give us the energy to correct our weaknesses.

Second
The second lesson I have learnt is that a rupee earned is of far more value than five found. My friend was sharing with me, the story of his eight year-old niece. She would always complain about the breakfast. The cook tried everything possible, but the child remained unhappy. Finally, my friend took the child to a supermarket and brought one of those ready-to-cook cereal packets. The child had to cut the packet and pour water in the dish. The child found the food to be absolutely delicious? The difference was that she had cooked it! In my own life, I have found that nothing gives as much satisfaction as earning our own rewards. In fact, what is gifted or inherited follows the old rule of 'come easy, go easy'. I guess we only know the value of what we have, if we have struggled to earn it.

Third
The third lesson I have learnt is, in Cricket, no one bats a hundred every time. Life has many challenges. You win some and lose some. You must enjoy winning. But do not let it go to the head. The moment it does, you are already on your way to failure. And if you do encounter failure along the way, treat it as an equally natural phenomenon. Don't beat yourself for it or anyone else for that matter! Accept it, look at your own share in the problem, learn from it and move on. The important thing is, when you lose, do not 'lose the lesson'.

Fourth
The fourth lesson I have learnt, is the importance of humility. Sometimes, when you get so much in life, you really start wondering, whether you deserve all of it. We have so much to be grateful for. Our parents, our teachers and our seniors, have done so much for us, that we can never repay them. Many people focus on the shortcomings, because obviously, no one can be perfect. But it is important to first acknowledge, what we have received. Nothing in life is permanent, but when a relationship ends, rather than becoming bitter, we must learn to savor the memory, of the good things, while they lasted.

Fifth
The fifth lesson I learnt is, that we must always strive for excellence. One way of achieving excellence, is by looking at those better than ourselves. Keep learning what they do differently. But excellence cannot be imposed from the outside. We must also feel the need from within. It must involve not only our mind, but also our heart and soul. Excellence is not an act, but a habit. I remember the inspiring lines of a poem, which says that your reach must always exceed your grasp. That is heaven on earth. Ultimately, your only competition is yourself.

Sixth
The sixth lesson I have learnt is, never give up in the face of adversity. It comes on you, suddenly without warning.. Always keep in mind, that it is only the test of fire, that makes fine steel. A friend of mine shared this incident with me. His eight-year old daughter was struggling away at a jigsaw puzzle. She kept at it for hours but could not succeed. Finally, it went beyond her bedtime. My friend told her, "Look, why don't you just give up? I don't think you will complete it tonight. Look at it another day." The daughter looked with a strange look in her eyes, "But, dad, why should I give up? All the pieces are there! I have just got to put them together!" If we persevere long enough, we can put any problem into its perspective.

Seventh
The seventh lesson I have learnt is, that while you must be open to change, do not compromise on your values. Mahatma Gandhiji often said, "You must open the windows of your mind, but you must not be swept off your feet by the breeze." Values like honesty, integrity, consideration and humility have survived for generations. At the end of the day, it is values that define a person more than the achievements. Do not be tempted by short cuts. The short cut can make you lose your way and end up becoming the longest way to the destination.

Final
And the final lesson I learnt is, that we must have faith in our own ideas even if everyone tells us that we are wrong.

There was once a newspaper vendor who had a rude customer. Every morning, the Customer would walk by, refuse to return the greeting, grab the paper off the shelf and throw the money at the vendor.
The vendor would pick up the money, smile politely and say, 'Thank you, Sir.' One day, the vendor's assistant asked him, "Why are you always so polite with him when he is so rude to you? Why don't you throw the newspaper at him when he comes back tomorrow?"
The vendor smiled and replied, "He can't help being rude and I can't help being polite. Why should I let his rude behavior dictate my politeness?"

In my youth, I thought of myself as a rebel and was many times, a rebel without a cause. Today, I realize that my rebellion was another kind of conformity. We defied our elders to fall in line with our peers. Ultimately; we must learn to respond instead of reacting. When we respond, we evaluate with a calm mind and do whatever is most appropriate. We are in control of our actions. When we react, we are still doing what the other person wants us to do. I wish you all the best in your life and career. I hope you achieve success in whatever way you define it and what gives you the maximum happiness in life. Remember, those who win are those who believe they can. «