A New Year has begun. Does it bring any novelty for us? There should be something new in our lives besides the date on the calendar. Does it bring any external or internal change? External novelty refers to changes outside such as painting the house, buying a new car and so on. Internal novelty refers to a change in our viewpoint. If our vision of life does not improve, we keep living the way we always did. Nowadays, everyone receives text messages or email wishes for a happy new year. How do we make our new year happy? Here are a few formulae:
Good health: For a happy life, it is necessary to have good health. If our body is not healthy, we can neither sit for discourses nor watch a movie or listen to music. We cannot enjoy anything. Therefore, we must ensure that we keep our body healthy.
Wealth: The second requirement is that of wealth. We need money for our worldly life. To have money does not mean one should be a millionaire. But there must be enough wealth in our homes. Even for serving others, we must have sufficient money.
Discrimination: The third requirement is a discriminating intellect. Discrimination helps us distinguish right from wrong. It also inspires us to hold on to the right path.
Goodness of heart: Goodness, purity of emotion and feeling, and truthfulness of the heart. All parents want their children to be educated, intelligent and smart. But the main desire is to have a “good” child.
Thus, if we possess these four qualities, then there is happiness all around. But how does one acquire them?
In the Bhagwad Gita, Sri Krishna symbolises a holistic vision of life. Arjuna represents “a person ready to put efforts in accordance with that vision or knowledge”. Thus, where there is both right vision and right action, there is success. As a result of the knowledge imparted by Lord Krishna, Arjuna, who was in deep sorrow, overcame it and took up arms. He won.
Hence, we must try to learn what is written in the Gita and the Upanishads. This knowledge enables us to see the oneness in all beings. It creates true love in our mind and because of that love we take an interest in performing our duties. Love and knowledge lead to bliss and peace, while sorrow and delusion are removed by self-knowledge.
May we attain all these things in this birth. May we all attain infinite bliss. May every year be a very happy new year!
Swami Tejomayananda, head of Chinmaya Mission Worldwide, is an orator, poet, singer, composer and storyteller.
