Wisdom

How to deal with desire?

A boy asked a question, and before Gurudev could answer, he was ready with another question.

To this Gurudev said,

“If you hold on to the question, how will you receive the answer?”

Give away the question to me and then you will find that you are already in the answer.

Desires arise on their own... don’t they? Do they ask you before they come? When they come, what do you do with them? And if you don’t want to have any desire, then that itself is another desire.

Now here is a clue for you:

If you want to get on a plane or go to a movie, then you have to buy a ticket. This ticket needs to be given at the door. If you hold onto the ticket, how will you go in?

If you want to be admitted to a college, you must fill out an application form and then you must submit it; you cannot hold onto it.

On the journey of life, you have to keep submitting your desires and not hold onto them. And as you keep submitting them, fewer desires come up.

Unfortunate are those who keep on desiring and yet their desires are not fulfilled;

A little more fortunate are those whose desires get fulfilled over a long period of time;

More fortunate are those whose desires get fulfilled as soon as they arise;

The most fortunate are those who have no desires because there is fulfilment before a desire can arise.