Sunday 9 April 2017

For The Greater Good

“The most sublime act is to set another before you.” – William Blake

Too many millennials voice the same desire, ‘Live it Up’; ‘Be Happy’; ‘Experience it all now’; ‘Who Cares about Tomorrow’... How tedious and futile this mantra becomes over time. Does the meaning of one’s life only extend up to the point of self delight, instant pleasure and immediate gratification? What about a cause worth truly fighting for? Or a sacrifice that involves going beyond one’s limited needs and emotions and empathizing with the greater good of society?

Sacrifice is a natural part of human life. It's not something to ponder upon, or regret, or even brag about. It's something to aspire to. Sacrifices, big and small, abound around us every single day. A mother works double shifts so that her daughter can attend the best private school. A son leaves his amazing career to return home to take care of his ailing parents. A sister donates her kidney to her sibling so that he may receive the gift of life.

The greatest test of a person’s spirit is his readiness to sacrifice himself for something today, so that generations of the future can lead better lives and in turn whisper words of gratitude that he will never hear.  So the question is, What are you willing to give up today? What great sacrifice are you ready to put on an altar for a better tomorrow? What will you allow to be stripped away from you that you hold on to so dearly today? Power? Money? Time? Security? Prestige? Maybe, taking it away can be the only way that you can find your real inner power...and purpose!

It’s not that hard to have a larger than life goal. The real battle is realizing and accepting what you are willing to sacrifice in order to pursue your goal and achieve the things you truly care about. To persevere with the vision, you must cherish the dream more than the costs of sacrifice to accomplish it.


As Albert Pine beautifully essays, “What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal.

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