Compassion and moral values play a role

MONEY comes and goes, but morality comes and grows — this were the profound words of the great humanitarian Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, which should be contemplated by those who believe money can buy happiness.

This refers to a recent morning talk programme titled Money can buy happiness on a local English radio station.

This topic was introduced accompanied by an unwarranted comment that proclaimed “love is happiness... rubbish”.

Deejays do not possess a licence to speak whatever they want as children are among their listeners. So, caution must be exercised in their choice of words.

Radio stations must carefully select topics that fit into the limited amount of time. This topic needed more diverse views, analysis and time, and was not suitable when it could only accommodate a small selection of callers who were affirming the deejay’s view.

This would have left a negative impression on young minds that money does buy happiness.

A distinction should be drawn between material happiness, which is temporary, and true happiness. For true happiness, money is not important, but the mind is.

It is our thoughts that are responsible for our happiness.

For those who possess riches, are they experiencing eternal happiness? People want to be millionaires, then they worry if they can’t become billionaires. Possible losses in investments make them worry about bankruptcy. Receiving “dirty” money can also make people worry.

Huge corporations worldwide are happy when they make millions by deforestation or feeding children junk food that would jeopardise their health. How can money be regarded as true happiness?

Many years ago, a poor lady came, in tears, to a government officer for help. She told him about a huge problem that involved her court case. Although the officer could have turned her away as it did not concern his department, he listened and tried to assist her.

He called a lawyer and invited him to his office. In that afternoon and many other times after office hours, the officer and the lawyer would explore different possibilities to solve the lady’s problem.

With their combined expertise, they did extensive research and found a solution. The lady was shocked when the lawyer said he would represent her in court, as she did not have the means to pay the legal fees. Finally, the court decided in the lady’s favour. The next day, the lady met the officer to thank him.

She asked him how much she had to pay the officer for his efforts. The officer told her that as a government officer, it was his duty to assist her.

Then she asked how much she had to pay the lawyer? The officer replied that the lawyer was not charging her a fee. She was speechless. She was so happy, thanked him many times and left the office.

The very next morning, the lady came with her sickly 86-year-old sister, who struggled to walk, to see the officer. The lady said that she had told her sister what had happened, and her sister, despite her health condition, wanted to see with her own eyes that people like the officer and the lawyer still exist in the world.

For the officer and the lawyer, it was their moral values and love that drove them to assist her. According to them, no amount of money could buy the happiness they felt when they realised the happiness they had brought upon the sisters. Let love and moral values grow in us and be the reason for happiness.