The Story of Pain and Pleasure
Prerana met her friend Ananya after 10 long years. She was so happy, excited, delighted. It felt as if it was a long awaited moment now happening. The moment she longed for. And after sometime, Ananya went. Ananya had to go. Who can stay forever? Prerana was sad. She did not want to part. ‘Hey, Ananya could have stayed for some more time!’ She felt like crying. Pain asked her – I did give you a knock when Ananya had come. But you were so busy and engrossed. You did not hear me. I was very much around when you were feeling pleasurable.
Shreya was waiting for her results desperately. She was not sure what would happen. Anxious she was. Very uncomfortable. Peace destroyed. Results came. Long breath. And she was dancing. Pleasure came to her saying, – Shreya, I was there with you. You did not notice me when you were feeling pain.
How good Aditya felt when he took off his shoes back at home which was bothering him all day!
One who has worked hard all day gets such a good night sleep. Even without Air Conditioner, in midst of summer.
Glass half full or glass half empty? Do we realise, glass cannot be half full without being half empty? This is called of law of Duality. Pain and pleasure, hot and cold, dark and light, tall and short, in and out, good and bad, day and night, beautiful and ugly, likes and dislikes, gain and loss – they are not opposites. They look like dual opposite. But they are complimentary. If one is there, presence of other is inevitable. And without the other, one would lose its value, importance, existence. How can one see white without the backdrop of black? Does the same everyday food not taste tastier when one has deep hunger?
They are not separate. They co-exists.
Hmmm. But do we see them together ever? Do we ever realize that if I am talking of one aspect, the other surely is there in some way? Just that the expression of it may not have been obvious. Only when Ananya went, Prerana felt the pain. The fact is, Ananya already had made the arrangement for pain to come. By wearing the wrong shoes throughout the day, Aditya already had made arrangements for pleasure.
So, pleasure will always ensure existence of pain and the vice versa. Just like the two sides of the pendulum. When pendulum goes to one end, it must go to the other end too.
Does that mean that for feeling good, I have to undergo feeling bad in some way? Yes. Oh!
It takes a very subtle mind to realize this pleasure-pain duality and not indulge in seeking pleasures. On the gross level, we only realize when events occur. But no one would die for weekends and entertainment, had they not gone through the boredom and ugliness of their week days. And there would be no Monday blues too then.
Surely, when one is indulged in pleasure, pain laughs standing by the side. How foolish one is, not noticing the facts in totality and being influenced and swayed by what is apparent, on the surface.
Only an alert mind can know this and move beyond. To go beyond is to go to the point untouched by problems; is to go to the point where ‘I’ dissolves. Then, there is nothing ugly and beautiful because ugly also is as beautiful as beautiful; there is nothing that is liked or disliked, because disliked is as liked as much as liked. After all, what else our definitions rest but on our conditioning?
Beyond is to be untouched by thoughts and moods. Let thoughts come and go. But no influence of them. Thoughts are no more powerful, Being is.
