There lived a man who was eternally dissatisfied with his life. He never smiled, and always found reasons to criticize everyone. One night he got lucky. On his way home he met a Genie who felt pity for the sad man. The Genie was dark blue in colour and looked malignant and monstrous. At first the man was scared, but the friendly smile of the giant assured him. The Genie said that he will grant him three wishes, provided he agreed to one simple condition. The man was ecstatic. ‘Finally, my life was going to change for good’, he thought. His first wish was to be rich. The Genie reminded him about the condition, ‘Whatever you wished, your neighbours would get double of that’. The man agreed. He would be rich enough to fulfil all his desires.
The man reached his home, had his dinner and went to his bed anxiously. The excitement kept him awake all night. Next morning when he got up, his humble house has already turned into a beautiful mansion. He was richer than he ever dreamed possible. As human nature is, the happiness wasn’t meant to last for long. The moment he stepped out of his mansion his heart shattered into pieces. He remembered Genie’s words, ‘Whatever you wished, your neighbours would get double of that’. Happiness is not absolute, but relative. It is the positive gap between your reality and your expectations. His expectations were always set by the standard of his neighbours. His absolute wealth had no meaning because, based on his current expectations, his reality was that he was the poorest person in the neighbourhood. It also meant that he was the weakest, a condition no living species likes to be in. Our desires are ancient and inbuilt in our operating system. It is the carving that leads to motivation. It comes from our bodily structures and not the mental state. Desires helps us survive and wants us to be the fittest. ‘Fittest’ is a relative term. When a lion is chasing you, your absolute speed is irrelevant when you know that you cannot outpace the beast. All you just need to ensure is that you are not the slowest of the lot. Luckily for him, he still had two wishes left.
Our eternally dissatisfied man went back to the exact place and at the exact time he met the Genie last night. As expected, the Genie was right there. The Genie asked him about his day as a rich man. With a dejected look on his face the man explained his disastrous day. Concerned, the gene asked if he wanted another wish. This time the man gave some thought to the matter and uttered after a while that he wished he was turned into a poor man. ‘Are you sure?’ asked Genie with a confused look. ‘Yes’, insisted the man. With his wish granted, the man went back to his home satisfied. Tonight he felt asleep early. Next morning when he woke up his mansion was turned into a poor hut. It did not matter to him, all he wanted was to go out and visit his neighbourhood. He was now the richest person in the village. As he came out of his house there were poor people begging to him for food and money. It took him some time to realise that these beggars were none other than his neighbours. For the first time he felt proud that he was better than them. He took out some money from his front pocket and donated to his poor and filthy neighbours. While he was walking down the street with his head held high he felt someone grabbing and pulling is shirt from the back. As he turned he saw a thin poor girl, probably eight years old, begging for food. Looking at the pitiful condition of the kid made him sad. He looked around and saw the pain and agony. At that moment he realised what he had done. To satisfy his desires he made his entire neighbourhood suffer. For the first time he felt their pain, he felt empathy and compassion. Emotions makes us human beings, and it is emotions that teaches us to control our desires. Emotions also help us connect with fellow humans and that connection is a tool of survival too. He still had one wish left to undo the horrendous act he committed.
The man went back to the Genie again. The Genie asked him about his day as the richest person in the neighbourhood. He knew exactly why the man asked for such a wish. ‘It was horrible’, replied the man with remorse, ‘and this time I know exactly what to do with my last wish’. ‘What is it that your heart truly desires?’ questioned Genie. ‘I want to undo everything and go back to the way I was before’, came the reply. ‘Your wish, my command’, said the Genie with a smile in his face, knowing very well that his message was conveyed. Next morning the man found himself back in his old house. When he grabbed his mobile to look at the time, he was surprised to see the date. Not a day has passed since the night of his first wish. Was he dreaming it all along? But it felt so real. Keen to know what happened, he ran out of his house into the neighbourhood. Everything was as they were before he met the Genie. His gaze fell on the 8-year-old girl playing happily with her mother. He never felt so happy in his life before. That whole day he spent in his neighbourhood, meeting and greeting his old friends and making new in the process. He realised how lucky he was to be part of such a caring community. Relationship is the cornerstone of happiness, and it took the man some time to realise that. The worst way to find happiness is to go looking for it. You don't find happiness, happiness finds you when you stop looking. That night the man went back to the exact same spot where he met the Genie. Somewhere in his heart he hoped that the Genie was real, and he wanted to thank him. Alas! No one was there that night. Instead, he saw a dark blue cloth fluttering in the wind.
Also Check Out: 5 Questions of the Inquisitive Apes
