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Today's
quotation:
There
is nothing wrong with being successful in society and enjoying
a degree of fame. But ultimately, the lives of those dedicated
to the
welfare and happiness of others, even if they remain unrecognized,
are the ones truly worthy of respect.
Daisaku Ikeda
Buddhism
Day by Day
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Today's
Meditation:
Most of us
don't have to worry about fame. It's never going to
be a part of our lives, so why think about it? I
guess that fame is a matter of degree-- a teacher might be
famous in a school, and a mayor may be famous in a town,
and any of us can experience very low-level fame for
things that we've done, people that we've met, places that
we've been. To me, though, the most important part
of Daisaku's words are in the second sentence, for the idea of
being "dedicated to the welfare and happiness of
others," is the most important concept here.
So
many of us feel an emptiness because we don't have the
approval of others for what we do. We feel that
others who are famous haven't done anything all that
great, and that what we've done rivals what they've done--
it's just that they're in the public eye, so the
public keeps on looking at them. But we keep on
keeping on, doing what we can for others, and that's
definitely good enough-- the recognition and the adoration
of others really means nothing if we're doing what we can
to serve others and to merit the respect that Daisaku
mentions.
If we
look at fame as a synonym of recognition and we're
striving to become famous or recognized, then we're doing
what we're doing for the wrong reasons. Our
motivation can't be for fame when we're truly trying to
help others as much as we can. Helping others should
simply be something that we do, not a tool that we use to
gain recognition. If I spend my life searching for
fame rather than trying to be the best person I can be,
I'm setting myself up for pure disappointment, and I don't
want to do that.
Any
fame for us really should come as a result of doing what
comes naturally to us, what we have passion for, what we
do well. It shouldn't come as the result of attempts
to gain fame itself. The recognition that means
something special is the recognition that comes as a
result of the kind things that we've done for others in
service, for that's the recognition that lasts and that
nurtures our spirits.
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