THE SECRET OF HAPPINESS
A certain shopkeeper sent his son to learn about the secret of
happiness from the wisest man in the world. The lad wandered through the
desert for 40 days, and finally came upon a beautiful castle, high atop
a mountain. It was there that the wise man lived.
Rather than finding a saintly man, though, our hero, on entering the
main room of the castle, saw a hive of activity: tradesmen came and
went, people were conversing in the corners, a small orchestra was
playing soft music, and there was a table covered with platters of the
most delicious food in that part of the world. The wise man conversed
with everyone, and the boy had to wait for two hours before it was his
turn to be given the man’s attention.
The wise man listened attentively
to the boy’s explanation of why he had come, but told him that he didn’t have time just then to explain the secret of happiness. He suggested that the boy look around the palace and return in two hours.
to the boy’s explanation of why he had come, but told him that he didn’t have time just then to explain the secret of happiness. He suggested that the boy look around the palace and return in two hours.
“Meanwhile, I want to ask you to do something”, said the wise man,
handing the boy a teaspoon that held two drops of oil. “As you wander
around, carry this spoon with you without allowing the oil to spill”.
The boy began climbing and descending the many stairways of the
palace, keeping his eyes fixed on the spoon. After two hours, he
returned to the room where the wise man was.
“Well”, asked the wise man, “Did you see the Persian tapestries that
are hanging in my dining hall? Did you see the garden that it took the
master gardener ten years to create? Did you notice the beautiful
parchments in my library?”
The boy was embarrassed, and confessed that he had observed nothing.
His only concern had been not to spill the oil that the wise man had
entrusted to him.
“Then go back and observe the marvels of my world”, said the wise man. “You cannot trust a man if you don’t know his house”.
Relieved, the boy picked up the spoon and returned to his exploration
of the palace, this time observing all of the works of art on the
ceilings and the walls. He saw the gardens, the mountains all around
him, the beauty of the flowers, and the taste with which everything had
been selected. Upon returning to the wise man, he related in detail
everything he had seen.
“But where are the drops of oil I entrusted to you?” asked the wise
man. Looking down at the spoon he held, the boy saw that the oil was
gone.
“Well, there is only one piece of advice I can give you”, said the
wisest of wise men. “The secret of happiness is to see all the marvels
of the world and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon”.
Author: Paul Coelho in “The Alchemist”
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