Life is to be enjoyed , live it qualitatively .

    

Dhammapada, a hand book of Buddhism provides an exhaustive science of better living and complete techniques of Self-development culminating in the experience of complete Freedom or Nibbana.

  Decay and death are universal. As with a stick the herdsman drives his kine to pasture even so do old age and death drive out the lives of beings.

        Craving, anger, hatred are all the clingings which are the root cause of man’s miseries. There is no fire like lust, no grip like hate, no net like delusion, no river like craving. The remedies for these evils lie in the values and virtues to be followed in life. They are Self-control, Non-injury, Truthfulness, Love and Compassion.

          Self-control means living in self-control with respect to all our sense-enjoyments and does not mean their total denial. Non-injury doing no harm is understood as a mental attitude to our relationship with others in life. Truthfulness is a value of life to be lived at the intellectual plane. The intellectual honesty to live truly to our convictions in full dedication to our chosen ideals adds a serene beauty to an individual’s life. The success and beauty of the individual life contribute to the glory and greatness of the nation. Love and compassion are helpful in overcoming and sublimating the negative tendencies in man and are the cementing forces for living harmoniously in Society. Company of the good helps one to cultivate good habits and values and shed negative ones.

                    Action is the Sine-qua non of life. Any living organism if it is to live must necessarily act in the world .One should work in such a thoughtful manner that he should not repent afterwards. The secret of success lies in the quality of action and it depends on the ideals which guide and inspire an individual. The loftier and nobler the ideal, the greater will be the beauty of his actions and efficiency.

            The material growth and prosperity raise the standard of living where as the spiritual inner rehabilitation improve the standard of life One should earn in youth to save for a comfortable life in old age. One who does not earn pine away like old herons in a pond without fish.

       Both the standard of living and standard of life have to be equally developed and balanced in order that one may sail through life’s different challenges with ease, poise, comfort and cheer.

   When life is dear to all, why not live it qualitatively ?