Balance

One fine evening, while walking to my friend’s place enjoying the beautiful climate & cool breeze, making one to be there walking or standing still to enjoy it, I saw a group of kids riding their bicycles like a gang & roaming. A huge van came in the opposite direction, which meant they had to make space, which they have been occupying so far, for the monster vehicle. Due to sudden change of course or rough terrain, one of the kids lost his balance & fell to the safe side of the road. I thought, â€Å"The kid must be new to riding bicycles & hence couldn’t manage his balance when faced with a sudden change†. This thought struck me big, when for a moment I used it comparing the journey of riding our life against any challenge or change. I wondered, â€Å"How easily it made sense? †. Our whole life, aren’t we actually trying to keep all the various forces in a state of balance, where we are not pulled or pushed in by anyone of them so that we are deviated from our actual destined path. If so then what would be a balanced life. I would say a balance life is â€Å"A way of life that enables us to live in accordance with our nature, to improve our character, to better deal with the inevitable hardships of life and to strive for the good of the whole, not just of the individual. † This I believe will lead us to the ultimate happiness in life. So basically, â€Å"Life is a process of developing virtues which are essential for achieving the ultimate goal, happiness, which must be desired for itself†. It must not be confused with carnal or material pleasures, although there are many people who consider this to be real happiness, since they are the most basic form of pleasures. This is not to say that happiness is void of pleasures, but that pleasures are a natural effect, not the purpose. The virtues essential for attaining true happiness is in itself a balance of 2 extremes. For example, Courage is the middle between one extreme of deficiency (cowardice) and the other extreme of excess (recklessness). The middle depends on the situation because of the difficulty of the balance in certain situations can require a different level of action. Recognising this leads to improving the virtues constantly in anticipation of various different situations requiring the higher levels of actions. This holds only for virtues, not vices (hate, envy, jealousy, theft, murder, etc. ) So what endangers the balance of the life? It follows the same principle as in physical world. When there is an excess or deficiency of the struggling forces then the balance is destroyed. Today's modern man usually succumbs in the sin of excess, which can be seen in the excess accumulation of material wealth, food, alcohol, drugs, etc. than what is necessary. But he can descend into deficiency as easily too, like inadequate attention to education, healthy sport activities, intellectual pursuits, etc. For every action that we take in our life we must look to keep it in balance with the corresponding balancing actions. The beautiful example, we must look to for keeping things in balance is nature, until man came along & destroyed the state with his want for excess & lack of attention towards actions for preserving the balance. Since human beings are from nature, isn't it reasonable to conclude that humans should also uphold the balance, just like nature? The problem is that the vast majority of people are unwilling to admit that they are not at the top of nature, just a part of it. The current generation need to overcome their pride and arrogance and look in nature for guidance, because we all depend on it & to leave behind a safer, habitable environment for the next generation to live in. Staring into the sky and imagining ourselves in heaven will not accomplish anything; it is better instead look around & to accept our role in the world and appreciate the beauty of life, and death, which gives meaning to it. This will help us in upholding the balance both within & outside as well.