The elusive extra

I recently read a story about a man who had very little money but was unfailingly cheerful. “How can he smile and sing?” demanded the ruler of the land. “I have all the luxuries of life but am not as happy as my subject who lacks basic necessities.”

“He is not yet a member of the 99 Club,” said a minister. At night, he placed a bag of gold coins on the poor man’s doorstep. The latter was delighted and began to count the coins. On finding ninety-nine, he felt there must be some mistake. Trying to locate the non-existent 100th coin, he checked and rechecked, becoming increasingly irritable.

As days passed, he grew morose and miserable. The minister explained to the king that those who belong to the 99 Club (the majority of mankind) keep hunting for the illusory 100th coin, with failure leading to frustration.

Metaphorically speaking, we have the ninety-nine gold coins that we need to lead peaceful and pleasant lives. However, instead of being grateful for that great blessing, we often want a little (or not so little) more.

We do not realise that anything additional is not always meant for us, for the simple reason that we do not require it. Indeed, it might even be detrimental to our well-being.

This urge for the excessive rather than essential could be a yearning for position, power or possessions.

Sometimes it is a vague longing for something that we can scarcely define but are convinced we lack. The problem is that there is no end to our desires. No sooner do we get what we think we cannot do without, than we make another wish list.

Our constant craving for the hundredth gold coin (which takes varied forms for different people) makes us restless, and we suffer from deep dissatisfaction. Joy and contentment are ours for the asking, when we cease to pursue the elusive extra!