In ancient times, two kingdoms were at war. One kingdom lost and their Army General was captured. The captive was taken alive to the victorious king. The King had great respect for this general as he was a well known warrior. The King then told the General – I am sorry to kill a man who bravely defended his people. I do not want history to remember me as a killer of heroes. I will forgive you if you pay 10 thousand gold coins as compensation for the losses of my army.
The General laughed and said – I don’t have that much money, but the merchants owe me over 100 thousand gold coins.
The King said fine and sent the General to the market, chained and surrounded by soldiers guarding him. The General expected that those for whom he had sacrificed himself would help him. But no merchant responded. On the contrary, they accused him of being the cause of the destruction of country and their crisis.
The General returned to the King, a broken man. The King said – I will not kill you – not because you fought against us but because you sacrificed your life for a cowardly people, who love trade more than freedom. He who stands up for ignorant people is like one who sets his own body on fire to light the way for the blind.
The above story is true at the individual level for all of us as well. We waste our lives by associating with others who are ignorant and have no interest in us. This world is a selfish place. That does not mean we become transactional as well. What is important is that we learn to discern who or what is good for us. In this vast crowd, you will always find people who are aligned with you, who are genuinely interested in you. But before that happens, you have to find out who you really are, what are your likes and dislikes, what makes you tick as a human. And this process of self-discovery happens via meditation.
Start your meditation journey. You will discover many aspects of yourself. This self discovery will ground you in yourself. And as you center yourself, you will realise that you can live your life on your terms. Meditation is what will make you independent and let you walk on your own individual journey while living in this world.