Tuesday, November 24, 2009

does goodness promise goodness







Ever since childhood I’ve been a victim of my mother’s knowledge and beliefs. Her constant push had been on an idea of how goodness was everything and how goodness always gave u goodness in return. I grew up to be very sensitive towards the feelings, opinions and emotions of other people. I would spend endless nights worrying and feeling guilty if I hurt someone or was rude in anyway. Luckily, times changed, because I started thinking for myself. I grew up! I learnt that No, goodness does not guarantee goodness in other people and you can’t inculcate it into them either. I would compromise, give in and make all the effort but no, no sign of goodness. It’s an art that comes to you naturally. After miserably failing at the idea of discovering goodness in people, I gave in to the darkness of this world.
If goodness always gave goodness in return then it would be a chain reaction and the whole wide world would be pure of all evil and filled with goodness. There would be no envy, no hatred and no anger. Unfortunately, the world isn’t about this. I stopped seeing any point of being nice to people who were not nice to you, to forgive people just because they were the great god’s creation. I started losing the thoughts I once owned. I found no pleasure in trying to embed goodness in others, because I would just see mere disappointment.
I would get hurt every now and then because my expectations would be crashed and I would get disappointed. Time today has lent me a great perspective, I believe that goodness is just for yourself, I don’t mean personal goodness, but the goodness you have for others. I firmly believe that respecting other people and being good to them is actually paying respect to you. Goodness is actually a feeling from within; it should have no strings of hope, expectation or a return. That is in all terms pure and selfless goodness. This world in all my imagination is a personal journey and man at one point is just with himself. I learnt that if I do things for other or compromise for others it should be out of selflessness not because I expect them to turn around and give me some of their goodness. This world is a selfish place and man has disappointed man since history. So do you think goodness guarantees goodness or is it a gesture that’s usually disappointed?

5 comments:

Unknown said...

It is hard to imagine that anyone thinks of goodness as a problem

Falak Hyat said...

well, its not a problem. Its something that brings out the best in you, but u shouldnt expect something in return, because when that doesnt happen, it becomes a PROBLEM!

Jiya said...

your completely right, goodness should be selfless! you should be good only because you want to, not because you have selfish desires, may those be of goodness in return.

Unknown said...

thrs a thin albeit fine line between "goodness" and doing someone a "favour".....whislt goodness makes one expect a reward from God,a favour makes one expect a reward(tangible/intangible) from the person one has favoured....
...so your goodness should not make u WANT as soon as u GIVE...it shud instead make you FEEL good and make you believe that whether anyone else appreciates my goodness or not,God will....n He will give me a reward in this life or the Hereafter .......
so goodness may not promise goodness in others,but it certainly does promise the appreciation of God

Rameen Zahra said...

goodness rarely promises goodness. it requires time and effort to have goodness revealed to yourself by the other party. the point however is to keep putting in tht effort unconditionally.