Victor Hugo once said, “The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved — loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves.” In truth, when Aung San Suu Kyi delivered her Nobel lecture we were similarly reminded march to a greater good, a higher level of love.
Certainly, any of us can march onward to hate. Sadly, many of us do. Still, as I travel around the world, the vast majority of people live with a certain gift of humanity, an inexplicable desire to reach out, help those in need and believe in something more powerful than the intrinsic self. These minutiae of moments drift past, almost unnoticed by those hurriedly on their way in life. But to the Buddha, to Christ, they are the footprints of love left by the Father himself.
These moments can be seismic life altering events. As I have said before, my former love still changes my life each and every day. Many of my coworkers, who have suffered terrible loss over the past year, remind me to continually reach out and out touch someone less fortunate.
Others similar profound experiences. For instance, Nazi leader Herman Goering offered to free German pacifist Carl von Ossietzky from his captivity if he abandoned his pacifism. Ossietzky declined and perished. Nelson Mandela reached beyond his captor’s thoughts and into their hearts. Thus, the fate of a nation was forever altered and apartheid died because one man, in his most frail moment, learned that the capacity to love was deeper than the capacity to hate. Christ was crucified, so we could live forever. Thích Quảng Đức was burned protesting the persecution of Buddhists by South Vietnam’s Roman Catholic government led by Ngô Đình Diệm.These are just a few of those who gave their all.
When I think of Aung San Suu Kyi, I am reminded of a speech by then Indian University Coach Bobby Knight during my company’s new product show. Mr. Knight said in effect that the hard part was not in winning the biggest prize. Rather, the challenge which eludes many of us is finding a way to stay at the pinnacle of success each and every day. Aung San Suu Kyi’s noble acceptance is no small feat. Many people gave much of their life to support her and her values. The trick for all us is remember those sacrifices and to live those ideals each and every day.
Thus, as a Buddhist, I urge everyone not to wait for some overpowering moment to change you. Rather, start today and change the way you think and how you think of others. We do not have problems, we only think we do.