Miserable is a person who has a habit of thinking very good of himself without evaluating himself. He never happens to know about his mental status, his attitude, his understanding of and dealings with surroundings.
A Sufi Saint was eating vegetables throughout his life, because he did not like to eat flesh of animals. As they have their own emotions, life, and feelings. That he has no right to eat their flesh. However, in his hand he was always carrying a staff with sharp edge, which he would press on ground every time, he walked a step.
At the age of seventy-five, a young Sufi girl saint told himthat you have mowed down thousands of lives. (Aasa heth chhokh saasa maran).Shocked old Sufi saint said “I am a vegetarian”, so taking a life is not apossibility. The Sufi girl took him out in the open and asked him to walk. OldSufi while walking, as usual pressed his sharp edged stick in the ground.
Then the young Sufi girl dug out the insects killed by the sharp edged stick. On seeing the dead insects, he trembled and was shameful. He was an ignorant helpless killer.
The old Sufi felt miserable and extremely miserable. He had not a habit of evaluating his dealing with surroundings. Throughout his 75 years, his habit kept him in darkness.
Though he was thinking very well of himself; his attitude was OK. People also thought well about him, but for himself he was now a miserable person. He was not in a position to reverse the damage caused due to his ignorance enhanced by arrogance. He can in no way compensate his victims.
Obviously, it seemsthat surroundings are fundamentally important for the proper growth of aperson. I am not talking about honesty, truthfulness, social behavior and othersuch qualities, which make us respectable in the society. All these are secondaryin nature.
The primary thing for not being miserable is to assess, if Iam behaving as a mortal human being or with an unconscious assumption ofimmortality. In case of immortality, the person is miserable and deservessympathy, because it will take him 75 years to realize the reality. The personis suffering invisible sickness and needs immediate sympathetic attention.
Sickness with pain is not as horrible as the sickness without pain. It necessarily makes us miserable. This terrifying habit of non-evaluation of self is invisible sickness.
At any stage of life, I am supposed to be exposed to surroundings and myself. Therefore, absence of habit of self-evaluation and estimation makes us miserable, extremely miserable. Most times the injury caused by the misery is irreversible.
Second habit of miserable people is being thankless. As they are sufficient with lack, they do not even think of gratitude. However, they understand the importance of thankful event.
This habit of miserable people discourages good people and promotes laziness, dishonesty and other such ills of the society. Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a wonderful present and not giving it. Quality of society is determined by the quality of gratitude in its individuals.
A miserable person may feel gratitude sometimes but due tohis habit, he is always reluctant to express it. When there is abundance ofmiserable people. Then the gratitude becomes irrelevant, as the person,deserving thanks wants to receive in kind instead of words.
Gratitude expressed in kind is the worst of individual andtoxic for surroundings. This habit of miserable creates suffocation in thesociety. Corruption and laziness at workplace is outcome of this habit.
Third and fatal habit of miserable is to blame others forwhatever undesired happens to him. He never introspects and instead blames hissurroundings. When successful, he gives every credit to himself and no thanksto surroundings.
I evaluated myselfand felt miserable, extremely miserable.