The difference between needing & wanting

The great Eastern philosophies speak about attaining the perfect state of contentment when we live our lives without wanting or needing anything. This is sometimes interpreted as cold, unfeeling or passive. But imagine how our lives would be if our leaders, for example, were to transcend their individual lust for power and position and instead work for the common good. The irony of it is that most people start off in public service with the best of intentions. The problem starts when the immediate goal shifts from a desire to do good to a need to have the position of power to do good. I have met many people who justify wrong action in order to be in a position to perform right action. Unfortunately, when so much energy is consumed trying to "guard one’s seat," one ends up compromising the purity of the original intention to serve. The resulting, overwhelming desire then becomes the reason why so many very good people lose their conviction and become so easily corrupted.

I can think of the many examples of public officials who, once elected, think only of short-term, high-impact projects to help position themselves for subsequent elections. Or, of other public officials who gauge their programs against what is popular rather than what serves the long-term interest of the people. I can immediately cite the example of an association president who refuses to spend the needed funds for a garbage recycling program for one of the residential communities. His intention is to be able to boast good fiscal management and to leave the association with money upon his retirement from the position. In itself, this is a good goal but one that overshadows the real purpose of serving the community needs.

One can argue that this kind of popularity contest at the expense of the public is human nature and intrinsic to politics all over the world. The difference in our country lies in the danger of our very personalized system. Unlike other countries where the bureaucracy works, we have instead a culture that allows policy to change with the leadership. As a result, any kind of short-term thinking or policies born out of individual vested interest, affects the greater community more deeply. Think how often this happens in our own offices. I am sure that everyone has had the experience of listening to staff ponder, "Ano kaya ang gusto ni boss?" (I wonder what the boss wants). Imagine the power of an organization if every member were to pursue the overall vision, mission and objectives without being swayed by the idiosyncracies of their leader.

Better still, what if each and everyone of us were to practice not wanting or needing anything? I imagine that we would be able to attain the freedom in our minds and our hearts to pursue our goals without fear of failure or of loss. We would be able to better live our lives as courageous warriors in pursuit of a noble purpose – whether it be a business, political or social one, as a public servant, a businessman or a parent. Whenever I think of this kind of ideal state, I recall a great story once told to me.

Once upon a time, there was a man who was in search of the secret to happiness. He had heard of a very wise enlightened soldier so he went in search of him and followed him in his travels. One day, they entered a store along the road. The soldier saw a beautiful sword and asked the storekeeper for its price. "$20," said the store keeper. "I will give you half that amount," the soldier said. When the storekeeper refused to budge, the soldier and the man continued on their journey. After a short while, they heard a shout coming from behind them. When they looked, they saw the storekeeper running after them. "Wait. Don’t leave, I will sell you the sword at the price you ask." So the soldier paid the $10 for the sword.

A few miles later, they entered a teahouse where the man saw a beautiful teacup that was an exact match for his tea set. He asked the salesman how much the teacup cost. "$20," said the salesman. Remembering what the soldier did, the man said, "I will pay you one-half of that." The salesman refused to give in so they left. The man looked behind him to see if the salesman would change his mind. Every several minutes, he looked behind again and again to see if the salesman followed. Twenty minutes passed and still there was no sign of the salesman.

The man asked the enlightened soldier. "How is it that the storekeeper came after you and agreed to a lower price for the sword, while in my case, I did exactly as you did and my salesman did not pursue me?" The wise soldier asked the man, "Did you want your teacup very badly?" "Of course, I wanted my teacup. I needed it to complete my tea set. Why didn’t you want your sword?" The soldier then looked straight into the man’s eyes and smiled, "No, I really did not."

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