Why is this beggar so rich?

“Richness is all about living a simple and happy life. One who has peace has everything in life. The only way to stay rich is by building the right mindset.”

Many of you are rich in terms of unstable money. You get it and lose it and that’s how your happiness too, as you stick your happiness to money. This way you will never stay calm and always have something to worry about. You may be rich which is temporary but the richness lies in the way you live your life.

The reason why many want to become rich in terms of money is they want happiness that money could give but sadly many end up making a lot of money but no permanent happiness. The problem with being rich in terms of money is, your happiness is linked with numbers and numbers never end and therefore you never get enough happiness.

But in this, I am going to share my experience, where I met a beggar who is so rich at heart and mind. He lived on a pavement in a city along with his wife.

I saw this old couple on the pavement. This beggar is feeding his wife with his hands. They weren’t sad. They are laughing and sharing. I was amazed how could they be that happy, and I thought they were suffering because of poverty but I was wrong.

So I was waiting at a bus stop, that is a little beside, where this couple has their home on the pavement. The bus I wanted to board is less frequent and therefore I sat on the bench at that bus stop and kept looking at the couple. It was about half an hour I observed them and they were so joyful.

I was surprised so much and I really want to ask them, “How could they be so happy?” Even though they are in such a condition. But I was shy and scared to ask them. They completed their lunch joyfully and the old beggar came begging to the bus stop and I acted like I was busy on my phone. All passengers boarded different buses and left and he was on the floor beside the bench I was sitting. He asked me to donate something.

I looked at him with a smile and gave him a five rupee coin and he sat there on the floor and then he asked me, What my name is. I told him my name and asked his name. He told his name. Then he asked me what I do. I told him and I didn’t ask him what he does, as I know it already. He kept asking me some routine questions and I was shy to speak at first, as I am scared about people who see me may judge me wrong that I was speaking to a beggar.

Soon we both got comfortable to speak to each other and one question always disturbed my mind. That is to find more about his life and how could he be so happy. I couldn’t hold on to question longer in mind and therefore I finally asked him.

He smiled and said that happiness is in our head. It’s not in external things. He added that if I search for happiness outside, it’s a false one and it’s temporary. If I search for it inside, it’s real and unshakeable. I was thrilled by his explanation. Now I want to know more.

“Never search for happiness outside you. Search for happiness inside you, as it real and permanent.”

I asked how his wife is so happy that way. He said that they don’t have any complaints about anyone. They live their life joyfully with what they have. They actually got habituated for it.

“If you learn to live with what you have, you will be joyful in life.”

Then hesitatingly I asked him why he does he beg instead of doing some job. He smiled and said that he was not a beggar before. He got into such a condition because of his kids, who didn’t care about them at that age. He said that he was a hard-working man who belonged to the middle class and had settled well but kids were interested in the property he earned all his life but not him or his wife.

So they left them and came out and living their own life, begging. They don’t want their kids to be unhappy because of them so they left them. I was really moved by their unconditional love for their children. I was silent for a while. But more questions churned my head and made me anxious to know more. Then I asked him whether he didn’t feel shy to beg.

Then he said that he felt so at the beginning. He tried to do some job but he failed in getting one as he was so old. He can’t lift heavy weights or do any physical labor work. That’s how he went starving for many days. He couldn’t see his wife in such a condition. So he begged for food for the first time to feed his wife.

One person gave him a food parcel and that’s how he started his begging. He lost the feeling of shy because of uncontrolled hunger and love for his wife. That’s how he became a beggar.

Then I asked him whether he wasn’t unhappy about begging. He laughed and said, “Yes.” Then he added that at the beginning he had such a feeling of sadness but now he was so happy which is unlimited and he doesn’t worry about anything.

I was amazed at how that could be possible. He said that begging isn’t bad. “All humans do it one or another way. A man who has a lot of money may beg God for peace. A man who needs something may ask from another man. Here the work ask is used and that’s the only difference.”

Then he told that begging taught him so many important lessons for his life. These lessons had mad him mentally strong and happy and I asked how. So he gave some lessons he learned in the form of points.

• He left feeling shy.
• He left his fear about the future and started enjoying the present.
• He left the worry about death as it is inevitable.
• He doesn’t need to impress anyone.
• He doesn’t need to act in front of others. He stays real all the time.
• He learned to be happy by having nothing.
• He is free from greed.
• Others judgment is not valued at all.

I was amazed by his answers. He looked like a philosopher of life. He answered all my questions well. He actually taught some lessons for life. I wondered how he was able to be happy without anything. Then Understood that having nothing means having everything that you need for mind and this way you attain peace.

It was about half an hour that I kept talking to him not worrying about people around me. He even stayed there talking to me without begging. I asked him what is his last wish. That’s the only question I had got, as he seemed to have everything he needed already.

He was smiling all the way in our conversation but after this question, the smile vanished and a moment of silence is experienced on his face. Then he answered, “it’s not my last wish but my wife’s, it is to see our children at least once before we die.” And maintained silence.

As I could not do anything and even I ended my talk as the bus arrived and gave him some money, which he actually rejected. On continuous persistence, he accepted it and they don’t need to beg at least for a few days and can have joyful life together.

Life isn’t fair to anyone. Different people suffer in different ways. This couple is still happy irrespective of their problems as they ignored them. What if you could do the same. Won’t you be happy?

It’s true that the lessons learned by him are really useful. The suffering in his life and begging taught him those lessons but those lessons are even for a normal human being who really wants to attain peace and happiness, which is permanent.