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19 February 2020

When the heart smiles

What is Maturity?

Modern psychology says that maturity is being aware of the surroundings and acting accordingly. From Adi Shankara to Buddhato many other modern philosophers have given their views and wisdom on this question as well. In spite of their different schools of philosophy separated by centuries, the definition of maturity by all of them is more or less the same. My summary of understanding of these great minds definition of maturity is

It is the awareness and ability to distance ourselves mentally when needed.

Heart smiling
While I respect this conventional wisdom, my personal definition of maturity is about our ability to balance the constant needs of our head and heart. It is about our ability to satisfy the logical need of pursuing life-altering larger goals without forgetting to cherish those little things that make the heart smile. It is not a this or that choice but a this and that balance. 

Achieving the larger goals is no doubt important for they would make us proud. They give our life a sense of purpose, discipline and ultimately respect. Desire is not always the root cause of all evils as the Budhha taught us. Pursuing it at all with costs without balance maybe is.  

But, some of our best memories are about the ‘meaningless’ little things we did in our life. Aren't they? The ones we indulged in because we chose to follow our hearts. These little moments might not always serve any quantifiable purpose to our lives but they always give us something more important. The big goals make us proud for sure but it is those silly little moments that give us a smile from deep inside the heart. 


Unfortunately, we distance ourselves from these little pleasures in the name of maturity. Remember, Smile of the heart is often the result of these little memories and not just those big proud achievements.

Maturity is not always about doing big things. 

Balancing large goals and small pleasuresSuccessful life is all about balancing the opposites. Chase the big dreams, pursue the important goals but never miss an opportunity to do what the heart says. That is maturity. So go ahead, get silly if you have to and enjoy those little things that make you happy. Who knows, they can become beautiful memories, sometime in the future and make you flash that all-important silent smile from your heart. 


When the heart smiles, it means you have achieved that perfect harmony between your head and heart. And that is Maturity. 







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