Desire vs needs

 

Desire and Need

In my garden, I see a butterfly, beautiful colours, flapping its wings, dancing gracefully, its silent swan lake belle, sliding from one side of the garden to another, from one plant to the other. 

And then I also see a honey bee, going buzz buzz, working from one to another plant too, making honey, pollinating my zucchini and cucumber flowers.

And today, suddenly, I thought,

Oh a butterfly is like a desire, where as a honey bee, is like a need.

Desire is always beautiful, always desirable! 

Need may not be beautiful, but is a necessity.

Yes, a ‘desire’ is different from a need, it is a want, a wish.

Desire as a noun, and as a verb too. 

Just like love. 

In love it is said,

You may not be in love with someone anymore, 

but you can always love them!

Similarly, you can have a desire, while you don’t desire anything.

That is certainly possible. Just like:

I have a wish, but I don’t wish for anything.

It is an internal adjustment!

So, 

What do I desire?

Or

What is my desire?

Desire, suffering and action

Buddha is known to have said, that 

‘desire is the root cause of all dukha (suffering). 

So desire is the reason for unhappiness. 

Even Aristotle is known to have said 

The bravest person is that who can overcome his desires.

But then desire is also known to be the very reason for things to happen.

If there was no desire, there would have been no action.

Even this universe wouldn’t have evolved 

if Brahman had not desired to see a companion?

So desire is the root cause of many things.

Suffering is one, but then action/evolution is also another one. 

Desire is transient 

We desire/want something today, and really want it, and we think, that is what we want, and that is what would make us content. 

But then the same thing which made us content, is not enough. It doesn’t satisfy us anymore. We want something else, something more.

Our desire shifts, or actually desire remains, but what we desire changes.

My needs basically stay static, but my wants keep changing.

Desire, then would be like running after a butterfly, 

a transient, fleeting feeling, 

something that we would never achieve.

We can’t keep it for a longer period.

Or what we find ‘desirable’ keeps changing.

Desires are fleeting, just like butterflies!

We can’t catch them, if we do, they are no more desirable, 

like butterflies with clipped, limp wings.

So let them fly, let them free, desire

and detach !