There is something you know about me, something very personal, and there is something I know about every one of you and that's very central to your concerns. There is something that we know about everyone we meet anywhere in the world, on the street, that is the very mainspring of whatever they do and whatever they put up with. And that is that all of us want to be happy. In this, we are all together. How we imagine our happiness, that differs from one another, but it's already a lot that we have all in common, that we want to be happy.
Kuna kitu unafahamu kuhusu mimi,kitu cha binafsi sana, na kitu nafahamu kuhusu kila mmoja wenu na hicho ndiyo kitu kikuu kwa dhumuni lenu. Kuna kitu tunajua kuhusu kila mtu tunayekutana nae duniani, mtaani, hicho ndiyo kiini cha kila tunachofanya na chochote tunachokuwa pamoja nacho, ni kwamba wote tunataka kuwa na furaha. Katika hili,tupo pamoja. Tunavyofikiria furaha yetu. inatofautiana kati ya mtu mmoja na mwingine, lakini ni vitu tulivyonavyo kwa pamoja,
Now my topic is gratefulness.
tunataka kuwa na furaha.
What is the connection between happiness and gratefulness? Many people would say, well, that's very easy. When you are happy, you are grateful. But think again. Is it really the happy people that are grateful? We all know quite a number of people who have everything that it would take to be happy, and they are not happy, because they want something else or they want more of the same. And we all know people who have lots of misfortune, misfortune that we ourselves would not want to have, and they are deeply happy. They radiate happiness. You are surprised. Why? Because they are grateful. So it is not happiness that makes us grateful. It's gratefulness that makes us happy. If you think it's happiness that makes you grateful, think again. It's gratefulness that makes you happy.
Sasa,mada yangu ni kuhusu kushukuru. Kuna uhusiano gani kati ya furaha na kushukuru? Watu wengi watasema,sawa,hiyo ni rahisi sana. Ukiwa na furaha,basi unashukuru. Lakini tazama tena. Ni kweli kwamba watu wenye furaha wana shukrani? Sote tunafahamu namba kiasi ya watu ambao wana kila kitu cha kuwafanya wawe na furaha, lakini hawa furaha, kwa sababu wanataka kitu kingine au wanataka kilekile lakini kwa mara nyingine. Na tunafahamu watu ambao ni fukara sana, ufukara ambao sisi hatutaki kuwa nao, lakini wamejawa na furaha mno. Wanamiminika furaha.Unashangaa. Kwanini?kwa sababu wanajua kushukuru. Kwa hiyo si furaha inayotufanya tuwe na shukrani. Ni shukrani inayotufanya tuwe na furaha. Kama unafikiri ni furaha inayotufanya tushukuru, tazama tena. Ni shukrani inayokufanya uwe na furaha.
Now, we can ask, what do we really mean by gratefulness? And how does it work? I appeal to your own experience. We all know from experience how it goes. We experience something that's valuable to us. Something is given to us that's valuable to us. And it's really given. These two things have to come together. It has to be something valuable, and it's a real gift. You haven't bought it. You haven't earned it. You haven't traded it in. You haven't worked for it. It's just given to you. And when these two things come together, something that's really valuable to me and I realize it's freely given, then gratefulness spontaneously rises in my heart, happiness spontaneously rises in my heart. That's how gratefulness happens.
Sasa,tunaweza kuuliza, nini maana ya shukrani? na inafanya kazi vipi? Nitarufaa katika uzoefu wako. Wote tunajua kutoka katika uzoefu inakuaje. Tunapata hali fulani ambayo ina thamani kwetu. Tunapata kitu chenye thamani. na kweli tunapata. Vitu hivi viwili vinatakiwa kuja pamoja. Inatakiwa kuwa na thamani, na ni zawadi halisi. Hujainunua.Hujaitolea jasho. Hujaifanyia biashara.Hujaifanyia kazi. Umepewa tu. na hivi vitu viwili vinapokuja pamoja, kile kilicho na thamani kwangu nagundua nimepewa bure, halafu shukrani muda huohuo inaamshwa katika moyo wangu, furaha muda huohuo pia inaamshwa katika moyo wangu.
Now the key to all this is that we cannot only experience this once in a while. We cannot only have grateful experiences. We can be people who live gratefully. Grateful living, that is the thing. And how can we live gratefully? By experiencing, by becoming aware that every moment is a given moment, as we say. It's a gift. You haven't earned it. You haven't brought it about in any way. You have no way of assuring that there will be another moment given to you, and yet, that's the most valuable thing that can ever be given to us, this moment, with all the opportunity that it contains. If we didn't have this present moment, we wouldn't have any opportunity to do anything or experience anything, and this moment is a gift. It's a given moment, as we say.
Hivyo ndivyo shukrani inavyotokea. Sasa,ufunguo wa haya yote ni kwamba hatuwezi kukutana na hali hii mara moja. Hatuwezi kuwa na mazoea ya kushukuru tu. Tunaweza kuwa watu tunaoishi kwa shukrani. Kuishi ukiwa na shukrani,hicho ndo cha maana. Ni vipi tunaweza ishi tukiwa na shukrani? Kwa mazoea,kwa kujua kila wakati ni wakati tuliopewa,kama tusemavyo. Ni zawadi.Hujautolea jasho. Hujauleta kwa njia yoyote ile. Hauna njia ya kuhakikisha kwamba kutakuwa na wakati mwingine kwa ajili yako, na bado,hicho ni kitu muhimu sana ambacho tunaweza pewa, wakati huu,na nafasi zote ulizonazo. Kama tusingekuwa na wakati huu, tusingekuwa na nafasi ya kufanya lolote au kuzoea chochote, na wakati huu ni zawadi. Ni wakati tuliopewa,kama tusemavyo.
Now, we say the gift within this gift is really the opportunity. What you are really grateful for is the opportunity, not the thing that is given to you, because if that thing were somewhere else and you didn't have the opportunity to enjoy it, to do something with it, you wouldn't be grateful for it. Opportunity is the gift within every gift, and we have this saying, opportunity knocks only once. Well, think again. Every moment is a new gift, over and over again, and if you miss the opportunity of this moment, another moment is given to us, and another moment. We can avail ourselves of this opportunity, or we can miss it, and if we avail ourselves of the opportunity, it is the key to happiness. Behold the master key to our happiness in our own hands. Moment by moment, we can be grateful for this gift.
Sasa,tunasema zawadi ndani ya zawadi ni nafasi halisi. Unachoshukuru kwa hili ni nafasi, na sio kile ulichopewa, kwa sababu kama hicho kitu kingekuwa sehemu nyingine na hukuwa na nafasi ya kukifaidi, kufanya chochote nacho, usingeshukuru. Nafasi ni zawadi katika kila zawadi, na tunao huu msemo, nafasi huja mara moja tu. Sawa,fikiria tena. Kila wakati ni zawadi mpya,tena na tena, na kama utakosa nafasi ya wakati huu, wakati mwingine utakuja,na tena mwingine utakuja. Tunaweza pata nafasi tena au kukosa, na kama tutaipata nafasi, ni ufunguo wa furaha. Tunayo funguo kuu ya furaha yetu katika mikono yetu. wakati kwa wakati,
Does that mean that we can be grateful for everything? Certainly not. We cannot be grateful for violence, for war, for oppression, for exploitation. On the personal level, we cannot be grateful for the loss of a friend, for unfaithfulness, for bereavement. But I didn't say we can be grateful for everything. I said we can be grateful in every given moment for the opportunity, and even when we are confronted with something that is terribly difficult, we can rise to this occasion and respond to the opportunity that is given to us. It isn't as bad as it might seem. Actually, when you look at it and experience it, you find that most of the time, what is given to us is the opportunity to enjoy, and we only miss it because we are rushing through life and we are not stopping to see the opportunity.
tunaweza kuwa na shukrani kwa zawadi hii. Ina maana kwamba tuwe na shukrani kwa kila kitu? Si hivyo. Hatuwezi kuwa na shukrani kwa vurugu,vita, kugandamizwa,kunyonywa na kuonewa. Katika hali ya utu,hatuwezi kuwa na shukrani kwa kupoteza marafiki,kwa kudanganywa, kwa kufiwa. Lakini sikusema tuwe na shukrani kwa kila kitu. Nimesema tuwe na shukrani kwa kila nyakati tunayopewa kwa nafasi, na hata tunapopingwa katika kitu ambacho ni kigumu sana, tunaweza ibuka katika hili na kuitikia nafasi tunayopewa. Sio mbaya kama inavyoonekana. Kiukweli,unapoiangalia na kuizoea, unakuta muda mwingi,tunachopewa ni nafasi ya kustarehe, na tunaikosa kwa sababu tunaharakisha maisha na hatuachi kuona nafasi.
But once in a while, something very difficult is given to us, and when this difficult thing occurs to us, it's a challenge to rise to that opportunity, and we can rise to it by learning something which is sometimes painful. Learning patience, for instance. We have been told that the road to peace is not a sprint, but is more like a marathon. That takes patience. That's difficult. It may be to stand up for your opinion, to stand up for your conviction. That's an opportunity that is given to us. To learn, to suffer, to stand up, all these opportunities are given to us, but they are opportunities, and those who avail themselves of those opportunities are the ones that we admire. They make something out of life. And those who fail get another opportunity. We always get another opportunity. That's the wonderful richness of life.
Lakini wakati huo, tunapewa kitu kigumu, na hiki kitu kigumu kinapokuja, ni changamoto katika kuifanikisha ile nafasi, na tunaweza fanikiwa kwa kujifunza kitu ambacho wakati mwingine kinaumiza. kujifunza uvumilivu,mfano. Tunaambiwa kwamba njia ya amani sio ya harakaharaka, lakini ni ya kukimbia kama marathon. Inahitaji uvumilivu.Hiyo ni ngumu. Inaweza kuwa kusimama kwa maoni yako, kusimama kwa ajili ya ushawishi wako. Hiyo ni nafasi tunayopewa. Kujifunza,kuumia,kusimama, nafasi hizi zote tunapewa, lakini ni nafasi, na wote wanaozitumia nafasi hizo ndiyo tunaowathamini. Wanafanya kitu katika maisha. Na wale wanaofeli wanapata nafasi nyingine. Siku zote tunapata nafasi nyingine. Huo ndo uzuri wa maisha.
So how can we find a method that will harness this? How can each one of us find a method for living gratefully, not just once in a while being grateful, but moment by moment to be grateful. How can we do it? It's a very simple method. It's so simple that it's actually what we were told as children when we learned to cross the street. Stop. Look. Go. That's all. But how often do we stop? We rush through life. We don't stop. We miss the opportunity because we don't stop. We have to stop. We have to get quiet. And we have to build stop signs into our lives.
Kwa hiyo ni jinsi gani tunatafuta namna katika kuendelea na kukuza hili? Jinsi gani kila mmoja wetu atatafuta njia ya kuishi kwa shukrani, sio mara moja tu kuwa na shukrani, lakini wakati hadi wakati. Tunaweza kufanyaje? Ni rahisi sana. Ni rahisi sana,kama tulivyoambiwa wakati tukiwa watoto tulijifunza kukatiza mitaani. Simama.Angalia.Nenda. Hivyo tu. Lakini ni mara ngapi tunasimama? Tunaharakisha katika maisha.Hatuachi. Tunakosa nafasi kwa sababu hatuachi. Tunatakiwa kuacha.Tunatakiwa kunyamaza. Na tunatakiwa kutengeneza alama za tahadhari katika maisha yetu.
When I was in Africa some years ago and then came back, I noticed water. In Africa where I was, I didn't have drinkable water. Every time I turned on the faucet, I was overwhelmed. Every time I clicked on the light, I was so grateful. It made me so happy. But after a while, this wears off. So I put little stickers on the light switch and on the water faucet, and every time I turned it on, water. So leave it up to your own imagination. You can find whatever works best for you, but you need stop signs in your life. And when you stop, then the next thing is to look. You look. You open your eyes. You open your ears. You open your nose. You open all your senses for this wonderful richness that is given to us. There is no end to it, and that is what life is all about, to enjoy, to enjoy what is given to us.
Nilipokuwa Afrika miaka michache iliyopita nikarudi tena, Niligundua maji. Nilipokuwa Afrika,sikuwa na maji ya kunywa. Muda wote nilipofungua bomba, Nilifarijika. Muda wote nilipowasha taa, Nilishukuru.Nilifurahishwa sana. Lakini baada ya muda,vyote vilipotea. Kwa hiyo nikaweka stika ndogo katika sehemu ya kuwashia taa na katika bomba la maji, na kila wakati nikifungua,maji. Kwa hiyo achilia katika fikra zako. Unaweza tafuta chochote kilicho bora kwako, lakini unahitaji alama za tahadhari katika maisha yako. Na unaposimama. kinachofata ni kuangalia. Unaangalia.Unafungua machi yako. Unafungua masikio.Unafungua pua. Unafungua milango yote ya fahamu kwa huu utajiri mzuri tuliopewa. Hauna mwisho, na hivyo maisha yalivyo, kufurahia,kufurahi kile tulichopewa.
And then we can also open our hearts, our hearts for the opportunities, for the opportunities also to help others, to make others happy, because nothing makes us more happy than when all of us are happy. And when we open our hearts to the opportunities, the opportunities invite us to do something, and that is the third. Stop, look, and then go, and really do something. And what we can do is whatever life offers to you in that present moment. Mostly it's the opportunity to enjoy, but sometimes it's something more difficult.
Na baada ya hapo tunaweza fungua mioyo yetu, kwa ajili ya nafasi, kwa nafasi ya kutusaidia, kuwafanya wengine wawe na furaha,kwa sababu hamna kinachotufanya tuwe na furaha sana kama wote tukiwa na furaha. Na wakati tunafungua mioyo kwa ajili ya nafasi tupewazo, nafasi zinatualika kufanya kitu fulani, na ni cha tatu. Simama,angalia,halafu nenda,na fanya kitu kweli. Na tunachoweza kufanya ni chochote ambacho maisha yamekupa kwa wakati huo. Mara nyingi ni nafasi ya kufurahi, lakini wakati mwingine ni kitu kigumu.
But whatever it is, if we take this opportunity, we go with it, we are creative, those are the creative people. And that little stop, look, go, is such a potent seed that it can revolutionize our world. Because we are at the present moment in the middle of a change of consciousness, and you will be surprised if you -- I am always surprised when I hear how many times this word "gratefulness" and "gratitude" comes up. Everywhere you find it, a grateful airline, a restaurant gratefulness, a café gratefulness, a wine that is gratefulness. Yes, I have even come across a toilet paper whose brand is called "Thank You."
Lakini vyovyote ilivyo,kama tutaichukua nafasi hii, tukaenda nayo,sisi ni wabunifu, hao ni watu wabunifu, na hiyo simama,angalia,nenda, ni mbegu bora sana inayoweza badilisha dunia. Kwa sababu tunahitaji,tupo katika kipindi cha sasa katikati ya mabadiliko ya dhamira, na utashangaa kama uki Siku zote nahamaki ninaposikia ni mara ngapi hili neno"shukrani" na "kushukuru" yanapokuja. Kila unapoyakuta, ndege ya kushukuru,mgahawa wa shukrani, Mvinyo wenye shukrani. Ndiyo,nimewahi ona karatasi ya chooni alama yake ya biashara inaitwa Nashukuru((Vicheko)
(Laughter)
There is a wave of gratefulness because people are becoming aware how important this is and how this can change our world. It can change our world in immensely important ways, because if you're grateful, you're not fearful, and if you're not fearful, you're not violent. If you're grateful, you act out of a sense of enough and not of a sense of scarcity, and you are willing to share. If you are grateful, you are enjoying the differences between people, and you are respectful to everybody, and that changes this power pyramid under which we live.
Kuna wimbi la shukrani kwa sababu watu wanaanza kugundua ni muhimu kiasi gani na jinsi gani itabadili dunia. Inaweza badili dunia yetu na katika njia muhimu sana, kwa sababu kama una shukrani,hauna uoga, na kama hauna uoga,hauna vurugu. Kama una shukrani,unaenenda katika hali ya kutosha na sio katika hali ya upungufu, haupo tayari kugawana. Kama una shukrani,unafurahia tofauti kati ya watu, na heshima yako kwa kila mtu, na hiyo inabadili piramidi la nguvu ambalo tunaishi sasa.
And it doesn't make for equality, but it makes for equal respect, and that is the important thing. The future of the world will be a network, not a pyramid turned upside down. The revolution of which I am speaking is a nonviolent revolution, and it's so revolutionary that it even revolutionizes the very concept of a revolution, because the normal revolution is one where the power pyramid is turned upside down and those who were on the bottom are now on the top and are doing exactly the same thing that the ones before. What we need is a networking of smaller groups, smaller and smaller groups who know one another, who interact with one another, and that is a grateful world.
Na haileti usawa, lakini inaleta heshima sawa, na hicho ni kitu muhimu. Dunia ya baadaye itakuwa mtandao, sio piramidi,ambalo limegeuzwa juu chini Mabadiliko ninayoongelea sio mabadiliko ya vurugu, na mabadiliko sana ambayo yanabadilisha maana halisi ya mapinduzi, kwa sababu mapinduzi ya kawaida ni yale ambayo piramidi linageuzwa juu chini na wale walio chini wanakuwa juu na wa juu nao chini yameahafanyika huko nyuma Tunachohitaji ni mtandao wa vikundi vidogo, vikundi vidogo na vidogo vinavyotambuana, vinavyokutana pamoja,
A grateful world is a world of joyful people. Grateful people are joyful people, and joyful people -- the more and more joyful people there are, the more and more we'll have a joyful world. We have a network for grateful living, and it has mushroomed. We couldn't understand why it mushroomed. We have an opportunity for people to light a candle when they are grateful for something. And there have been 15 million candles lit in one decade. People are becoming aware that a grateful world is a happy world, and we all have the opportunity by the simple stop, look, go, to transform the world, to make it a happy place. And that is what I hope for us, and if this has contributed a little to making you want to do the same, stop, look, go.
na hiyo ni dunia nzuri sana. Dunia nzuri yenye watu wenye furaha sana. Watu wenye shukrani ni watu wenye furaha tele, na watu wenye furaha tele, wanavyozidi kuwa watu wengi wenye furaha na hivyo tutakuwa na dunia yenye watu wenye furaha zaidi. Tuna mtandao wa maisha ya kushukuru, na ina uyoga. Na hatuwezi kuelewa kwanini ina uyoga. Tuna nafasi ya watu kuwasha mshumaa wanaposhukuru kwa jambo fulani. Na kuna mishumaa milioni 15 inayowashwa katika muongo mmoja. Watu wanaanza kutambua dunia ya shukrani ni dunia yenye furaha, na wote tuna nafasi kwa njia rahisi ya simama,angalia,nenda, kubadilisha dunia, kuifanya sehemu ya furaha. Na hilo ndo ninalotumaini kwetu, na kama hili linachangia kidogo kwa kukufanya uhitaji kufanya hichohicho,
Thank you.
simama,angalia,nenda.
(Applause)
Asante.