Reel VS Real Happyness

In the Mahabharata, Dronacharya was an important person. Before he became teacher of Pandavas and Kauravas, he was living in severe poverty. He approached his childhood friend Drupada (King of Panchala) for help. But he insulted Drona and refused to help him. So Drona's wife Kripi was unable to give their son Ashwatthama, cow's milk to drink. So she would mix water with white flour and give it as milk. Ashwatthama believed it to be real milk and was happy to take it and was satisfied. After Dronacharya became the teacher of Pandavas and Kauravas, one day Duryodhana took Ashwatthama to the palace and gave him some cow’s milk. Now only Ashwatthama  realized the true taste of milk and also realized that the milk he was taking so far was not the real milk. From next day onwards, he refused to take thereel (fake) milk given by his mother and was adamant to get real cow's milk.

In the same way, fallen souls like me think that material happiness is the ultimate happiness without realizing that it is mixed with sorrow and very contented with this happiness. But in the Bhagavad Gita the Lord explains the nature of real happiness, in verse 5.21 as follows.

               baahya sparseshu asaktaatma / vindati aatmani yat sukham

               sa brahma yoga yuktaatma / sukham akshyama ashnute

"Such a liberated person is not attracted to material sense pleasure but is always in trance enjoying the pleasure within. In this way, the self-realized person enjoys unlimited happiness for he concentrates on the Supreme."

Srila Prabhupada writes in the purport, "A person in brahma-yoga, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, is so absorbed in the loving service of the Lord that he loses his taste for material sense pleasure altogether…A Kṛṣṇa conscious person is not attracted to any kind of sense pleasure, due to his being a liberated soul."

Srila Prabhupada, when he went to America for preaching, he first preached to the hippies who thought that by taking LSD drug they will be happy. But Srila Prabhupada gave them the taste of real happiness by introducing them to the chanting of Hare Krishna mahamantra, dancing and taking prasadam. By this they felt great spiritual happiness which they never experienced before and they also realized that the happiness they were experiencing from drugs so far was inferior. Thus he destroyed their taste for reel happiness and made them to strive for real happiness. One press person asked Srila Prabhupada, "Swamiji, You've not tasted the happiness derived from drugs and alcohol. Then how do you say that happiness derived from drugs and material pleasures is inferior to the spiritual happiness?." Srila Prabhupada said, "Yes I have not experienced. But my disciples have experienced both. You can ask them which is superior."

I pray at the lotus feet of all Vaishnavas, Srila Gurudeva and and Srila Prabhupada to destroy my taste for reel (fake) happiness and increase my taste for real happiness.