Two friends lived in a small village – Mohan and Sohan. Both studied, played and grew up together since childhood. With time, Mohan worked hard and became a successful businessman, while Sohan stayed in the village and started farming. Mohan had wealth, a big house and many servants, while Sohan lived a simple life. Yet there was always satisfaction and a smile on his face.
One day Mohan came to the village after many years. He saw that Sohan was living in an old house and wore simple clothes. Mohan said laughingly, “You have worked hard all your life, but you have nothing. If you had gone to the city and done business like me, you would have been rich today.” Sohan smiled and said, “Money is not everything, friend. I have the love of my family, respect of my village and peace of mind.”
Mohan took his words lightly. The next day both of them went out for a walk in the nearby forest. Suddenly it started raining heavily on the way. Mohan’s expensive clothes got wet and he got upset. Then Sohan took shelter in a nearby hut. A poor old man living there gave both of them dry clothes, fed them hot food and also gave them a place to rest for the night. In the morning Mohan asked the old man, “You didn’t even know us, why did you help us so much?” The old man smiled and said, “Son, the biggest asset of a person is his kind nature. Wealth can leave you at any time, but good deeds and trust of people stay with you throughout your life.”
This thing touched Mohan’s heart. He realized that in his pursuit of making money he had underestimated the value of relationships and humanity. After returning to the village, he said to Sohan, “Today I understood that wealth is not achieved only by money. The true rich is the one who has love, satisfaction and a feeling of helping others.” After that day Mohan changed his behaviour. He started helping needy people and started spending more time with his family. Gradually he started getting the happiness which he had never got despite having immense wealth. The story teaches us that good values, contentment, kindness and humanity are more valuable than wealth. True wealth is that which can spread happiness in the lives of others.
