unquenchable thirst

तृप्प्येन्न राजा धनसञ्चयेन न सागरं भूमिजलागमेन।
न पण्डितः साधुसुभाषितेन तृप्येन्न चक्षु प्रियदर्शनेन॥४५
चाणक्यनीतिशाश्त्रे द्वितीयोऽध्याये
tṛppyenna rājā dhanasañcyena na sāgaraṁ bhūmijalāgamena|
na paṇḍitaḥ sādhusubhāṣitena tṛppyenna cakṣu priyadarśanena||45
cāṇakyanītiśāśtre dvitīyo'dhyāye

The realist in Guru Chanakya comes to the forefront in this advice.  Contentment may be a very nice quality for idealists and seers.  But in real life, incessant drive and enthusiasm for further enhancement of certain physical and material faculties alone can equip and empower a person to thrive and succeed  in this world.

He says  " A king will never be satisfied with any amount of wealth that he has already accumulated, the ocean will never be full to the extent of overflowing even if the whole quantity of water is flowing unto it,  a learned man will never be satisfied or consider himself too knowledgeable when he is reading and learning the great works of  preceptors which are of eternal utility and the eyes will never be satisfied and cease to have interest in devouring beautiful sights and scenery."

Politics among nations is always in a flux.  The resources on the earth has limitations but for a nation to retain its prime position, or at least its safe status in while in competition with other thriving neighbouring states, the most stabilizing factor is the finance, and when the overall interest of the nation is the foremost consideration, the ruler should be always eager to have commercial transactions with other countries to the beast of his own country's advantage..

The acquisition of knowledge is never complete.  There is scope for more education for even the most learned persons..Knowledge, if not updated, will become archaic and stale.. So a learned man is always eager to receive more knowledge from his peers and preceptors.  There is no question of satisfaction  in this matter at any stage.

All the water flowing into the ocean originates from the ocean itself being taken away from it by the heat of the sun in the form of clouds and those clouds pouring the same waters on the earth.  So the ocean never gets more water than it had already..( of course,  global warming melts the ice in the mountain and adds more water to the ocean, but that phenomenon is to the detriment of all concerned and it cannot be a means of satisfaction and perhaps the vandalization of nature was not so acute in the era of Chanakya )

And a "Thing of beauty is a joy for ever"  as Keats puts it.. Every nice thing that happens on this beautiful earth is a fresh treat to the eyes..Every flower that blossoms, every baby that is born,  every day that is dawning, every sunset, every fresh downpour of rain, is a fresh beauty.. a fresh opportunity.. How can the eyes ever be satisfied?
 I am tempted to quote a few lines from Keats'
" A thing of beauty is a joy for ever "

A thing of beauty is a joy for ever:
Its loveliness increases; it will never
Pass into nothingness; but still will keep
A bower quiet for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing.
Therefore, on every morrow, are we wreathing
A flowery band to bind us to the earth,
Spite of despondence, of the inhuman dearth
Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o'er-darkened ways
Made for our searching: yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits. Such the sun, the moon,
Trees old, and young, sprouting a shady boon
For simple sheep; and such are daffodils
With the green world they live in; and clear rills
That for themselves a cooling covert make
'Gainst the hot season; the mid-forest brake,
Rich with a sprinkling of fair musk-rose blooms:
And such too is the grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
All lovely tales that we have heard or read:
An endless fountain of immortal drink,
Pouring unto us from the heaven's brink.

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