The Moral Vision
Seeking the Right Alternatives
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SEEKING THE RIGHT ALTERNATIVES
A luckless passenger rushed, panting, into the
station just as his train was steaming out. His
watch—unaccountably slow by ten minutes—had
let him down. “Don’t worry, Babuji,” sympathised a
passing porter, there will be another train along in
about a couple of hours. Why go away? Just wait
here for it on this same platform.” The passenger,
keen to reach his destination, decided to accept his
advice, even if it meant waiting; two long tedious
hours. Just getting to where he wanted to go was
too important to him to think of expending time
and energy coming and going from the station all
over again, and perhaps missing his train once
again, so he stayed right where he was and catch his
train he did.
When we miss a train, there is always the
comforting knowledge that there is that next train
coming along. That is the lesson that the platform
teaches. It is then up to us to make the correct
decision about our next move. But it is surprising
how many people fail to grasp this reality. They are
inexplicably plunged into gloom and depression
