If, on the other hand, he had done
his job without any expectations and was prepared to
accept calmly anything that destiny had to offer, he
would not have been shattered.
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One might give a counter-argument
like this: “There is a scientist. He works hard.
He expects the Nobel Prize and in fact he gets it. He
is happy. So this example shows that there is really
nothing wrong in anticipating a reward. Where is the
question of disappointment in this case?” No,
there is nothing wrong, and there is no disappointment
either. Granted all that. However, one must remember
that pleasure is an interval between two pains. Now
this Noble Prize winning scientist is very happy when
he first hears the news, goes to Stockholm, picks up
the Prize, receives all the accolades, attends innumerable
receptions and felicitations etc., and everything looks
absolutely fine. What happens some years later? His
achievement has become old hat, and he no longer receives
the attention and adoration he once got. There are younger
scientists and they now are in the news rather than
him.
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