When we travel by airplane, we sit with some other passengers for an hour or two and then after landing we separate from each other, never to meet again. Therefore we do not take our temporary relationships with the other passengers very seriously, and we do not feel there is anything wrong with completely forgetting about them. We accept this as a normal part of everyday existence. But yet even though our relationship with friends and family is also temporary just like our "airplane relationships", we take these relationships as something eternal. Why is this? This is due to the influence of maya, the illusory energy.

This is the underlying mistake that it makes it impossible for us to taste genuine permanent happiness. We build these castles made of sand failing to see that very soon they will be washed into the sea. We cannot experience genuine happiness by basing it on something that is temporary, because our actual nature is that we are eternal.

If we want actual happiness we must inquire into that which is permanent. We must inquire what is the Absolute Truth. But we live in such a society where practically no one is interested in such things. This was observed by Sripad Shankaracharya as follows:

balasya tavad krida-saktah
tarunas tavad taruni-raktah
vrddhas tavad cinta-magnah
parame brahmani ko 'pi na lagnah

"Children are playing. Young boys are after young girls. And the old men are always in anxiety about what it is be done. Nobody is interested in the Absolute Truth."

There is no reason for us to be the herd mentality of foolishly going along with the mass psychosis. It is wise and expedient for us to see beyond the everyday life of so-called happiness to the real happiness of the spirit-soul in a loving relationship with the Supreme Spirit, Lord Sri Krishna.

We should realize that our relationships in this world are nothing more than "airplane relationships" and should focus our energies on developing a permanent relationship with the Supreme Person.