Inspiration from Thich Nhat Hanh
May 24, 2009
Each of us has a notion of how we can be happy. It would be very helpful if we took the time to reconsider our notions of happiness. We could make a list of what we think we need to be happy: “I can only be happy if…” Write down the things you want and the things you do not want. Where did these ideas come from? Are they reality? Or are they only your notions? If you are committed to a particular notion of happiness, you do not have much chance to be happy.
Happiness arrives from many directions. If you have a notion that it comes only from one direction, you will miss all of these other opportunities because you want happiness to come only from the direction you want. You say, “I would rather die than marry anyone but her. I would rather die than lose my job, my reputation. I cannot be happy if I don’t get that degree or that promotion or that house.” You have put many conditions on your happiness. And then, even if you do have all your conditions met, you still won’t be happy. You will just keep creating new conditions for your happiness. You will still want the higher degree, the better job and the more beautiful house.
A government can also believe that they know the only way to make a nation prosper and be happy. That government and nation may commit itself to that ideology for one hundred years or more. During that time its citizens can suffer so much. Anyone who disagrees or dares to speak against the government’s ideas will be locked up. They might even be considered insane. You can transform your nation into a prison because you are committed to an ideology.
Please remember that your notions of happiness may be very dangerous. The Buddha said happiness can only be possible in the here and now. So go back and examine deeply your notions and ideas of happiness. You may recognize that the conditions of happiness that are already there in your life are enough.Â
Then happiness can be instantly yours.
Passage Taken From: No Death, No Fear
Have you put conditions on your happiness? Are you taking your current blessings for granted while you wait for something different to happen? If you really tried, could you be happy right now, today?
Related posts:
Posted in inspirational quotes
content rss
Lisis, you are so right!
“Happiness arrives from many directions.”
You need relationships, but you don’t need a particular relationship. You need a job or career but you don’t need a particular job or a career. You need growth, but you don’t need a particular path.
I used to have very strong beliefs about what made me happy. I did exactly what you said. I shut myself off from the ability to be happy in other ways. When I finally decided to stop and smell the roses and experiment with living a little, I found a whole new world opened up to me. I found that happiness does indeed “arrive from many directions”.
Well done and thanks!
Stephen – Rat Race Trap’s latest post… Blow the Lid Off Yourself by Thinking Big
Hey Lisis!
Great post. Regarding the ending about telling people to not to take things for granted, I really agree with this. We hear it all the time don’t we “appreciate what you have in life” and so on. I think it’s a great idea to make a list of all the things that are great in your life and actually look over it each day instead of just reading a post like this and moving on.
P.S. I like your header, it’s much better smaller
Glen Allsopp’s latest post… Personal Development Face-Off: Round #7
Thanks for the great reminder, Lisis! It’s true that so much of our unhappiness comes from the feeling that we have to have *this* job, or *this* relationship, or *this* house in *this* town. If we can let go of the need to dictate the specifics, happiness can find us from unexpected directions.
Jay Schryer’s latest post… Under Pressure
Good morning, guys! Happy Sunday! Glen you are absolutely right that it is important to learn about great life lessons but then go out and actually apply them to your life. That’s where this one gets difficult. It’s easy to recite the soundbytes, “Happiness lies within,” or, “Be thankful for what you have now,” or,”You don’t know what you have until it’s gone.” But it is so tough to really appreciate what you have now without complaint.
Part of the problem, I think, is we then feel like we aren’t aspiring to anything… like we are settling for less. But the trick is to continue to have hope, continue to dream, continue to aspire to great and wonderful things (and even take steps in those directions) but still be content where you are NOW. Don’t postpone your happiness UNTIL that day… be happy now, AND then.
=-)
Such a great, wonderful, uplifting, inspiring post. Thank you for this! Happiness is everywhere if we just look for it. Live in the moment and realize that you can be happy in this — and every — moment.
Positively Present’s latest post… things to make (other than money)
Hello ,
Gr8 post to begin with as this my first visit to your blog .Yes happiness has lot to do in the present and not in the past or the future ..
Rather its amazes me that in the whole animal kingdom we are the only luck and unlucky both that have this gift of knowing the past and wondering of the future , With this gift we either stay in the past and ruin our future . All the other animals use and stay only in the present and thus always are happy .We need to learn from them for sure
Regards
Sudeep
Sudeep’s latest post… Ayurveda and Vegetarian : Myth or a Fact!!
Thank you, Sudeep! And welcome to Quest for Balance. I hope to see you around here often. You bring up a great point, that it is both lucky and unlucky (a blessing and a curse) that we are aware of our past and concerned for our future. If we could only learn to look upon those with patience and non-judgment, our present would be filled with inner peace.
I really appreciate you leaving a comment on your first visit here!
Hi Lisis,
Thich Nhat Hahn rocks. The man is 83 years old and looks half his age. After spending so much time with Buddhist monks, you come to realize that they are trained to see the world and life from such a completely different angle. The passage you shared with all of us is a perfect example of that. Reading this passage also made me realize how fortunate I have been for the experiences I have had. Thank you for that!
Hope you have an awesome Sunday!
Nadia-HappyLotus’s latest post… Happy News (May 24, 2009)
Lisis,
I’ve read two books by Thich Nhat Hanh and enjoyed them both. I agree that happiness comes from appreciating the present.
It also helps to let go of your ego – I, me, and my. I just became a member of a Buddhist Zen center and met with my Sensei. He advised me to stop reading Buddhist books for now because they just lead to more thought and ego. He advised me to meditate more instead.
Roger – A Content Life’s latest post… 12 Happiness Activities – Part 1
You are so welcome, Nadia. Happy Sunday to you, too!
Roger, you bring up a good point in your comment: I think many people see that others are happy (for instance, Buddhists) and try to become like them. They read about them, study their teachings, adopt their traditions. But I think this is a mistake. The Dalai Lama would be the first to advise that we don’t need to become Buddhist (or anything else) to be happy. There is much to be learned from all the spiritual and philosophical traditions. But in the end, it comes down to what is already in you, and it cannot be found in any more books. At some point, we just have to quiet the noise, remove the distractions and look within… deep within. The answer has always been there.
Sounds like you are in good hands with this Sensei, and well on your way with your meditation experiments.
[...] This post was Twitted by tlbclements – Real-url.org [...]