An intriguing question that everybody asks themselves at least once in their lifetime. Of course, we could debate about philosophical questions, such as: What is happiness? Is happiness temporary or is it just a moment filled with bliss and euphoria? Is happiness something more than just a result of hormones and biochemical processes within our bodies?
Happiness is subjective, meaning, everyone perceives it differently. Every feeling we experience is subjective and comes in all forms, shapes and sizes. Sometimes, it may be hard to describe the way we feel, however, I’m sure everyone can pinpoint a memory they have that radiates happiness. I’m sure many of you can tell why you felt happy at that moment and for those who don’t, does it really matter? Isn’t the fact, that being happy makes you feel good, enough?
Let’s not burden ourselves with these philosophical questions, shall we? Let’s skip to the part that will tell us where and when we can obtain this euphoric state of mind.
Setting your goals and reaching them is an amazing quality that can bring out a feeling of joy and happiness. Your plans may not always work out and you may find yourself in a place, where you directed everything you had into a specific goal, yet, your everything wasn’t enough. And that’s completely okay. Everyone has different attributes and ambitions to themselves and sometimes what you want is not what you need and your goal is simply not meant to be achieved (by you). Trust me when I tell you, there is an activity out there that you’re good at. Your achievements in an activity you genuinely enjoy doing can make you happy, or even just the thought of your goals can bring you a great amount of happiness.
Nevertheless, not everybody has a personality and/or character that allows them to dream big and work hard for their goals. And as I’ve already mentioned, even the people who have great ambitions face difficulties on their journey.
You may be desperately chasing after your dreams and goals. As it seems, you’re never fully able to reach them. After a while of chasing, you look back and it seems like you have accomplished nothing. You might have been chasing for days, weeks, years even. All this time, have you felt anxious, depressed, angry because IT (= the happiness obtained when accomplishing stg) was missing? Was there something missing? Maybe you haven’t felt exactly happy but did you feel sad? Or maybe you didn’t feel anything...
(I am going to insert a story from one of my favourite books. The book itself is well-worth reading if you are feeling lost. I dearly recommend it to everyone and anyone. This part of the book is my favourite…)
CAN YOU HEAR THE MOUNTAIN STREAM?
A Zen Master was walking in silence with one of his disciples along a mountain trail. When they came to an ancient cedar tree, they sat down under it for a simple meal of some rice and vegetables. After the meal, the disciple, a young monk who had not yet found the key to the mystery of Zen, broke the silence by asking the Master, “Master, how do I enter Zen?”
He was, of course, inquiring how to enter the state of consciousness which is Zen.
The Master remained silent. Almost five minutes passed while the disciple anxiously waited for an answer. He was about to ask another question when the Master suddenly spoke. “Do you hear the sound of that mountain stream?”
The disciple had not been aware of any mountain stream. He had been too busy thinking about the meaning of Zen. Now as he began to listen for the sound, his noisy mind subsided. At first, he heard nothing. Then, his thinking gave way to heightened alertness, and suddenly he did hear the hardly perceptible murmur of a small stream in the far distance.
“Yes, I can hear it now,” he said.
The master raised his finger and, with a look in his eyes that in some way was both fierce and gentle, said, “Enter Zen from there.”
The disciple was stunned. It was his first satori – a flash of enlightenment. He knew what Zen was without knowing what it was that he knew!
They continued on their journey in silence. The disciple was amazed at the aliveness of the world around him. He experienced everything as if for the first time. Gradually, however, he started thinking again. The alert stillness became covered up again by mental noise, and before long he had another question. “Master,” he said, “I have been thinking. What would you have said if I hadn't been able to hear the mountain stream?” The master stopped, looked at him, raised his finger and said, “Enter Zen from there.”
- A New Earth, Eckhart Tolle