Revisiting Happiness....

Here's a blog i wrote some 2 years back.....and well, i believe it has alot of meaning for me, cos for one, i was goin thru a really rough patch with my own heart, my struggles and trying to find happiness and well, reading and self-motivation was one of the ways to go...being a cheerleader! haha..was pretty easy...haha....and well, i in a way, also "prepared" it for someone special...and this someone special is still the someone special and things have made sorta a full circle..and well, things happen for a reason...and im feeling that i want to create this again, for whatever reasons my heart wants me to....to convey to those out there who have yet to find some sort of happiness....i know i have...Secondly, i was led to this happiness through God and His presence and thats why i want to share this Love and happiness with those around me who I love so dearly....

Monday, March 06, 2006

Happiness..

Anne Frank:

The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature.

Happiness is a state of mind, therefore the real source of happiness lies in the mind, not in external circumstances.If our mind is pure and peaceful we shall be happy, regardless of our external conditions, but if it is impure and unpeaceful we shall never find happiness, no matter how much we try to change our external circumstances.

Sufferings, problems, worries, unhappiness, and pain all exist within our mind; they are all unpleasant feelings, which are part of the mind. Through controlling and purifying our mind we can stop them once and for all.

We are faced with a choice: either we can continue to squander our life in pursuing worldly enjoyments that give no real and long term satisfaction and disappear when we die, or we can dedicate our life to realizing our full spiritual potential.

All we need to do is change the object of our cherishing.If we learn to cherish all beings more than ourself we shall soon enjoy the bliss of enlightenment.

Our instinctive view is that we are more important than everyone else, whereas the view of all enlightened beings is that it is others who are more important.

Which of these views is more beneficial?In life after life, since beginningless time, we have been slaves to our self-cherishing mind. We have trusted it implicitly and obeyed its every command, believing that the way to solve our problems and find happiness is to put ourself before everyone else. We have worked so hard and for so long for our own sake, but what do we have to show for it?Have we solved all our problems and found the lasting happiness we desire?

No. It is clear that pursuing our own selfish interests has deceived us. After having indulged our self-cherishing for so many lives, now is the time to realize that it simply does not work. Now is the time to switch the object of our cherishing from ourself to all living beings.

Countless enlightened beings have discovered that by abandoning self-cherishing and cherishing only others they came to experience true peace and happiness.

We cannot expect to change our mind overnight, but through patiently and consistently practicing on cherishing others, we can gradually replace our ordinary self-cherishing attitude with the sublime attitude of cherishing all living beings.

Think about it, have you ever felt terrible doing something for someone and making that someone happy? I highly doubt so...you'd feel good...well, yeah, maybe you might grumble and complain while youre doin so...but just take a moment and pause...im sure you feel a tad bit happy..maybe if this person returned your kindess you'd be happier, but then again, we need not expect anything in return now do we...if you do it whole-heartedly for someone, you'd feel happy...You make him smile, your heart smiles too...

This is Happiness that is intangible and i guess it shows us first, the the purpose in life that then only bring meaning in living this life...being of service to others...Don't be afraid of reality..some of you might think that you don't even fear reality...you might even be in denial...sub-consciously, you don't want to face reality cos you have little control over it...and you fear it...maybe you might still be thinking, nah.."its not it"...

well, if you see how simple reality is, you might just see how clear life can be...and you might even respond more effectively, and see how easy it can be... It's the way we make sense of the world....Its a matter of choice...try it..if you think you dont enjoy helping others or other living creatures, then I advise you to pray for Gods forgiveness and pray that he will help you find a solution for your happiness...Put yourself before others and think of others more but also Remember to not forget ourselves entirely...Give love, and love will be returned to you in time...patience my child...

HH the Dalai LamaConsider the following.

We humans are social beings. We come into the world as the result of others' actions. We survive here in dependence on others. Whether we like it or not, there is hardly a moment of our lives when we do not benefit from others' activities. For this reason it is hardly surprising that most of our happiness arises in the context of our relationships with others.Nor is it so remarkable that our greatest joy should come when we are motivated by concern for others. But that is not all. We find that not only do altruistic actions bring about happiness but they also lessen our experience of suffering. Here I am not suggesting that the individual whose actions are motivated by the wish to bring others' happiness necessarily meets with less misfortune than the one who does not. Sickness, old age, mishaps of one sort or another are the same for us all. But the sufferings which undermine our internal peace -- anxiety, doubt, disappointment -- these things are definitely less. In our concern for others, we worry less about ourselves. When we worry less about ourselves an experience of our own suffering is less intense.

What does this tell us? Firstly, because our every action has a universal dimension, a potential impact on others' happiness, ethics are necessary as a means to ensure that we do not harm others. Secondly, it tells us that genuine happiness consists in those spiritual qualities of love, compassion, patience, tolerance and forgiveness and so on. For it is these which provide both for our happiness and others' happiness. [Ethics for a New Millennium, by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama]After reading this, it has made me more sure of what the purpose of life is and why things are the way they are...being someone who is given the responsibility to reach out to the young, it gives me great honour to really do what i m supposed to do...though its a challenging task that has been paved for me, I will continue to pray for strength, courage and perserverance and ask the Lord to guide my path and always be with me when I need Him the most and to pick me up when i feel discouraged...These three paragraphs really do mean alot and has made alot of sense to me personally and professionally...and its a confirmation and an affirmation for myself and my purpose...Help me to see You always...Thank you Lord for You and the beauty of all things...I appreciate you...Albert SchweitzerI don't know what your destiny will be, but one thing I do know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.

posted by M@liNgPe@s at Monday, March 06, 2006