What is true Happiness?

I sometimes hesitate when I use the word "happiness" on Always Well Within. I don't want to give the wrong impression.

"Happiness" can easily be taken to mean a state of constant joy and bliss. Or organizing the externals of your life so that everything runs perfectly. Then there's the idea of focusing on attracting only the positive into your life.

That's not what I mean by happiness at all. So I often use the word "true" or "genuine" to modify happiness and thus hint at a deeper meaning.

When we take a moment to look at those around us, we can see that the simple wish to be happy and to avoid suffering is the common denominator that unites us all.

Looking at the world today, we might easily forget that the main purpose of our life - you could call it the heart of being human - is to be happy. All of us share the same wish, and the same right, to seek happiness and avoid suffering. Even following a spiritual path, or the religious life, is a quest for happiness. - Sogyal Rinpoche

But often we confuse happiness with a momentary state of pleasure or passing feeling of joy. We look to experiences or material possession to bring us satisfaction. While this is sometimes the case, the sense of pleasure is never long lasting.

For example, I enjoy my new Kindle tremendously, but I can assure you it's not the source of true happiness. When it runs out of juice, it quickly becomes the source of minor irritation. Likewise, when I'm unable to access the internet to purchase a book. Should it break or wear out - as all material things do - I will feel disgruntled.

The same thing with a sumptuous meal. It might delight for awhile, but it doesn't lead to a deeper happiness. It may even cause indigestion.

Let's not even talk about relationships, which are typically fraught with ups and downs, and are, by their very nature, impermanent.

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English "happy" means feeling or showing pleasure or contentment.

We can immediately eliminate the word "pleasure" good night pictures images from the definition of true happiness. As we have seen, pleasure can never bring a long-lasting sense of happiness and it often brings suffering in its wake.

The word "contentment" contains some of the same meanings as happiness. However, it's also defined as a sense of "ease."

Take a moment to think of someone you know who exudes contentment.

• Don't they seem unruffled by the winds of life?
• Don't they seem to have an inner strength of being?
• A simple wisdom that carries them through all the chaos and drama of life?

This comes far closer to what I mean by true happiness. It's not a momentary feeling of joy, but a perspective and a way of being.