Ending the [Endless] Pursuit of Happiness
A man was sitting in front of a computer scrolling endlessly, scanning his Facebook account. After some time, he felt somewhat depressed and uttered, “They are so lucky to go out of the country for a vacation. If I only have the money, I could do that as well”.
A woman was scanning her Instagram account through her cellphone and she suddenly became depressed when she saw her beautiful friend in a beach on her sexy bikini swimsuit and uttered, “How I wish I am as sexy, beautiful and as successful as she is.”
In ‘our’ generation, the definition of happiness has changed. We are trapped in a concept of happiness that fades in just a second. We have become insatiable; and in the end, greedy. But today, it’s hard to talk about “greed.” For in our time, the word “greed” has also a different definition. We think of greed as a thing that deals only with politicians, businessmen, criminals. This kind of greed that we have in mind is but a few.
Our insatiability has brought us deep in immorality while thinking that we deserve some kind of humane treatment when we are actually living no different life than that of the animals. We have destroyed the world that we live in. We have corrupted the minds of the youth. We bend the truth, that after hearing it, it sounds like a lie or scam.
We can deny it of course, but all of us are actually into or is already in the state of depression as we strive, pursue our so-called peace and happiness. The endless pursuit of happiness is happening in everyone. Even the most powerful and rich ones are in this state. Even the so-called holy and religious people are in this state. Because of the common thing — “desire.”
Loneliness, Emptiness, Purposelessness
In the examples above, one can be affected by a lot of different things and those are just a few. Forbes has this article about Facebook;
The irony of Facebook is by now known to most. The “social” network has been linked to a surprising number of undesirable mental health consequences: Depression, low self-esteem, and bitter jealousy among them. Now, a new study in the Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology finds that not only do Facebook and depressive symptoms go hand-in-hand, but the mediating factor seems to be a well-established psychological phenomenon: “social comparison.” That is, making comparisons, often between our most humdrum moments and our friends “highlight reels” — the vacation montages and cute baby pics — is what links Facebook time and depressive symptoms together. So is it time to cut down on Facebook? Maybe. Or maybe we should just adjust our attitude toward it. — SOURCE
But that is just a very subtle symptom of the problem.
Every day, we hear comparisons. They say this is a bad term because no two people are alike. But we always compare ourselves to others. This is because we are trying to “lord over” everyone. We always have this urge to have the edge. To have something that people would praise or look up to. We want to be in control. And once we fail to have that certain edge or control, we become lonely, empty, depressed; and worse, purposeless.
Anyone who is in this state (and I should say that a lot of us are), need to deal with this problem. One may be advised to go to a psychologist for treatment or to talk to someone. But what good is that if that person in authority is also in the same state? You might be talking to someone who projects himself to be in control but in fact, he himself is also out of control. Someone may advise you to do this and to do that but in the end, you’ll be doing the thing that gives you “happiness” the most and in the end, you’ll still be in the same mess.
The problem with our generation is the lack of people who can honestly help you find real peace and happiness without any hidden agenda.
A company can provide you gadgets that give you “so-called happiness” and edge. After some time, your gadget will be obsolete and you’ll be enticed to buy another one just to be in the trend not thinking about the endless cycle of material gain and environmental destruction. A beauty salon can curl you hair or straighten it, but in the end, your hair goes back to its natural state. An obese woman can go to a body shop and have her fats sucked out but eventually, that body will also go back to its natural state and grow old. You can post sexy or beautiful photos in social media but in the end, you know, and we know, that you still lack something. And then the list goes on…
This is the state that we are in. The state where there is but a “1-Sec-Happiness” for everyone. This kind of happiness that we know gives birth to loneliness, depression, hate and divide.
Is the Pursuit of Happiness Wrong?
Is it wrong for one to pursue happiness? NO. This is natural for everyone. You might wonder;
Why does a smile always look good on a person no matter what kind of physical appearance or emotional state he’s in? Because happiness is natural for every one of us. This is one of our genuine characteristic.
But why are we talking about happiness as if it is something that does not exist in relation to the things that “give us happiness?” It is because those things (fame, power, sexy body, gadgets) are all material. The problem with these “things that give us happiness” in our current state is that these are but by-products of lust or the perverted manifestation of love. We love this, we love that and once we don’t get that, we hate or we feel failure, hopeless. This is not love. This is lust. Love is unconditional and there is no loss in it.
Happiness goes hand-in-hand with Love. Without love, happiness is impossible.
Science cannot explain emotions, what to speak of happiness, love? And since it cannot explain these things, what is the solution that it offers? Temporarily suspend or sedate our mind thinking that it provides you peace. But in fact, it only dulls your own reasoning, your existence.
In a nutshell, we are all finding happiness in the wrong places. This is because we are ignorant of our real essence and nature. We think that we are this material body and that makes us think that supplying the needs of our senses will get us the happiness that we are looking for.
So What Should I Do?
My Teacher has given me this very wonderful knowledge that has been taught for thousands of years from a succession of Bona fide Spiritual Masters. It does not deal with any sectarian belief but instead, this fact is applicable to all living entities. Before one can truly understand life and happiness respectively (to focus on this article’s main topic), he must know his real identity. This is the foundation of this wonderful process of achieving genuine inner peace and happiness.
Who are you? You are not the body. We identify ourselves as the body which results to material desires. Since we think that we are the body, we think that these material things can make us happy. When in fact, we are spiritual in essence. And knowing this fact, we are bound to find happiness in the spiritual aspect. You might be wary of these “spiritual” solutions because a lot of so-called spiritual masters has failed you to find genuine solution to your problem. But today, you are very fortunate to read this article and what it offers to end your (endless) pursuit of happiness.
As I don’t want to end up making you speculate on things or confuse you, I would like to invite you to read the facts and teachings about our real identity in these articles:
1. Discover Deep, Lasting Happiness that Money Can’t Buy
3. Becoming Free from Envy and Frustration
Note: This article promotes well-being by taking shelter in God’s Names. Hence, this article’s foundation is Agape or Bhakti. In relation to sectarian divide, the author of this article is independent from any sectarian organization that may be biased or destroy other’s teachings.
