What is the purpose of life?
To me, the purpose of life is to be happy. Whatever country or society people live in, they all have the same deep desire: to become happy. Yet, there are few ideals as difficult to grasp as that of happiness. In our daily life we constantly experience happiness and unhappiness, but we are still quite ignorant as to what happiness really is.
I once spent a long time trying to work out what happiness was, particularly happiness for women. When I first thought about happiness, I saw it as a matter of becoming financially secure or getting married. (The view in Japanese society then was that happiness for a woman was only to be found in marriage.) But looking at friends who were married or attached, I realized that marriage or being in a relationship didn't necessarily guarantee happiness. It became more blatant and also became an uncommon sight.
I saw couples who had been passionately in love suffering from discord soon after their wedding or relationships. I saw women who had married men with money or status but who fought constantly with their husbands. Gradually, I realized that the secret of happiness lay in building a strong inner self that no trial or hardship could ruin. I saw that happiness for anyone - man or woman - does not come simply from having a formal education, from wealth or from marriage. It begins with having the strength to confront and conquer one's own weaknesses. Only then does it become possible to lead a truly happy life and enjoy a successful marriage or relationship.
I finally got the answer, "Now I can say with confidence that happiness doesn't exist in the past or in the future. It only exists within our state of life right now, here in the present, as we face the challenges of daily life."
I myself know best whether I am feeling joy or struggling with suffering. These things are not known to other people. Even a man who has great wealth, social recognition and many awards may still be shadowed by indescribable suffering deep in his heart. On the other hand, an elderly woman who is not fortunate financially, leading a simple life alone, may feel the sun of joy and happiness rising in her heart each day. :)
Happiness is not a life without problems, but rather the strength to overcome the problems that come our way. There is no such thing as a problem-free life; difficulties are unavoidable. But how we experience and react to our problems depends on us. Christianity teaches that we are each responsible for our own happiness or unhappiness. Our vitality - the amount of energy or "life-force" we have - is in fact the single most important factor in determining whether or not we are happy.
True happiness is to be found within, in the state of our hearts. It does not exist on the far side of some distant mountains. It is within me, myself. However much I try, I can never run away from myself. And if I am weak, suffering will follow me wherever I go. I will never find happiness if I don't challenge my weaknesses and change myself from within.
Happiness is to be found in the dynamism and energy of my own life as I struggle to overcome one obstacle after another. This is why I believe that a person who is active and free from fear is truly happy.
The challenges we face in life can be compared to a tall mountain, rising before a mountain climber. For someone who has not trained properly, whose muscles and reflexes are weak and slow, every inch of the climb will be filled with terror and pain. The exact same climb, however, will be a thrilling journey for someone who is prepared, whose legs and arms have been strengthened by constant training. With each step forward and up, beautiful new views will come into sight.
My teacher used to talk about two kinds of happiness - "relative" and "absolute" happiness. Relative happiness is happiness that depends on things outside ourselves: friends and family, surroundings, the size of our home or family income. Wow, i actually remembered her words.
This is what we feel when a desire is fulfilled, or something we have longed for is obtained. While the happiness such things bring us is certainly real, the fact is that none of this lasts forever. Things change. People change. This kind of happiness shatters easily when external conditions alter....
Relative happiness is also based on comparison with others. We may feel this kind of happiness at having a newer or bigger home than the neighbors. But that feeling turns to misery the moment they start making new additions to theirs!
Absolute happiness, on the other hand, is something we must find within. It means establishing a state of life in which we are never defeated by trials and where just being alive is a source of great joy. This persists no matter what we might be lacking, or what might happen around us. A deep sense of joy is something which can only exist in the innermost reaches of our life, and which cannot be destroyed by any external forces. It is eternal and inexhaustible.
This kind of satisfaction is to be found in consistent and repeated effort, so that we can say, "Today, again, I did my very best. Today, again, I have no regrets. Today, again, I won." The accumulated result of such efforts is a life of great victory.
What we should compare is not ourselves against others. We should compare who we are today against who we were yesterday, who we are today against who we will be tomorrow. While this may seem simple and obvious, true happiness is found in a life of constant advancement. And the same worries that could have made us miserable can actually be a source of growth when we approach them with courage and wisdom.
A person with a vast heart is happy.
Such a person lives each day with a broad and embracing spirit.
A person with a strong will is happy.
Such a person can confidently enjoy life, never defeated by suffering.
A person with a profound spirit is happy.
Such a person can savor life's depths
while creating meaning and value that will last for eternity.
A person with a pure mind is happy.
Such a person is always surrounded by refreshing breezes of joy.
The truth is: I’m really tired, I felt betrayed, I seemed to have no one to trust. I find it hard to find interest in anything I do. Life has become drab and monotonous. It holds little meaning to lead a life dictated by others. I’m tired of putting on a normal face when facing people whom I hate. I’m tired of masking my emotions just to be sensitive. And I’m tired of changing anything. I find it hard to say everything I want to even though it is my blog and I have the rights to rant whatever I want. I am truly disturbed by something which I have learned about not long ago. This raised the urge for me to vent my frustrations on this page.. Unknowingly, I actually typed out so many paragraphs, unknowingly, I have already poured my woes out, unknowingly, the hatred that I nursed against you for a moment gradually wore off. Somehow, this shows that my feelings for you are that strong, somehow, this proves that I am not a person who bear grudges, somehow, I have managed to grasp the understanding of true happiness in my life - not to bear grudges, and let bygones be bygones. Somehow, i realized that I changed, to a much better person, in terms of expressing my feelings and also to hurdle all obstacles... I wanted to tell you what i learned about you so much, not bothering whether it's the truth or just rumours. But I guessed there isn't a need to do so? When time comes, the truth eventually unfolds. When time comes, perhaps, you have already made up your mind and tell me the truth. Will you? x
0 comments:
Post a Comment