How do you define Happiness?

There are various ways to define happiness.

The most obvious definition is the Oxford Dictionary definition:

“the state of feeling or showing pleasure”

This definition is quite vague but it gives us a general impression of the usual definition of the word. Although this is clear, it is not clear what type of happiness we are referring to. You can have short-term happiness, long-term happiness, material happiness, and real happiness.

Short-term happiness is very short-lived and can often lead to disappointment after the period of happiness is over and a craving for more of whatever caused this happiness. One example would be food. While we are eating the food, we gain happiness, whereas after we have finished eating, we are disappointed to find our bowl empty and therefore we crave more food. Another example would be television. We only gain happiness when watching the television but after the television program is finished we are disappointed that it is over and want to watch another episode.

Long-term happiness lasts and can be more fulfilling. Long-term happiness does not lead to disappointment as it never goes away. This leaves us craving for more, but this time in a positive way, as the ways to attain long-term happiness all have positive effects for us and for others. One example is helping others. We feel fulfilled by this and this helps us in terms of our levels of happiness and also has positive effects for others. If we volunteer in a charity shop, we feel like we are making a positive contribution to society while also helping others through charity.

Material happiness is short-term. It consists of anything to do with money, food, possessions, or entertainment.

Real happiness is long-term. Again, it can be gained through helping others, but the most permanent way to get this, which can lead to happiness lasting through many lifetimes, is through self-realization. We are a Soul, and once we realize this, we can distance ourselves from the troubles of the world and we can attain complete happiness. We can also understand that, if anybody is unpleasant to us, it is only the effect of events in our past lives and that that exchange will now be closed if we don’t react. As Param Pujya Dada Bhagwan says, the ‘Absence of Kashays (anger-pride-deceit-greed) is indeed bliss.’

Another way to attain this is to get yourself rid of all greed. That way, you will always be satisfied with what you have and you will not be saddened by the fact that you do not have what you crave. One example would be if you had an iPhone 6, and then upgraded to an iPhone 7. Shortly after you bought the phone, the iPhone 8 came out. Because of greed, instead of enjoying your new phone, you would be fixated on the fact that you want the iPhone 8.

You can also attain real happiness by giving way to others and adjusting to their needs. For example, if you are at work, and are due to take a holiday within the next few days and have nothing planned, but one of your colleagues desperately needs that holiday, if you swapped holidays, that small adjustment would benefit the other person but also make you feel extremely happy as you have helped the other person. As Param Pujya Dada Bhagwan had said, ‘As much 'sarad' (flexible and straightforward) as you will be; that much 'samadhi' (bliss) will prevail within you.’

So, to summarize, to gain long-lasting and complete happiness, one needs to adjust, not to be greedy, and, most importantly, to gain the realization that ‘I am a Soul’ and not the physical body.