DALAI LAMA
The purpose of our life needs to be positive. We weren’t born with the purpose of causing trouble, harming others. For our life to be of value, I think we must develop basic good human qualities- warmth, kindness, compassion. Then our life becomes more meaningful and more peaceful– happier.
When we feel love and kindness toward others, it not only makes others feel loved and cared for, but it helps us also to develop inner happiness and peace.
Although I personally believe that our human nature is fundamentally gentle and compassionate, I feel it is not enough that this is our underlying nature; we must also develop an appreciation and awareness of that fact.
If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.
Consider 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.
Happiness is determined more by the state of one’s mind than by one’s external conditions, circumstances or events- at least once one’s basic survival needs are met.
Happiness can be achieved through the systematic training of our hearts and minds, through reshaping our attitudes and outlook.
As long as there is a lack of the inner discipline that brings calmness of mind, no matter what external facilities or conditions you have, they will never give you the feeling of joy and happiness that you are seeking. On the other hand, if you possess this inner quality, a calmness of mind, a degree of stability within, then even if you lack various external facilities that you would normally consider necessary for happiness, it is still possible to live a happy and joyful life.
If you wish to overcome that feeling of isolation and loneliness, I think your underlying attitude makes a tremendous difference. And approaching others with the thought of compassion in your mind is the best way to do this.
My basic belief is that you first need to understand the usefulness of compassion. That’s the key factor. Once you realize the usefulness of compassion, you immediately develop an attraction towards it, a willingness to cultivate it.
Within all beings there is a seed of perfection. However, compassion is required to activate that seed which is in our hearts and minds.
Despite the fact that the process of relating to others might involve hardship, quarrels, and cursing, we have to maintain an attitude of friendship and warmth in order to lead a way of life in which there is enough interaction with people to enjoy a happy life.
The reason why reflection of suffering is so important is because there is a possibility of a way out. There is a possibility of freedom from suffering. According to Buddhist thought, the root causes of suffering are ignorance, craving and hatred. By generating insight into the true nature of reality and eliminating afflictive states of mind such as craving and hatred, one can achieve a completely purified state of mind, free from suffering.
We often add to our pain and suffering by being overly sensitive, over-reacting to minor things and sometimes taking things too personally.
I think to a large extent whether you suffer depends on how you respond to a given situation.
There may be a variety of ways that one might deal with the feeling that one’s suffering is unfair. I’ve already spoken of the importance of accepting suffering as a natural fact of human existence. In general, if we carefully examine any given situation in a very unbiased and honest way, we will realize that to a large extent we are also responsible to the unfolding of events.
ALBERT SCHWEITZER
Success is not the key to happiness.
Happiness is the key to success.
If you love what you do, you will be successful.
WOODY ALLAN
The talent for being happy is appreciating and liking what you have, instead of what you don’t have.
BERTRAND RUSSEL
The good life, as I conceive it, is a happy life.
I do not mean that if you are good you will be happy;
I mean that if you are happy you will be good.
ALBERT EINSTEIN
If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.
SHAWN ACHOR (GOOD THINK INC)
Happiness fuels success, not the other way around.
When we are positive, our brains become more engaged, creative, motivated, energetic, resilient, and productive at work.
This discovery has been repeatedly borne out by rigorous research in psychology and neuroscience, management studies, and the bottom lines of organizations around the globe.
