What is Real Happiness?

Majority of us are disappointed in our lives because we failed in something, or we don’t have the same package that our neighbors have, or our children don’t listen to us, or we are undergoing depression in life, or we broke up in the relationship. There are many things that happen in the life that disappoints us, don’t allow us to experience a happy life completely. If you analyze all this people or reasons it boils down to one point that is such people don’t have a major purpose in their life. A purpose that excites them enough, a purpose that gets them out of bed every day. A purpose that motivates them to look forward and not backward. A purpose that gives hope instead of resentment.

If you look at the life of great Maratha warrior Chattrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the purpose of his life was to overthrow the Mughal empire and build the Swaraj kingdom. Only in the span of 50 years of his life, he has unmatched achievements in the number of forts he won and so many people. What do you think he never got reasons to be disappointed in his life? Have people not cheated him? Has he not faced difficulties in his life? Was the path to pave Swaraj so easy for him? Not at all! He could walk all the paths because he was driven by the purpose of his life. His vision was so compelling that all the reasons to be disappointed in life faded away in the eyes of his vision. Even if you look at Iron lady Sindhutai Sapkal, she has gone through many rough patches in her life, but because of her purpose, she is leading and living a meaningful life. She has adopted more than 1300 kids so far and given her name to them. She could outshine and overcome bad memories of the past because she has a meaningful purpose in life to look for.

People who have vision or purpose in life always look forward and hope for the best future and are often optimistic, their measure of happiness is hope in the future. Whereas people who don’t have a purpose in life often look at the past and get disappointed. Because their measure of happiness is experiences of the past. If it wasn’t golden enough then they are disappointed. And the cycle of disappointments continues. This is what distinguishes Happy people with unhappy people. Always remember that past is never equal to the future. That’s the wrong equation altogether.

Now there are 3 types of purpose in life, the purpose that makes you happy instantly like eating chocolate, or eating pizza, that gives you short term happiness. It is called pleasure. The quickly it gets, that quickly it is over. The second type of happiness is having a passion for something. You may be passionate about some sports, some cars may be some project or some art. It stays for some longer time as compare to pleasure happiness. And the third level of passion is where you are having some purpose in life. This is lasting happiness, where the purpose of your life is bigger than you. Here one enjoys the journey more than the destination. So it all depends upon the type of happiness quotient you choose for yourself determines the quality of life.

It’s when stones in your journey don’t become an obstacle instead it becomes the stepping stone then you start enjoying every moment and journey of your life. In order to make life a celebration of the everyday, be bided by the purpose that is bigger than you. Happy people are the people with Purpose in life.