Can one live a life without happiness?
They live in a place where there is no proper food, shelter or clothing. Mother Nature takes care of them in terms of food and water supply. They do not have any sense of ownership. These are Bushmen of Kalahari desert.
Just 600 miles to the south there is a vast city. People here are trained to follow a routine. They get up forcefully by a noise making device. They get ready to reach a place on time. It happens like they are computer and are programmed to do all the tasks in the same sequence every day. They have two days of downtime when their behavior goes haywire. Still most of the times there is pattern during the downtime too.
The above summary is the taken from the movie "Gods must be crazy - 1". This is how the movie starts. By comparing the two lives. It is quite easy to determine which group is happy if you see the movie. You can check the video below. (note – video has frontal nudity, Bushmen don’t wear cloths)
If you ask me whether I can live life without happiness, my answer would be a big NO. I like happiness.
But I do not like unhappiness. It is my best friend too. It pushes me. It brings me out of the situations which were not good for me. It is my saviour.
At any given moment I can be happy as well as unhappy. It is difficult for me to choose.
There are so many people who have abundance. I wish I could be one of them.
There are so many who are unfortunate. I am better than them. Maybe I can help a few.
Sometimes I choose to be happy. Sometimes I choose to be unhappy.
My choice.
I can't live without both of them.
the pursuit of happyness is a must watch movie, i enjoy it a lot, your question is so difficult to answer, I do not think it matters much my opinion, it matters more what you think 8]
It is just something to think about. With this post I tried to present a view that being happy or unhappy can be in our control. What is required is some perspective. I love that video I shared above. That is a great comedy on our modern living.
Let me ask you this question. If I offer you a pile of money, 1 gazillion dollars and promise you that from now on, you will not have the shadow of happiness in your life, or I offer you all the happiness in the world, but assure you will not have a penny for the rest of your life, which proposition will you choose ????
Both are difficult positions. That is why I concluded that I need both happiness as well as unhappiness to live. The position of money will give me power to share it to others and they might get happy because of it. The chances are high that in turn I may become happy too. Without money I am not trained to live. But if you see the video above you will conclude that penny is not associated with feeling of happiness.
Thanks for the comment
Yes my friend, money is a mean to an end. If you look closely at the matter, happiness is the ultimate destination, everyone wants to be there and draw a plan to get to that destination. By the way of the sage is beyond happiness and sorrow, it is in detachment.
Interesting point. That is what I wanted to convey with this post. As per my opinion happiness is not a destination. Happiness is a process. When I am travelling in public transport and a cute baby is looking at me. I try to make a face to amuse that baby and then,
then the baby gives a cute smile. That moment for me is happiness. A friend telling me that because of my help he was able to achieve something. That moment for me is happiness.
Having a friendly debate with you on this platform. Happiness.
And yes, the sage who gets to the ultimate truth for him they both don't matter as you rightly pointed out.
Nice way of seeing it, grasping the moment, and living happiness as it comes. May be my analogy of happiness being a destination is the real way to sorrow, and that ceasing the moment is more wise. I do believe that looking in the future and always delaying being happy until such and such conditions are fulfilled lead to frustration and misery, but breaking of that thought pattern is harder that it seems