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All of these sources seem to touch upon the concept that there is only one true source of happiness in the world. I think this idea is incorrect because of how we are constantly happy throughout life because of many factors. I mean no one is ever happy only because of acing their test, but they are happy about the acknowledgement of their peers and the rise in their grade that test will bring.

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"So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past" (Fitzgerald 180). I remember how Mrs. Wilson noted that most American Literature tends to be depressing. Why is this? We are usually known as the land of dreams, the golden standard, but our authors choose to discuss only the most depressing of topics. We as a country are seen as the standard of happiness, yet we ourselves don't know how to truly stay happy. The people of America are much too familiar with the feeling of utter defeat, as we have forgotten what it means to be satisfied with what we have. We encourage our people to have ambition to improve their situations, but what if we don't need to improve our external situation, but improve our internal situation? People in high school already know many people that are clinically depressed, which is why we are so focused on attaining happiness. However, can we truly be happy, when we know our fellow humans and citizens are suffering from crippling depression?

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Why is it that most of our experts on happiness are usually Buddhist? Have we come to associate happiness with Buddhist ideals? I think the reason we naturally gravitate to Buddhist ideals is because they are more closely related to our existence on this mortal plane. Most of the other religions in the world deal with an abstract concept of there being an all-mighty power looking out for us. I don't think that the idea of there being an omnipotent and omniscient force being out there is rubbish, but I think that the way these religions choose to represent these powers tends to alienate people because of how distant God seems to be in almost all of them. We always choose to do good things in his name, but we never truly know if he ever receives our thanks and appreciation. I think that proving ourselves through our actions by walking on the path of Buddhism is the better way to prove our humanity rather than reciting flowery verses in the hopes God will receive them.

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"There is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way." This quote by Thich Nhat Hanh embodies a way of thinking many people around the world have adopted. We have collectively decided that the journey is more important than the end, but where did this idea come from? Why did we choose to appreciate the path rather than the goal we are striving towards? If we follow this way to live life, then we soon realize that according to this philosophy, there is nothing worse than not having a path to follow in life. I don't this this is always necessarily true, though, because I believe that there is nothing worse than living life knowing that you may not have a real reason for existing. Think about it. Almost all of the stories we write have to do with the desperation that comes with loneliness. Does this mean we naturally need other people to be truly happy? What about all of the monks that live in isolation? They still look very happy with their lives. Personally, I believe that in order to truly be happy, we must learn how to balance our need for acceptance and conformity with the need for inner peace and self-love.

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The image below is an image that almost all of us have seen at one point in our lives. Why is it that we are so obsessed over happiness, when the majority of the people in our society are unhappy? The image makes me think about how the yellow ball is happy when there is so much unhappiness around him. For example, whenever I come to school in the morning, I am almost always content, yet watching my peers be so unhappy/energy less also makes me feel bad for them. It also makes me wonder if there is something wrong with me since almost everyone I know had something they want, while I am content with all I have right now. Should I try to ignore the unhappiness around me? I don't believe so, because I think happiness is an emotion that is most powerful when you have multiple people to share it with.

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Most people think of happiness as being the ultimate goal of a human, but what if this wasn't the case? What if we weren't meant to be happy, but actually live our lives in contentment? According to the authors of a study, "Happiness without meaning characterizes a relatively shallow, self-absorbed or even selfish life, in which things go well, needs and desire are easily satisfied, and difficult or taxing entanglements are avoided" (Smith). Happiness is supposed to be the ultimate joy, the holy grail of life, however, the authors of the study say that pure happiness takes other people's happiness away. We should choose to instead live our lives meaningfully, which would not only make us satisfied, but it would also add to other people's contentment. After all, almost every single religion in the world lists desire and greed as a terrible sin.

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priyaswtc/Flickr

For at least the last decade, the happiness craze has been building. In the last three months alone, over 1,000 books on happiness were released on Amazon, including Happy Money, Happy-People-Pills For All, and, for those just starting out, Happiness for Beginners.

One of the consistent claims of books like these is that happiness is associated with all sorts of good life outcomes, including - most promisingly - good health. Many studies have noted the connection between a happy mind and a healthy body - the happier you are, the better health outcomes we seem to have. In a meta-analysis (overview) of 150 studies on this topic, researchers put it like this: "Inductions of well-being lead to healthy functioning, and inductions of ill-being lead to compromised health."
Being happy is about feeling good. Meaning is derived from contributing to others or to society in a bigger way.
But a new study, just published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) challenges the rosy picture. Happiness may not be as good for the body as researchers thought. It might even be bad.

Of course, it's important to first define happiness. A few months ago, I wrote a piece called " There's More to Life Than Being Happy" about a psychology study that dug into what happiness really means to people. It specifically explored the difference between a meaningful life and a happy life.

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For at least the last decade, the happiness craze has been building. In the last three months alone, over 1,000 books on happiness were released on Amazon, including Happy Money, Happy-People-Pills For All, and, for those just starting out, Happiness for Beginners.

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I think the idea Shah Rukh Khan brings up when he talks about how important it is to love in a world that is plagued by unhappiness and cruelty is a very important topic. We are currently living in a world where we are always thinking about how we can be happy and what our purpose in life is. By choosing to love others, you are opening your heart to the entire world, good and bad, which allows you to see what is the true nature of the world. This world we live in is only one in a vast cosmic sea, and perhaps the only one we will ever know. Because of this, choosing to love instead of hating makes the only world we can live in a brighter and more beautiful place that future generations will take care of.

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Shah Rukh Khan: Thoughts on humanity, fame and love

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"I sell dreams, and I peddle love to millions of people," says Shah Rukh Khan, Bollywood's biggest star. In this charming, funny talk, Khan traces the arc of his life, showcases a few of his famous dance moves and shares hard-earned wisdom from a life spent in the spotlight.

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Matthieu Ricard: The habits of happiness

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What is happiness, and how can we all get some? Biochemist turned Buddhist monk Matthieu Ricard says we can train our minds in habits of well-being, to generate a true sense of serenity and fulfillment.