Happiness is something everyone wants to have. You may be successful and have a lot of money, but without happiness it will be meaningless.
That’s why I’m excited with this month’s theme of Happiness. We will discuss this topic all month long and I’m sure we will learn a lot. But, before we move further, it’s a good idea to get deeper understanding of the word happiness itself. Understanding what happiness is will give us good ground upon which to build our discussions.
Let me start with an official definition. According to Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary, here is the definition of happiness:
- a state of well-being and contentment
- a pleasurable or satisfying experience
This definition is a good starting point and we can dig deeper from it. The best way to do that is to consult some of the greatest minds in history. So I researched what these people say about happiness and found 10 essential definitions. Each of them has deep meaning. Take your time to absorb it.
Here they are:
Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.
Mahatma Gandhi
Happiness is that state of consciousness which proceeds from the achievement of one’s values.
Ayn Rand
Happiness is something that you are and it comes from the way you think.
Wayne Dyer
Happiness is essentially a state of going somewhere, wholeheartedly, one-directionally, without regret or reservation.
William H. Sheldon
Happiness is not a reward – it is a consequence.
Robert Ingersoll
Happiness is different from pleasure. Happiness has something to do with struggling and enduring and accomplishing.
George Sheehan
Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.
Aristotle
Happiness is not something you experience, it’s something you remember.
Oscar Levant
Happiness is not a station you arrive at, but a manner of traveling.
Margaret Lee Runbeck
Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude.
Denis Waitley
All in all, I would say that happiness is a decision. Your happiness is your decision to make. All the quotes above require actions on our part and actions require decisions.
So what do you think?
What is happiness?
This article is part of July 2008 theme: Happiness
Categories: Attitude
[...] Head on over to Life Optimizer and read What is Happiness? 10 Definitions of Happiness. [...]
[...] your definition of happiness? Do you measure it in terms of an experience from the past or something you’ll obtain in the [...]
It’s living every second of this Life with Love and Gratitude.
Hi everyone!
An interesting subject!
“Happiness is the emotional reaction to the performing of actions that brings you closer to what or where you want to be.”
Commander Johnson
For me happiness is where I reach a state where I could say ” Thank I’m a live”
Myself
Wow the question seems so easy when first asked but after thinking on it , seems really deep . I know saddness I know loss I know grief and I know that I used to be happy I just don’t know how to get happy again !!! I guess the formula is different for each person but I know it must include God , a positive outlook , staying connected to those u love , and making an effort in that direction
When you say you use to be happy and you are not now but would like to be it contradicts the meaning of happiness. Unhappiness is the result of not liking the present situation. To be happy is to flow with life accepting what is. Most people say “I use to be happy” because when all of us where young our perception of reality was whimsicle, adventurous and free of our ego. It’s important to know that the decision to be happy can result in happiness at any moment you choose to be happy. The greatest form of happiness that I have found comes from being thankful for whatever you have in the present moment. Start with the little things like a roof over your head and a meal. Many do not have these things. Yet majority of Americans take this for granted. When we become too consumed with things we would rather have we are neglecting to appriciate what we do have and therefore will always live in a “wanting” state of mind. The other thing to remember is that we create our emotions. When you love yourself and love others you feel love. When others “love” you…… you are not experiencing love. You are experiencing yourself accepting the thought that others love you. Then you agree with them saying you are loved so you love yourself. But to love yourself without others approval is far greater than anything!
your definision about happiness was really atractive,i used your passage for my english class object(happiness)
thanks a lot
elahe from Iran
[...] http://www.lifeoptimizer.org/2008/07/03/what-is-happiness-10-definitions-of-happiness/ [...]
sorry,try it.materialistic things may give temporary happiness, but at the end of the day u,ll realise that it was not worth it.happiness is a unique thing which is different for each human being.infact it is very difficult to define happiness
yeah 2 a certain xtent as it satisfies all our materialistic demands……. but not the true satisfying happiness which would melt our heart and make us feel soooooooo special.
“Happiness only real when shared.”
Nice subject. i just knew about happiness right after my marriage because i am not happy with my marriage. i have everything… money, good husband but not happy just because i don’t have any love feelings for my husband and that an arranged marriage. i tried alot to be happy but my heart says i am yet seeking someone else and my husband don’t attract me as a life partner is in my mind. God please help me to find my true happiness!
I feel sorry for you i could not imagine being in an arranged marriage….but look deep in his heart and think how he would feel if he knew how you truly felt, put yourself in his shoes and tyr to love him and maybe you are meant for each other and just dont know it yet…
Well Said, Kristy! Every situation has a solution!! :)
shaista,i know that only the bearer knows where the shoe pinches.think,what would happen if the one u r always missing could have turned out to be the worst.concentrate on good qualities of your betterhalf.afterall each coin has two sides.time will come you,ll start liking him n that,ll change your life.gud luck
i didn’t know what hapiness really is. i always pretended as if i’m happy when i knew that deep inside me, things were not well. i’ve realised, after all, that life is lived, not acted. what i want now is tips on how to get real happiness.
True happiness is found by being connected to our Creator, being content no matter what situation arises, and by having compassion on those less fortunate than we are.
I really like your quote “Life is lived, not acted.” Many people need to hear that. Thanks!
I am your polar opposite. I realize now, that I spent my life in a rush to nowhere. I keep getting new mountains to climb and never rested. I married a man that I was never naturally attracted to. I thought that being friends and Christians would fill in the gaps, but it didn’t. Now, I have a young son and feel stuck, instead of blessed. The best definition for happiness that I heard on TV was
“-happiness is not having what you want, but learning to want what you have.”
Go to the mountain and be on the mountain? Sometimes we get so caught up in climbing the mountain, that when we get to the top we start looking on how to get back down. I used to do the same thing…now I just want to sit on top and enjoy the view. Happiness doesn’t come from achievements. It comes from enjoying want you got. Thank God for that every day and he will bless you with happiness beyond your understanding.
Happiness is when you accept all for what it is with a smile on your face. Everyone has their own happiness it is all felt in a different way. You make out happiness what you believe it is. :)
Happiness is a state of mind. From every defination I have read it in fact is purchaseable. This leads me to believe that the person that claimed you cant buy happiness is a wrong.
Example:
A person walks up and gives you $50,000.00. You are in fact happy or will in fact be able to purchase any of the above definitions of happiness there for you can in fact purchase happiness.
Your happiness as well as your saddness are both purchaseable.
sorry friend,i don,t agree with your definition that happiness can be purchased.tell me what next,when you purchased what you wanted with $50,000/.after all no one is going to give you that kind of allimoney.i feel if you are able to control your desires(as they are the root cause of all miseries),you may feel contented n that may be beginning of your happiness.i,ve seen n no of people with tons of money but still very unhappy.what will you say on that?
u can make your happiness if u realy believed it
I say you are not reading what I wrote correctly. I am not saying you can purchase life long happiness. I am saying the definition of happiness can be purchased. That 50,000 will make you very happy for a bit. Who knows maybe only 1 day. But if you were happy only for 1 minute then money in fact purchased that minute of happiness.
Happyness can be purchased if only for a single minute of time. People do it all the time and dont realize it. Tell me when you have some ice cream or a great meal are you not happy/content for a bit? If so you in fact just purchased some happiness.
Thanks for the great post!
Robert, your comment actually links nicely to Mahatma Gandhi’s happiness quote in this article: “Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.”
When you think about ice cream, and say you’d like some ice-cream, purchasing it actually makes you happy… This correlates with Gandhi’s definition.
So, at least moments of happiness can be purchased. Unfortunately all ingredients of happiness – like challenges and sense of a higher purpose – cannot. So, again referring to Gandhi’s definition, perhaps happiness needs to be achieved either by our actions (to change the current situation), or by mentally accepting it (to settle for what already is).
I love these quotes, especially the one by William H Sheldon and Margaret Lee Runbeck.
I don’t think happiness is the same thing for any two people, we are all different, so what makes one person happy may not make another happy. Of course there are some common themes that make us all content – job, family etc. But again, there are people who don’t have a family and are perfectly happy.
Ultimately, I think happiness is literally looking in the mirror and not pointing out flaws, but accepting what looks back at you. It’s waking up in the morning and thinking what have I got to do today, rather than I can’t be bothered, it’s all about accepting ourselves for who we are.
Great post by the way.
Happiness is a ratio between what you desire to what you have accomplished