Happiness

I have got most of the materialistic things I once dreamt of in my childhood. Yet I am no happier than I used to be. Why?

We spend all our life running after money and the things money can buy, not realizing the fact that there is no end to this chase. At first comes the console, followed by the ultra-gaming computer, high quality surround sound system and then a top of the line full HD TV. Once I get my own car, I strive for a house. I don’t know what might come after that but what I am sure is that once I get all the necessities, I will run after the luxuries and since there is no limit of those, I will always find something to run after. In the end we all become part of a race that ends with death.

How can I achieve happiness? Is it that “thing” that keeps me happy? No, it’s a mental state that I describe as happiness. I felt happy while going home from my office on a Friday evening. I felt even happier when going on a vacation to meet my family. I believe that happiness comes when the status quo is broken for the good. Similarly, sadness comes when the status quo is broken for the bad. For instance, when I buy a brand new car, my state is changed for the good. Now I have something that I didn’t have, that I really liked. So I am happier than before. However, once that new state is unchanged after some time, I will move back to the neutral state. This is called “getting used to” something. Since that change is a big change in my life, the happiness is more intense and lasts longer. However, it does fade away with time. One thing to note here is that buying a car is not cheap. In the same way, if one’s father dies, it is a state of shock and extreme sadness for that person. The sadness is more intense and lasts longer. However, after a year or two, the neutral state is restored.

What I would try to do after knowing that fact is to try to find an economic way to change my state for the good every day. By doing that, I can stay happy all my life, without running after the unnecessary man-made luxuries of this world. Islam gives you a very easy yet very effective way to stay happy. That is by worshipping Allah with all your heart and soul. You pray 5 times a day and the happiness you will get after meeting your Lord is enough to boost you really high. You re-direct all your worries and anxieties to Him and free yourself from this world for that moment. If you keep on practicing it, a stage will come where you will be elevated every time you offer your prayer. That is perhaps one of the explanations why all the saints have had happiness and satisfaction filled in their lives eliminating the need to run after worldly desires to get temporary happiness.