Are you Happy?

One day ends, another begins. As the day dawns we all get ready to fight the eternal battle again. Half a million years ago we did the same, as our ancestors stepped out of the hiding caves with the first light of dawn to fight another day for dear, dear life. They fought in the jungle, we in the city. They had prey, and so do we. They had predators and so do we. Most importantly, they were not satisfied, and so are we. Half a million years later, yes. 

So it is time we stopped in our tracks a moment and asked ourselves an all-important question.

Am I Happy?

Happiness is a vague concept, and one that practically begs to be misunderstood. Happiness is relative, inasmuch as the things we attach happiness to. Moreover, it is instinctively subjective. So let us ask you three simple questions:

1. Are you free from regret (over the past) ?
2. Are you content (with your present) ?
3. Are you secure (in your future) ?

If you answered 'yes' to all, then congratulations! And stop reading, you do not need what we have to tell you. On the other hand, even if one question got the answer as "No", then we have a consensus: you are not Happy. 

Now that we have a working definition, and a personal interpretation, it is time to delve into the most important part of the discussion: What can I do about it? 

There is a Zen story of a student who came to his teacher and said: "I want happiness". The teacher is known to have said thus:

"First remove the 'I', that's ego. Then remove 'want', that's greed. Now all you got left is 'happiness'.."

We will use this simple and elegant answer as a base to phrase our answer. 

Forget the past, but keep the lessons. 

The past is like burning charcoal. Once burnt you never forget the taste of Fire. But if you keep holding onto it, all you get is continuous burning and pain. Let go. Let yourself be detached from the past. The memories, as a rule, are always less painful when viewed in Third Person. Try it, it's not that hard. Definitely not hard as you think it is. 

Be Present. 

Many people reiterate this golden rule over and over without really bothering about it. For all that matters there is but one single thing, and that is Now. This Moment. This very moment. The moment where you suddenly feel Time stop and obey you. The moment where you suddenly feel your heartbeat. The moment where you start taking a deep breath that you feel in your stomach. The moment when you suddenly become aware of where your feet are. 

That wasn't hard, was it? 

Use this lesson. Learn to stop Time. It's awesome.

Plan the Future.

Almost 99.9% of people have no idea on how they are gonna spend time in the next week. Simple explanation? They overtax their brains. Their brains are like overworked horses begging for mercy killing. Stop this. Brains were not adapted to be timetables. They will never be. Brains were, and for the foreseeable future will remain to be, thinking machines. 

Buy a Notebook. It's cheap. And efficient. Nowadays we have all the technologies. You even have access to many good e-software. Every decent phone comes with texting enabled. If all else fails, use a message draft to keep track of the future plans. Do whatever in your power to free your brain of the future. 

The problem is that you are not Happy. The reason is that you keep wishing, and do nothing. The solution is to break free from this vicious cycle. The work plan is to start actually doing something about it. 

Have a Happy day! 

Why Buddhism is unique among the other religions..

Let us agree upon something first: religions make you believe. They assure you salvation, in one form or another, and to attain that you need to Believe. If one follows this acid test strictly, one would be curious to find that Buddhism somehow does not fit the bill. Buddhism does not ask you to believe. 


One unique feature of Buddhism is the freedom it gives to think and question. It does not make the followers believe anything without questioning. There are no declarations of a god or traditions which you need to follow. No authority of a god who holds the ultimate power of the universe. It does not preach about a god who created the world or the human. Buddhism is based on the reality of life and the world, which is true, yet we do not see due to absurdity. Rather, it invites them to see the truth saying "come and see"! In fact, Lord Buddha did not declare himself as someone who came to save you, but rather someone who shows you the right path, and lead you there. You are the one who realize it with your own wisdom and the salvation is within you. No body but you are your own salvation. It does not ask you to pray so that you get whatever you need, because all what you actually need is within you.


For another thing, Lord Buddha is different from other religious leaders because He never claimed to be a God, or someone who represent or "being sent by" God. He was a Human who reached enlightenment which is the highest level of intelligence a human being can ever reach. The philosophy called "Buddhism" was revealed by Him, by the man Gouthama Siddhartha who was later to become, and to be known as "Lord Buddha"  who was born 2600 years ago, in India, in a city that used to be called "Kapilawasthu".



Another unique feature of Buddhism is that the truth it teaches does not change with time. It talks about a universal truth which is common for every living being, object and energy that exists.  It is based on the logical theory called "cause and effect theory". In many aspects it is in line with modern science. If someone is wise enough, this truth it teaches, can be even found within you.

With that set as a (very) lightweight introduction, let us simply find out if we do need a salvation. As always, to be complex is simple, but to be simple is complex. So, why exactly would we need a religion (or a philosophy)?