The pursuit of a meaningful life is an integral part of SEEING Happiness. In fact, the very pursuit of happiness is a pursuit for WESTERN THOUGHT as well as an expression of purpose in life. The journey to see another live is a challenge for most. It’s also a challenge for those who choose to journey on this journey, since what they are seeing is a reflection of who they are as individuals. The journey itself is a source of joy and satisfaction for those who make it.
For many, the journey toward well-being and happiness is made even more challenging by the fact that they know so little about it. There is often confusion between the notion of finding happiness and finding meaning in life. The two go together, of course, yet those who are most familiar with the idea of finding happiness don’t necessarily understand the idea of finding meaning in life per se. Thus, their journey toward happiness becomes muddled in terms of its actual substance. What is it really that they are seeking?
Often, seeking happiness means a return to a period that may have been painful for a person. Perhaps the traumatic experience was one that was more reflective of who they were then or one that represented something that they wished would change for them. In other words, the source of happiness is feeling good that is grounded in authentic connection to a source beyond ourselves. This is what we mean when we say that seeking happiness means connecting to our higher power. When we reach out to this source, it can deliver not only material abundance but also a sense of connectedness and wholeness that can fuel a lifetime of happiness.
When one begins to connect to this source of personal identity, however, it is usually because there is a personal reason that the person is seeking happiness and no because they feel like getting something for nothing. The true nature of happiness, in this sense, is not some ethereal, abstract feeling good. Instead, it is a deeply personal, human, emotional response to the world around us. If there is no such thing as personal happiness, there can be no genuine connection to a source of happiness. When we speak of finding meaning in life, it is always in relation to our being human. Meaning comes when there is a sense of connection to a higher power, whether that is a religious belief or a personal faith in a higher power.
The pursuit of meaning in life is often accompanied by the search for happiness. That is not to say that we think there is no need to pursue happiness. We sometimes see that there is an urgent need to find meaning in life but that there are other pressing demands on our time and energy. This is particularly true if pursuing happiness is seen to involve taking on too many commitments.
When pursuing happiness, one must ensure that he puts happiness first. This means that the quest for meaning in life, and thus happiness, must take precedence over all others. It is not only a question of priority. In fact, it is imperative that we make the prioritization of these two goals well-informed priorities. The pursuit of happiness will require that we have attained a certain level of well-being.
The reason for this prioritization is that when we talk of the pursuit of happiness, what we really mean is that we want to bring about a state of positive affect (as opposed to negative affect). Achieving positive affect is made possible only when there is a harmony between our cognitive processing and the feelings, thoughts and motivations that guide our actions. And it is this state of positive affect that is the essential ingredient necessary for achieving happiness.
Having said all of this, it may still be argued that it doesn’t make sense to speak of happiness as something that pursues well-being. After all, if attaining well-being is the goal, then happiness is the end product. But then again, in the context of the research on happiness and its relationship with well-being, there is no doubt that pursuing happiness is the most beneficial way to achieve it. Pursuing happiness is the very essence of what being human is all about.
