{"id":59307,"date":"2022-01-23T11:07:00","date_gmt":"2022-01-23T15:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=59307"},"modified":"2022-01-31T11:46:38","modified_gmt":"2022-01-31T15:46:38","slug":"dalai-lama-happiness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/dalai-lama-happiness\/","title":{"rendered":"The Dalai Lama’s Thoughts on Happiness"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is happiness<\/a> at its core? Do you think happiness is a natural human state? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the Dalai Lama, happiness is not merely an emotional state, but a mental and intellectual one. It\u2019s about being content with your life on all levels. In his book The Art of Happiness<\/em> (co-authored with Howard C. Cutler), he proposes that all humans should seek out happiness by training themselves to be happy in four different ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is how to cultivate true happiness<\/a>, according to the spiritual leader Dalai Lama. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Your Purpose Is to Seek Happiness<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Some westerners see striving for personal happiness as a selfish act. But the Dalai Lama argues the opposite is the case: Unhappy people are more self-absorbed than happy people, who are compassionate, helpful, and generous. That’s why it is your purpose<\/a> as a human to seek happiness<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Aristotle also believed that your purpose in life is to achieve happiness<\/a>. According to him, every goal you set in life, however distant it may seem<\/em> from happiness, actually is in service of attaining happiness. Let\u2019s say you join a high-intensity fitness program, which, with its grueling exercises, may not seem in service of your happiness. However, when you look at the micro-goals of joining this program, you see they serve the macro-goal of happiness: You join the program to get fit. You get fit to be healthy. You become healthy to be happier.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Maslow\u2019s Hierarchy of Needs echoes the idea that we\u2019re able to do our best for others when we\u2019re happy<\/a> and explains why this might be the case. Abraham Maslow posited that human motivation is tiered: We\u2019re first motivated to satisfy simple needs\u2014for shelter, food, and so on\u2014and only motivated to tend to higher-tier needs\u2014friendship, love, and the like\u2014once the simple needs are met. Therefore, until we reach the highest tier, self-actualization\u2014comparable to the attainment of happiness as described by the Dalai Lama\u2014we can\u2019t practice generosity toward others because we\u2019re too busy<\/a> meeting essential needs.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You Can Achieve Happiness Because You\u2019re Innately Compassionate <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

According to the Dalai Lama, happiness is your natural predisposition because you\u2019re innately compassionate and loving<\/strong>. This belief stems from the Buddhist doctrine of Buddha<\/a> Nature, the belief in humans\u2019 intrinsic state of purity and positivity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: Buddhists of different schools perceive Buddha Nature differently<\/a>. Some believe that you\u2019re born with the seed of Buddha Nature but must nurture<\/em> it into bloom yourself. Others believe that your Buddha Nature<\/a> is already fully developed but hidden<\/em> by your misconceptions of the world. Your goal, then, is to rid yourself of those misconceptions.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you don\u2019t believe in Buddha Nature, you\u2019ll find proof of humans\u2019 innate compassion by observing our behavior, claims the Dalai Lama: Children need the compassion, care, and love of their families to survive. Because they\u2019re necessary to survival, these emotions must be fundamental to human nature<\/strong>. We\u2019ll call such innate, life-sustaining emotions positive <\/em>emotions. Cutler adds that there\u2019s scientific research proving humans are inherently kind and altruistic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Shortform note: While there is, as the Dalai Lama and Cutler say, evidence of humans\u2019 innate altruism, kindness, and caring, we can\u2019t deny the existence of war, poverty, and hatred. Researchers have tried to account for this by proposing that in the hunter-gatherer societies<\/a> of 15,000 years ago (and in modern-day ones), altruism was an important survival mechanism<\/a>. However, when humans developed an agricultural lifestyle, altruism was by necessity replaced with self-serving behavior and hierarchies, which led to conflict. We\u2019ll discuss why later in the chapter.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What is happiness at its core? Do you think happiness is a natural human state? According to the Dalai Lama, happiness is not merely an emotional state, but a mental and intellectual one. It\u2019s about being content with your life on all levels. In his book The Art of Happiness (co-authored with Howard C. Cutler), he proposes that all humans should seek out happiness by training themselves to be happy in four different ways. Here is how to cultivate true happiness, according to the spiritual leader Dalai Lama.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":3402,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,6],"tags":[571],"class_list":["post-59307","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-psychology","category-spiritual","tag-the-art-of-happiness","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Dalai Lama's Thoughts on Happiness - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"According to the Dalai Lama, happiness is not a natural human state\u2014it is a mindset that must be cultivated. 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