Chasing Happiness or Maya..??

 Met a very dear friend yesterday and after the usual pleasantries, we got discussing about our day to day activities and how mundane our lives were..!! Of course, we are a lot more privileged and blessed with lot of things. Yet, why do we feel discontented with the world around us and many a times with ourselves as well..!!

Guess, it all boils down to what is ‘happiness’? The answer can immensely vary even for each individual at different moments. For eg., a student who has not done well, may feel passing in the exam would bring happiness and the very next second feel sad that he/she may get belted for scoring low. For some it could be very material- a good house, job, fancy items etc. To others it could be good relationships.  And for those on a spiritual quest, it might be peace with self, others and life on the whole.

However, on the other hand, what used to once provide us happiness does not have the same effect after awhile. Hence, can we say happiness is transitory? Is happiness really something outside us? Are we all chasing happiness or is it Maya? Maya is usually described as illusion; certain schools associate Maya to the Goddess of Illusion.  Ahamkara (ego-consciousness) & karma are said to be the wings of Maya.  For liberation (moksha), it is believed one has to get over the veil of Maya!! Literally, it means the whole world is Maya- as the world exists in our thoughts..!!

Consequently, are we chasing happiness or Maya? Well, I still can’t differentiate what is Maya and what is not..!! I shall let the reader take a call on it.

Getting back to happiness- can outside factors such as money, job, partner, children or anything else, really provide us happiness? If we connect the tenets & findings of positive psychology, Seligman & associates found that the happiest people are those who have a purpose in life which serves a higher good. Come to think of it, we’ve all had fleeting experiences of lending a helping hand to those in need and genuine satisfaction associated without any expectation in return, especially to strangers. Subsequently, for those of us who still have a long way to go in reaching our higher self wouldn’t this (higher purpose) be a starting point?

Spirituality talks of ‘ananda’(sat chit ananda) or the all encompassing ‘bliss’ that encompasses when we’re totally connected to everything around us and we’re at peace with ourselves and the world. The high we experience when we’re in our ‘zone’ wherein the doer and action becomes one, such as when you dance, sing or play a game- literally any activity performed with total oblivion to everything else or when everything becomes one..!! Isn’t happiness then something within us??

How do we apply this to our daily lives and remain in a blissful state? As much as we wish, we are not in a utopian society. Whether, we like it or not, we are bound to encounter challenging situations and people, in all areas of our life. The attitude of ‘detachedly attached’ would probably help to keep us in our state of ananda. How do we stay happy when things don’t go our way? Firstly, remembering that we are all playing roles in the drama of life. Secondly, as the Gita advocates, our duty is to complete the task to the best of our ability & not worry over the result. Also, ask yourself what’s more your important – maintaining your blissful state or chasing happiness in outside factors? We have to overlook the trivialities, and focus on what’s going good; only, then we can attract more of the same. Lastly but very importantly, staying in the present where all the action is happening!

Hope my rambling mind has helped in ringing some bells..!! Good luck in going beyond Maya magic and maintaining our blissful state.