What Is the Key of Happiness?

Hi guys, nice to meet you again. Or at least, seeing you read my blog again. Hahaha. I have a question for you. A bit philosophy, but fear not. What is the key of happiness?

True, this question is quite ancient. Many people throughout the history has been trying to answer this one. one famous instance is, Siddharta Gautama from Ancient India conducted his research in the 8th Century B.C. about how to become free from suffering in this life. This may the very first experiment of phsycology and happiness ever listed in the history. Ancient greece, in the other side, has Diogenes with his follower, who found the cynicism, again to bring human out of sufferings. and many many more people over the history has been trying to answer this. There are many answer out there, but here i will share to you my favorites two. First is the Buddha's Dharma and Viktor Frankl's logotherapy.

Buddha's Dharma

Siddharta Gautama -Buddha's real name- is the heir of a mauryan kingdom in india. the young prince bothered by the scenes of suffering humans. but he realized something, that human sufferings is not only caused by physical calamities, such as wars and diseases, but many humans suffered anxiety, disappointment, griefes, and many other physcological illness. even kings, who has the best life quality, not guaranteed to free from these phsycological sufferings, such as anxiety of their territory, or the coming attack from neighboring rivals. one night, Siddharta leave his family, and all his luxuries in his palace, wander as a vagabond, searching for the key to leave from sufferings. long story short, he found that the way to become free from sufferings is to train the mind to experience the present, what we actually should to experience. many of suffering is caused by we can not experience the present. Either we thinking too much about the past(e.g. grieves, regrets) or thinking too much about the future(anxieties, fears). Well after his enlightenment, Gautama devote the rest of his life to spread his discoveries. he compile his idea to some practical tenets, called dharma or dhamma. but the main idea is pretty simple, is to avoid activities that tend to provoke cravings and dissapointment, such as killings(crave of power), promiscuous sex(crave of sensual pleasures), and theft(crave of money). if you ask me what is the nutshell of buddha's teachings, i think it is to not too obsessed of physical pleasures. do not expect too much. be grateful.

I am applying this by not indulge my self too much in sensual pleasures(things related to sex, sense, etc.). And it turns out that i feel better and lighter, by doing this. I believe this could be happen because this way, we reduce our craving of pleasures. Consequently, we feel more serene.

Logotherapy

logotherapy is a physicology branch sparked by the Viennese physhologicst Viktor Frankl. he once, get this idea from his observation while he underwent the persecutions in Nazi's consentration camps. in such terrible condition, he found that, who's endure more is who has meaning in his life. meaning of life help us survive, even in the most horror suffering.

The main core of logotherapy is: 

1. Each person has a healthy core.
2. One's primary focus is the meaning to help and raise others life.
3. life offers meaning and purpose, but not promise fulfillment and happiness.

I think i agree with his point. and, yeah i feel when i have a meaning of life, this keep me moving on, regardless the condition. the wheel of life, sometimes good, but inevitably, sometime bad. then, is my choice, to choose be took bad or to be proactive, to keep doing good things. and not complaining. personally, i have bring this to practice, or at least i try to. i feel much better while i am keeping on my meaning of life. this is a fantastic psychiatric shcool of thought. you should try it. and viktor frankl, he say that there're some method to find one's meaning of life. here some:

1. By creating a work or doing a deed.
2. By experiencing something or encountering someone.
3. By the attitude that we take toward unavoidable suffering.

Summary: The Mix of Both

well, for me combining these two philosophy of life, change my life significantly, and immediately. i think these two philosophy is complementary. they reinforcing one another. by the way, their core is akin. life is not perfect; it is not always good. so enjoy the life as it is. experience the now, don't neither be toiled in the past nor be concerned by the future. find your meaning, in every breath you take. no matter how good or bad is it. be grateful(syukur), by what the restaurant of life serve for you. Complaining and pretending not helping, though.

Experience the now, don't neither be toiled in the past nor be concerned by the future. Find your meaning, in every breath you take, no matter how good or bad is it. Be grateful, by what the restaurant of life serve for you. Complaining and pretending not helping, though.