Is it to possess expensive items?
The rich have all comforts & luxuries, but are not free of anxieties
Is it to be poor? Is it pleasure? In short term it may be one of these or all. But in long term it is none of these.
The poor struggle for a thin slice of bread. When I eat a sweet my senses feel the pleasure but it does not lead to happiness, because it is temporary.
Then what is happiness? It cannot be explained easily, because what is happiness to me, may be trouble for you. For example the drunkard feels happy in wine which I hate from the core of my heart.
In my opinion there are few things that make our life happy.
The first is health. I hear people saying, “When wealth is lost nothing is lost, when health is lost, something is lost.” The loss of health makes us unhappy. The last words of one of the richest men of the world give us the idea of the importance of health. While dying he said, “I shall cheerfully give up my all if I can but enjoy a good meal.’
The second important factor of happiness is peace and contentment. We should remain satisfied with what we have. A contented person never feels jealous of the wealth of others. Freedom from worries and anxieties leads us to happiness. A Sanyasi living on alms he gets is happier than a rich man who rolls in wealth. Satisfaction is life and dissatisfaction is death.
The Essay on Are the Rich Happy vs Homeless: A Comparison
Are the Rich Happy vs Homeless: A Comparison Are the Rich Happy is more compelling than Homeless because the author uses wry cynicism to shine a light on rich people’s money problems being about social status rather than money while Homeless is based on describing the homeless problem. Although both of these stories are written in different ways, one being a narrative while the other is ...
Social service is a third factor of happiness. In order to be happy we must have a spirit of social service. The strong should help the weak, and the rich should help the poor. A great man like Mahathma Gandhi found peace and happiness in the social work.
The religious life is the fourth of happiness. It gives us peace and happiness. Religion is the matter of heart and not of sense. A happy man is he who surrenders himself for inner peace.
Last but not the least is some noble work which gives us happiness. We should spend leisure hours in reading good books. We should develop taste for artistic things like paintings, dancing and music. These things will create the atmosphere for true happiness.
A happy man is he who is honest and sincere, who does his duty well, who does not forget his religion and who is fully satisfied with what he has. Then he finds true wealth, which cannot be quantified like money & possessions but only can be felt. This wealth will not make us greedy, selfish and proud.
