(Clearwisdom.net) Happiness comes from a person's thoughts about loss and gain.
What is gain? What is loss? Many people regard family wealth, fame and success, having many children as "gain," or regard short-lived joy, glory and praise obtained from these things as "gain." Conversely, they regard misery, things going contrary to their wishes and loneliness as "loss" as well as the grievance, bitterness and unfairness that others brought to them as "loss." However, due to the expectations people have, what they hold is not true happiness, but only the pursuit of happiness. They hold on tightly to the things they consider their own because they fear losing them. Due to this fear, they try to obtain more through further efforts because when they are trying to do this, happiness always seems to be ahead of them. This is similar to the bait which drives all of us to work harder but actually is not in our control. At this time, what really occupies our heart is only the fear of gain and loss. Because of fear, we do not dare to enjoy what we already have. This fear drives the satisfaction of happiness away from our heart. As a result, we are always up in the air and walk along the path of pursuit and cannot stop.
Actually, gain is loss and loss is gain. They are the two sides of the same coin. Loss comes along and appears with gain, just like living and dying, which are not separate either. Living and dying is just another state of gain and loss.
The world itself is fluent and harmonious. Those who focus only on today are not willing to look toward the future and would rather devour everything they can today. Fortune is gathered and dispersed because of you; fame rises and falls because of you. You will gain fame and interest which you can see, touch and hear, while what you lose is spiritual and physical strength. Nothing in this world can be obtained without any efforts. When you lose this fame and interest, what you accumulate as a result is courage, perseverance, tolerance and righteous thoughts, which are not visible and tangible. On the other hand, everything in this world can be obtained through effort. Sand cannot be traced with the tides. In this immense universe, human beings are very tiny. Loud sound is rarely heard and giant images are formless. What is really eternal is the universe. Wealth and fame is truly insignificant in this universe!
The truly wise person does not live according to other peoples' judgment. A wise person would not permit wealth and power to dominate his life. They believe that fate is fair and follow the natural course. They keep what is given to them and are able to let go of things they cannot have. What they have not obtained now, they will obtain another time. If they cannot succeed in this life, they will succeed in the next life. They are not attached to loss and gain, existence and nothingness, and they can see through loss and gain, life and death. Only by doing this, can people live under the current circumstances, and retain their happiness instead of living along the path of pursuing happiness.
Therefore, happiness is quite simple and you will get what you want when you do not pursue it. Just do what you should do and you will not feel tired from consistent pursuit.
Therefore, happiness is transparent without the shadow of interest, without a sigh from the endless torture of pursuit, the only existence is the up and down governed by the constant Law, just like a ship in the water, which moves up and down with the waves.
Therefore, happiness is complete. Whether a person lives on top of a mountain far away from other people, or lives under the deep sea together with shrimps and crabs, or lives among the crowd of human beings, he would never feel lonely because he lives within this world. His spirit and thinking would always communicate with everything in this world. The mountains, water, grass and trees would be his bosom friends. Birds and beasts would also be his friends. The hosts of heaven would be his companions, while his spirit sounds together with the sound of nature and dances together with the spirits in the depth of the universe, where his spirit emits the light of firmness, independence, gentleness and serenity.
Happiness does not truly exist in this material world.