The Life of Happiness
If you want to make progress,
Only think of your heart's happiness
And how you can keep
Your entire being happy.
Wherever you go,
Carry happiness with you.
~ Sri Chinmoy
All content by Sri Chinmoy -
SUCCESS AND PROGRESS
Happiness is a gradual movement, a gradual progress in us. It is like a river flowing toward its source, the sea, and this source is within us, not without. In order to enter into the source we have to be satisfied with what we have and what we are, but not in a complacent manner.
Life's ladder is right in front of us. It has quite a few rungs. After we step on the first rung, if we have confidence enough, then we can step up to a higher rung. In this way we move from joy to greater joy to greatest joy. We must be satisfied with what we have and, at the same time, we must feel that this is not the highest, the ultimate achievement. Today's goal has to be tomorrow's point, and tomorrow's goal has to be the starting point for the day after tomorrow.
Success is in the desire-world. Progress is in the aspiration-world. We succeed in fulfilling our ambitions. But in outer success there is no assurance that we will be happy, even if we have great success, whereas even when we make an iota of progress, we become happy, and our happiness is abiding.
Success makes us feel that we have the capacity to do everything. Progress makes us feel that we are not the doers. Progress makes us feel that there is an unseen force deep within us that encourages and inspires our progress, and that inside this progress is our constant progress. This unseen force is the doer; God is the Doer. This is what we learn from progress.
Be happy, be happy!
Unless you are happy,
Your outer life will not succeed
And your inner life will not proceed.
~ Sri Chinmoy
What we need is inner happiness. When you are inwardly happy, then you see that you are really making progress. Again, from inner happiness you can get outer happiness also. When outer happiness comes due to inner achievement, inner progress, then that outer happiness is real happiness.
If you have courage,
You will succeed.
If you have joy,
You will proceed.
If you have peace,
You will become.
~ Sri Chinmoy
PERFECTION AND TRANSCENDENCE
Joy is a form
of perfection. Perfection and divine joy are inseparable. If you are perfect, you are joyful; if you are really joyful, then naturally you are perfect. The spiritual term we use for joy is delight.
What keeps us from attaining perfection? It is our self-indulgence. In self-indulgence we feel that there is something absolutely necessary in our life, and that is pleasure. But when we cry for divine joy, at that time we enter into the ocean of perfection.
Your own sincere search for yourself
Will become a synonym
For perfection-happiness.
You will truly appreciate life
Only when you can see
That on a higher reality-plane
Everything is perfect.
Destroy violence
With your soul's smile.
You will be happy.
Create a new world
With your heart's sympathy.
You will become perfect.
~ Sri Chinmoy
Perfection is not and cannot be a finished product. Perfection is something that continuously transcends its own reality. Here on earth, we observe perfection in two sublime realities: cry and smile. When a child cries soulfully, in his soulful cry we observe perfection. When a child smiles soulfully, in his soulful smile we observe perfection. Perfection is bound to be there where the existence of the soul looms large. The soul is the direct representative of God.
There is an inner perfection and there is an outer perfection. The beauty of a flower is the outer prefection; the fragrance of the flower is the inner perfection. Anything that has to be transcended inwardly is bringing us the message of perfection in the inner world. Anything that has to be increased, illumined and fulfilled outwardly is bringing us the message of perfection in the outer world. To see each and every individual on earth as another God is to see nothing but inner perfection. Again, to see and feel God's presence in each human being is to see outer perfection.
What is transcendence? Transcendence is a never-ending process, a dynamic reality. We want to transcend precisely because we need satisfaction within and satisfaction without. Our world has two realities, which we use in order to transcend ourselves: ignorance-night and wisdom-light. Ignorance-night we conquer. Wisdom-light we inwardly are. When we become fully aware of the wisdom-light within us, we transcend the reality which we already are and we grow into a higher reality.
He is happy,
Because every day he tries to do
And actually does
A little more than he thinks he can.
Go beyond, farther beyond!
Do not limit yourself
By comparing yourself with others
Or even with your own self.
What else is failure
If not an opportunity
To challenge my own incapacities
With joy and determination.
Hope comes first;
Life follows.
Life comes first;
Perfection follows.
Perfection comes first;
Satisfaction follows.
To be truly happy
You must do two things:
You must overlook
The imperfection-evenings of others;
You must look over
Your own imperfection-nights.
~ Sri Chinmoy
Next: Permament Happiness
