VBT – Meditation 54.5
Existence Is Happiness
It’s so frustrating – the more we search for happiness the further away it seems
The more you ask for happiness, the more you will be in suffering. The suffering is a shadow. The greater the desire for happiness, the greater will be the shadow. Ask for happiness and you will never get it. You will suffer frustration. Why? – Because there is only one way to be happy, and that is to be happy here.
Happiness is not a result, happiness is a way of life.
Happiness is not the end result of desire. Happiness is an attitude, not a desire. You can be happy here if you know how to be, and you will never be happy if you don’t know how to be and you go on desiring it. Happiness is an art. It is a way of life. If you can be silent and aware of the life that is around you and within you this very moment, you will be happy. The birds are singing, the wind is blowing… The trees are happy, the sky is happy; everything in existence is happy except you.
Existence is happiness. It is an eternal celebration, a festivity.
Look at existence! Every tree is in a festive mood, every bird is in a festive mood. Except man, everything is in a festive mood. The whole of existence is a festival, a constant, continuous festival. No sadness, no death, no misery exists anywhere, except in the human mind. Something is wrong with the mind, not with existence. Something is wrong with you, not with the situation.
Why is man unhappy? No animal is so unhappy, no bird is so unhappy, no fish is as unhappy as man. Why is man so unhappy? – Because man desires happiness, and the birds are happy right now, the trees are happy right now. Man desires happiness – he is never happy here and now. He always desires it, and goes on missing it, because happiness is here. It is happening all around you. Allow it to enter within. Be part of existence. Don’t move into the future. Existence never moves into the future, only the mind does.
But a seeker takes responsibility upon himself. In fact, to be a seeker means to hold no one but oneself responsible for everything. If there is sorrow in my life I am responsible, and if there is happiness in my life I am responsible. If I am tranquil it is I who am responsible; if I am restless it is my own making. There is no one but myself who is responsible for whatsoever state I am in. If I fall and break my leg it is my own fault and I cannot blame gravity. If this is the attitude of the mind, then you will have understood rightly. Then the meaning of a mishap will be different.
For this reason, I say that grace is beneficial and it is a blessing to a person who is well prepared for it. In fact there is a time for everything. There is a special moment for each event, and to miss this moment is a great tragedy.
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