Ok, so I have been excessively happy the past couple of weeks and HHDL is always talking of being happy and h0w to be happy -
The Dalai Lama then left us his thoughts on birthdays, friendship and seizing the day:
“Thank you. We are all the same human beings. We all want a happy life. Actually, each day is a new day. It’s a new birthday. Every morning, when we wake up, think: ‘Now this is a new day, a birthday. I must carry this happy day.’ In order to have a happy day, keep [in your heart] a more compassionate feeling. A sense of concern for other’s wellbeing. That will be the source of happiness. That creates a happy mind, and that brings self-confidence. That creates honesty and truthfulness, so your new day will become a more meaningful day. In that way, you will be more transparent. That brings trust. Trust is the basis of friendship. We are a social animal. Friendship is very important. Friendship cannot be bought with money, or brought by force, only by warm-heartedness. I practice that, so I want to share with those good wishes. Thank you very much.”
so....
* ?/10 how happy are you?
&
* what makes you happy?
By that measure, I'm very happy. Probably 9/10. I am always concerned with others and, in fact, my job is helping people (and has been for about thirty years now).
By other measures, like having enough time to write and draw and so on, I'm not so happy. Fairly frustrated, in fact. Probably 2/10.
Here is another quote which I can relaly identify with concerning happiness -
Teachings given By Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche at Land of Medicine Buddha in 1999
Getting the Best from your Life
What makes your life most beautiful, most satisfying, most fulfilling, most worthwhile, most beneficial and most happy? I mean inner happiness, not just ordinary, excited, hallucinated happiness. What brings Dharma happiness, the happiness that has completion, the happiness that can continue, increase and develop fully? The happiness that is not suffering, that is worth trying for because it never turns into suffering? The happiness that is not suffering in nature and does not become the suffering of pain? Dharma happiness, the happiness that is worth devoting your life to attaining because it does not interfere with the happiness of others or limit your capacity to benefit others? The happiness that makes your actions only of benefit to others without discrimination?
Well so far I've been doing a lot of advertising but I haven't mentioned the product! So, what is it? It's living in the bush - going into the redwoods and living in the bush! No, I'm joking! So, what is it that brings all that happiness? It's cherishing sentient beings; living your life cherishing sentient beings. Not that I actually do this myself, but intellectually, it's what I think. Cherish sentient beings first; put enlightenment second.
Sentient beings come first
Why do I put enlightenment second? For example, when you go into the kitchen, you're looking for food not crockery; your motivation is not to get a plate but delicious food. You go into the kitchen with food on your mind. But although your main motivation is to get food, you do need something to put it on - unless you can carry soup in your hands! Anyway, I'm joking again.
Of course, enlightenment is extremely important because without it you cannot work perfectly for sentient beings. You cannot be a perfect guide, knowing, seeing directly, every sentient being's mind, level of karma, intelligence, wishes and characteristics, as well as the various methods that suit their individual dispositions. But what should be in your heart is sentient beings as the reason for your attaining enlightenment. The first priority in your heart should be the happiness of sentient beings; sentient beings in your heart. What should be the first thing in your heart, in your life, the goal of your life? Sentient beings.
At present, who is the most precious person in your life, in your heart? It's yourself or, if not yourself, then your greatest object of attachment. I don't think you hold your object of anger most precious. It's your object of attachment; that particular person. So that's how you should hold sentient beings, feel them to be most precious.
No matter how much you help the person to whom you are most attached, no matter how kind you are to that person, all you want is for that person to be happy. If that person receives help, achieves happiness, you're satisfied. That's your goal; you don't want anything in return. You don't need that person to respect you, to praise you or to do something good for you in return; you don't have any such expectation. Your attitude is such that you are simply satisfied by that person's receiving happiness or help. What do you call it - unconditional love? Anyway, that kind of attitude, whether it's all sentient beings or one sentient being.
First in your heart, your first priority, at least intellectually, should be all sentient beings. Then enlightenment is the method. As in the example above, to enjoy food you need a plate on which to put it. When you're looking for lunch, you're not looking for the plate; your main aim is the food. So here, what we're really looking for is the happiness of sentient beings.
Extract from chapter 2 of 'The Joy of Compassion' by Lama Zopa Rinpoche
That's all very true. Everybody should look out for everybody else's happiness. If everybody looks out for their own happiness, then everybody has one person looking out for their happiness. If everybody looks out for everybody else's happiness, then everybody has seven billion people looking out for their happiness.
“An altruistic attitude is REALLY, REALLY, REALLY precious… If all of your thinking becomes “I, I, I,” everything becomes stiff. With altruism, more loose, more health, more friends – your feeling is much happier. You can be a happy person.”
His Holiness the Dalai Lama, at the 2011 Kalachakra, Washington D.C.
It is one of the many paradoxes of spiritual life that generating loving-kindness toward others is one of the fastest ways to make ourselves happy. The Buddha said: "If you meditate on loving-kindness And love all kin and friends And all the forces of the elements, Your happiness will greatly increase."
another piece of advice from a Buddhist master.... (it works!! )
Happiness atm around 8/10, I'd say (which is going to change rapidly to 3/10 when I get home and find the narrow corridor to the bicycle room blocked by 5 scooters and a huge motorbike...)
What makes me happy is mainly peace and quiet. Having no conflicts, worries and problems, being able to listen to the birds or the frogs in leisure, reading a good book, having enough to eat. In short, happiness is a tomato that's still warm from the sun.
I think many young people nowadays are disappointed of life because they have unrealistic ideas. They expect happiness (and love, too, for that matter) to be like an explosion. Something utterly extraordinary that completely bowls them over. In my experience, however, both are very quiet events that steal into our lives on cats' paws. Very likely the young ones overlook the best moments in their lives because they don't even notice them, being too busy looking for big events that only happen in movies and other fiction.
Though all religions and most schools of philosophy claim they have found the only true way to happiness (amazing, how many only true ways there are, isn't it?), I have doubts if there can be a manual or even so much as guidance to happiness. It's propably one of the things everyone must discover for themselves. Third parties can only give little hints and at maximum turn the searcher into a more proper direction and give him a tiny push.
And read 
