Is happiness a choice?

(Seerat Shahina, )


Many happy people realize happiness is a choice and it's up to them to intentionally choose happiness. Although our general mood levels and well-being are partially determined by factors like genetics, upbringing and external circumstances. Happiness is difficult to define because it means something different to each individual person. Nobody can fully understand or experience another person's feelings, and we all have our own particular passions from which we take pleasure. Other key factors could be individual freedom and a sense of purpose in life.

Happiness is most commonly defined as the continued feeling or state of delight, contentment, enjoyment, satisfaction, generosity, arising from contentment of one’s self, life and belief that they will have a blissful destiny.

From Islamic perspective, the happiness is not merely a temporary state of joy and delight; rather it is a lifelong process aiming primarily at bringing eternal happiness, peace of mind, tranquility of heart, contentment in this world and everlasting bliss in the Hereafter.
There isn’t one right way to be happy. There isn’t a specific formula that everyone must follow to find true happiness. There is a lot of power in realizing that we are in charge of our own happiness. No one else. Our family and friends can be a part of our happiness; even we can choose our way of life in search of peace of mind and satisfaction to attain happiness is the consequence of personal effort. The goal of happiness, tranquility, serenity, peace of mind, contentment and freedom from worries and anxiety is what each of us is desirous to achieve.

Roughly 40 percent of our happiness is within our control, according to some experts and a large body of research in the field of positive psychology has shown that happiness is a choice that anyone can make. As psychologist William James put it: “The greatest discovery of any generation is that a human can alter his life by altering his attitude."

It was Aristotle who introduced the ‘science of happiness’. According to Aristotle, happiness can only be achieved at the life-end: it is a goal, not a temporary state of being (Pursuit of Happiness, 2008). Aristotle asked, “what is the ultimate purpose of human existence”? He thought that a worthwhile goal should be to pursue “that which is always desirable in itself and never for the sake of something else” (Pursuit of Happiness, 2018). The ultimate goal for human beings is to strive for ‘eudemonia’ (happiness).

It is incredibly challenging to define happiness. Modern psychology describes happiness as subjective well-being, (Kesebir & Diener, 2008). The key components of subjective well-being are: Life satisfaction, satisfaction with its important aspects, for example work, relationships, health, presence of positive effect and low levels of negative effect.

In our culture, it is commonly believed that happiness can be achieved through accumulation of wealth. A segment of society believes that happiness and tranquility will be achieved as a result of power; others believe that happiness is achieved through fame, recognition; yet others define happiness as satisfying one’s each and every sensual desires.

Wealth may be the first cause of happiness. Studies have shown a significant positive correlation between wealth and happiness. Money gives, people freedom, and enables them to meet their needs e.g. housing, food, and health-care. However, money is not the guarantee of happiness.

Having friends and social relationships has been shown to be a leading cause of happiness. Humans are primarily social beings and have a need for social connection. Aristotle identified friendship as being one of the most important virtues in achieving the goal of eudemonia (Pursuit of Happiness, 2008). Furthermore, being satisfied with family life and marriage is the key to subjective wellbeing

We all face negativity and difficult situations throughout our lives. And while some tragedies are worse than others, there’s often nothing more we can do than accepting the situation and moving forward. That’s why choosing happiness feels so hard when facing negative experiences and disappointments. Acceptance allows a person to feel content, that is accepting the fact that change is inevitable. Being willing to accept change as part of life means, that happy people are in a position to be adaptive. This is important to understand that in life, both good and bad are only short-lived means that truly happy individuals have an understanding that ‘this too shall pass.

Another basic and important source of happiness is religion. Engaging in prayer and having a relationship with God is also related to greater happiness. Positive effects have been found with taking part in religious services. Some people, especially those who are highly committed to their religious faith, view happiness in ways that emphasize virtuosity, reverence, and enlightened spirituality.

Cultivating thankfulness and gratitude is a scientifically-backed way to increase happiness and it is firmly within your control to choose to be more grateful. Grateful people tend to appreciate simple pleasures, defined as those pleasures in life that are available to most people. It has also been found that people who are happy contribute more to society. Those who are happy are more cooperative. It is also associated with a sense of fulfillment, and making progress towards valuable goals.

Bronnie Ware, the author of “The Top Five Regrets Of The Dying” wrote in Huffington post blog:

Many did not realize until the end that happiness is a choice. They had stayed stuck in old patterns and habits. The so-called 'comfort' of familiarity overflowed into their emotions, as well as their physical lives. Fear of change had them pretending to others, and to their selves, that they were content. When deep within, they longed to laugh properly and have silliness in their life again ... Life is a choice. It is YOUR life. Choose consciously, choose wisely, and choose honestly. Choose happiness.

There are different means of attaining happiness, but the true happiness can only be achieved by combining all of them.

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Seerat Shahina
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