Happiness, is certainly one of the most commonly stated or unstated motives of life. It also is according to statistics and reason the biggest leveling factors in life. A rich or poor, an intellectual or idiot, a child or grown up can all seek and find happiness equally without discrimination and irrespective of other factors.
However, it is surely debatable whether society wants others to find joy in their lives. If one would consider the stated goals of society most, if not all of them fall in favor of virtue than joy. Joy for example might lie in lazying around on a sunny winter day, or indulging in good food and wine, realizing one's own dreams, creating something new, pursuing a fruitless yet exciting cause or simply listening to music, dancing, shopping etc. But, each of them or pursuing any of them is made out to be a sin by the guardians of society.
The only endeavor the society happily permits to an individual is working hard. However, this act of working hard the society expects of its people is again marred with conditions and terms. The worst condition being the society doesn't encourage individuals to find joy in their work. It's ignored as a criterion for seeking which work to do, and when despite this conscious ignorance, when someone does find joy in his work and starts pursuing it for that reason, the society tries in its full power to kill and suppress such an act and feeling.
Amongst others the society becomes jealous not of achievement and success but of someone enjoying achievement and success. The society wants the happy people, to endure, be tired, lose something as a bargain for being successful, so that the society remains relevant for such people. And this doesn't even apply just to the successful ones, it applies equally to everyone who wants to stay a part of society. Any act which is self fulfilling is to be condemned, as society becomes insecure of its own existence and survival, if people can find joy from within.
The reason for this behavior of society is of course the survival of society. To ensure that the survival of generations to come is guaranteed. It is a worthy reason too for giving up day to day joy in a society where survival is really a big issue, marred by wars, and famines and diseases. However, that was centuries ago, when the notions of ensuring survival were hard instilled in the founding scriptures of society.
Hence, it becomes imperative now that survival has become easier, diseases can be cured, wars don't impact life, and famines barely make it to news, that we start rethinking our actions and judge them to the ultimate motive they serve. Our forefathers have put in a lot of blood and sweat to bring forth a day where we can just guilt-freely enjoy happiness, pursue our own paths, and indulge in activities we find pleasure in, without worrying about being judged from our peers and parents. But the validity of the path they had to choose to bring this day is questionable.
Lastly, we need to be sure which part of our lives is worth going through all that we go through! Is it the hard work in office hours that we hate so much from guts, or is it the simple need to be happy and seek joy whichever way it comes. Also, what needs to be considered is that whether the only way to survival leads through doing things that we don't enjoy, and treating joy as a sin?
Is it not possible to find a way of survival in things we enjoy? Or from another point of view, is it still worth living a life, that is devoid of joy if just bare survival is ensured? Why should joy be something always given a secondary place in front of survival?
It's true that there can be no joy to be appreciated if life stops existing but it's equally true that life never really existed in the first place if it was joyless!
P.S. I still condemn pedophiles, serial killers, aggressors, and others who breach in to the basic rights of life and freedom of others. :)
However, it is surely debatable whether society wants others to find joy in their lives. If one would consider the stated goals of society most, if not all of them fall in favor of virtue than joy. Joy for example might lie in lazying around on a sunny winter day, or indulging in good food and wine, realizing one's own dreams, creating something new, pursuing a fruitless yet exciting cause or simply listening to music, dancing, shopping etc. But, each of them or pursuing any of them is made out to be a sin by the guardians of society.
The only endeavor the society happily permits to an individual is working hard. However, this act of working hard the society expects of its people is again marred with conditions and terms. The worst condition being the society doesn't encourage individuals to find joy in their work. It's ignored as a criterion for seeking which work to do, and when despite this conscious ignorance, when someone does find joy in his work and starts pursuing it for that reason, the society tries in its full power to kill and suppress such an act and feeling.
Amongst others the society becomes jealous not of achievement and success but of someone enjoying achievement and success. The society wants the happy people, to endure, be tired, lose something as a bargain for being successful, so that the society remains relevant for such people. And this doesn't even apply just to the successful ones, it applies equally to everyone who wants to stay a part of society. Any act which is self fulfilling is to be condemned, as society becomes insecure of its own existence and survival, if people can find joy from within.
The reason for this behavior of society is of course the survival of society. To ensure that the survival of generations to come is guaranteed. It is a worthy reason too for giving up day to day joy in a society where survival is really a big issue, marred by wars, and famines and diseases. However, that was centuries ago, when the notions of ensuring survival were hard instilled in the founding scriptures of society.
Hence, it becomes imperative now that survival has become easier, diseases can be cured, wars don't impact life, and famines barely make it to news, that we start rethinking our actions and judge them to the ultimate motive they serve. Our forefathers have put in a lot of blood and sweat to bring forth a day where we can just guilt-freely enjoy happiness, pursue our own paths, and indulge in activities we find pleasure in, without worrying about being judged from our peers and parents. But the validity of the path they had to choose to bring this day is questionable.
Lastly, we need to be sure which part of our lives is worth going through all that we go through! Is it the hard work in office hours that we hate so much from guts, or is it the simple need to be happy and seek joy whichever way it comes. Also, what needs to be considered is that whether the only way to survival leads through doing things that we don't enjoy, and treating joy as a sin?
Is it not possible to find a way of survival in things we enjoy? Or from another point of view, is it still worth living a life, that is devoid of joy if just bare survival is ensured? Why should joy be something always given a secondary place in front of survival?
It's true that there can be no joy to be appreciated if life stops existing but it's equally true that life never really existed in the first place if it was joyless!
P.S. I still condemn pedophiles, serial killers, aggressors, and others who breach in to the basic rights of life and freedom of others. :)
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