Happiness Blog

“The highest and greatest of the human freedoms is to choose your attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”

~ Viktor Frankl, “Man’s Search for Meaning”

The concept of Spiritual Freedom grew from Viktor Frankl’s incredible accounts of how some men triumphed emotionally and spiritually over the most horrific circumstances, Auschwitz.

“Man can preserve a vestige of spiritual freedom, of independence of mind, even in such terrible conditions of psychic and physical distress.”

Each inmate ultimately chose whether to succumb to prison camp mentality and become a mere product of their environment and experience or to try to triumph spiritually and be something more, better and different.

“Fundamentally, therefore, any man can, even under such circumstances, decide what shall become of him - mentally and spiritually. He may retain his human dignity even in a concentration camp.”

Frankl’s comments underscore a basic tenant of the Happiness Habit -

“If we don’t consciously decide what sort of person we want to be and become, our environment and our experience determine our identity and our destiny for us.”

Beyond the barbed wires in life, there is always a wide expanse of opportunity for spiritual freedom and emotional independence that frees us from being dominated and controlled by our circumstances.

A key to happiness and spiritual success is to always try to look past the barbed wire!

Copyright 2007, Michele Moore. All Rights Reserved. Contact us for reprints. See HappinessHabit.com for more happiness insights. Michele Moore is author of How To Live A Happy Life - 101 Ways To Be Happier.

Are God and Jesus Christ are the only true sources of happiness?

“Sometimes, the person who has everything he could desire is still not happy; meanwhile someone deprived of everything, even freedom or health, can be joyful and peaceful, if God is within his heart. ”
~ Pope Benedict XVI

We both agree and disagree!

Certainly many church teachings are central and crucial to living a happy, spiritually successful life. Compassion, goodness, honesty, virtue and truth are the basis of a happy life.

We also know many very religious people who are not especially happy. Some of the most horrendous crimes in history were committed with a false sense of religious righteousness.

Some of the happiness people in the world are Buddhists who do not have a concept of God that is central to our Judeo Christian creed. Buddhists do have compelling teachings about compassion, care and concern for others that are central to their beliefs.

It is these values, we believe, that bring Buddhists happiness. The ancient Greeks agreed, “A man who is not virtuous will never be happy.” ~ Epicurus

Herb Benham jokes about a recent study in the Archives of Internal Medicine reporting that fat men are less likely to commit suicide than thin men!? One wonders if worry is keeping people thin and unhappy.

Taking pride in feeling good and looking good is important source of happiness! We don’t believe habitually over eating is a healthy, enduring source of joy.

What do you think? Post your comments below!

Copyright 2007, Michele Moore. All Rights Reserved. Contact us for Reprints See HappinessHabit.com for more information.

“It is our choices…that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.
 ~  J.K. Rowling

How true this is with happiness and all other facets of our lives!

Our choices reveal our ideals, our beliefs and our values.

The world values us by what we value.

Truly happy people are guided by goodness, love, caring and compassion. They continually focus on doing their best and being their best. Love propels their work, their lives and their happiness.

They live by only the highest and best values and beliefs. Their minds and lives are founded and grounded in honesty, virtue, goodness and truth. The universe rewards people who try to do good things well.

People who chooses greed and malicious manipulation over integrity, compassion and goodness are only happy when they beat somebody. When they don’t win they are miserable. They must feel superior to feel good about themselves. This is the path to emptiness, material gains on occasion, but still an empty life.

Love propels happiness. Without love and goodness there is no happiness. Look around and see if the wicked seem truly happy to you. Most are pretty shallow, weak, empty and insecure.

Copyright 2007 Michele Moore. All Rights Reserved. Reprints. See HappinessHabit.com for more insights on living a happy, spiritually successful life. Comment on this post below.

Today’s readings and responses brought this wonderful piece from James Michener to mind.  I hope you find it as helpful as I do.  I try to put it into practice in everything I do…

A Master in the Art of Living
Draws no sharp distinction
between work and play
labor and leisure
mind and body
education and recreation.
They hardly know
which is which.

A Master simply pursues
a vision of Excellence
in everything they do
and leaves others to determine
if it is work or play.
        
To the Master it always seems to be both.

James A Mitchener (Adapted)

Copyright 2007 Michele Moore. All Rights Reserved. Reprints. See HappinessHabit.com for more insights on living a happy, spiritually successful life. Michele Moore is author of How To Live A Happy Life - 101 Ways To Be Happier. Comment on this Happiness Blog post below…