Happiness, a goal or adjacent feeling

[Aerl]

Hi everyone

Today I pose a question, is happiness a goal in our lives, or is happiness just an
adjacent feeling which we experience along with things.
(things, as in variety of actions)

How do you understand happiness, what role does it play in your life?

From my perspective, happiness or feeling happy, is a predefined function which
helps in learning, ensures that we repeat actions which are pleasant.

As such, craving happyness in life is a mistake, you can do it naturaly or
synthesised, but the fact remains, goals we set for ourselvs, may not include
happiness at all. If there is no happiness in life we live, it doesn't mean it's
wrong, it may only mean that we might have defective modules of predefined
functions.

 

[Teffnology]

I think the end goal is contentment. Elation and depression being on opposite ends of the spectrum with contentment being our own realm of comfortability in the middle. I think this is what phase III development represents.

We cant know what to be content with if we dont first struggle with the spectrum in question.

 

[Vrecknidj]

Roughly three billion human beings live in desperate conditions including no access to drinking water, very unreliable access (at best) to electricity, less than $2 per day in income, and, if they have a home, it has a dirt floor and is unsafe.

Given that, I'm thinking there's a relativism here that needs to be considered.

 

[Deleted member 1424]

Happiness is chemistry.

 

[Aerl]

@Teffnology
Appears reasonable, but it leaves depression and happiness in a undefined field.
Or do you imply that happyness is just a point from which we should start counting
untill we meet another such point.

@Vrecknidj
Relativity is everywhere, most of the time it doesnt get in our way, meaning it's small or
nearly has no effect on the outcome. What I ask is, how do you define/understand
happiness, what I heared was dissatisfaction in how 3rd world countries strugle and we live in profaund fashion.

This reminds me another question: How do you quantify life

 

[Grayman]

Hi everyone

Today I pose a question, is happiness a goal in our lives, or is happiness just an
adjacent feeling which we experience along with things.
(things, as in variety of actions)

How do you understand happiness, what role does it play in your life?

From my perspective, happiness or feeling happy, is a predefined function which
helps in learning, ensures that we repeat actions which are pleasant.

As such, craving happyness in life is a mistake, you can do it naturaly or
synthesised, but the fact remains, goals we set for ourselvs, may not include
happiness at all. If there is no happiness in life we live, it doesn't mean it's
wrong, it may only mean that we might have defective modules of predefined
functions.

Happiness is just a bonus for me but satisfaction of life or purpose is a requirement. It is easy for me to give up some happiness in order to get more out of life.

 

[Teffnology]

@Teffnology
Appears reasonable, but it leaves depression and happiness in a undefined field.
Or do you imply that happyness is just a point from which we should start counting
untill we meet another such point.

@Vrecknidj
Relativity is everywhere, most of the time it doesnt get in our way, meaning it's small or
nearly has no effect on the outcome. What I ask is, how do you define/understand
happiness, what I heared was dissatisfaction in how 3rd world countries strugle and we live in profaund fashion.

This reminds me another question: How do you quantify life

If you are attempting to reach an absolute definition of happiness, I am the last person to ask on the subject. I do agree with your principal that chasing happiness is not healthy. I feel that contentment is a comprimise we make with ourselves over time as a means of mitigating the pitfalls of hapiness at all costs.

 

[Brontosaurie]

happiness is most pleasurable and it can easily change a bad situation into a good situation

 

[Aerl]

If you are attempting to reach an absolute definition of happiness, I am the last person to ask on the subject. I do agree with your principal that chasing happiness is not healthy. I feel that contentment is a comprimise we make with ourselves over time as a means of mitigating the pitfalls of hapiness at all costs.

Sorry if I came out that way, I'm more interested in how "happiness" functions in day to day life.

I'd say we agree on a degree. Happiness is something humans chase to achieve a
state of contentment, only sometimes contentment may not be needing such
emotions as happiness or a cheerful state.

edit: one might even consider such a scenario, someone cheerful is someone
who's in a way, simply put "mad(illness)" on a temporary basis.

Note to self: people who are happy, could be delusional.

p.s.

What I believe in : The things we feel, are predefined functions by which we define reality. Only
later do we acquire logical reasoning by which we make better use of our knowledge base system,
redefine existing preconfigurations.

 

[StevenM]

I would think a big element in happiness, is a person's needs. We need food, sleep, warmth, affection, etc.

There is a lot of needs, and not all will be met.

A neat equation could be: 'happiness' is proportional to how much our desires meet with reality. Desire can sometimes be changeable and malleable. Sometimes, reality can be too. A striving to balance these two out.

 

[idokaiho]

I think that feeling positive emotions is just a mechanism that reinforces behaviors that lead to an increased rate of survival. To act based on the anticipation of happiness is part of our makeup. To act solely for the purpose of gaining happiness can certainly have its pitfalls without careful consideration. To crave happiness when one does not have it seems like an unhealthy endeavor.

If there is no happiness in life we live, it doesn't mean it's
wrong, it may only mean that we might have defective modules of predefined
functions.

I would certainly agree that a life without happiness doesn't have an inherent quality of being wrong, and also that the degree of happiness is dictated by the physical structure of our brain in relation to sensual information. But I think a more appropriate question is what does the particular individual believe about what is right or wrong. If one determines that their absence of happiness is a result of their defects then they may also be giving up potential opportunities for happiness.

 

[QuickTwist]

You can prioritize you activities/time around being and doing things that make you happy.

True happiness is hard to come by. I can count on one hand the amount of time I have felt glee, which is what I associate with being happy. Other synonym's of happy I feel more often: elation, energetic, calmly determined, happily melancholy, calmly content.

 

[Aerl]

I think that feeling positive emotions is just a mechanism that reinforces behaviors that lead to an increased rate of survival. To act based on the anticipation of happiness is part of our makeup. To act solely for the purpose of gaining happiness can certainly have its pitfalls without careful consideration. To crave happiness when one does not have it seems like an unhealthy endeavor.



I would certainly agree that a life without happiness doesn't have an inherent quality of being wrong, and also that the degree of happiness is dictated by the physical structure of our brain in relation to sensual information. But I think a more appropriate question is what does the particular individual believe about what is right or wrong. If one determines that their absence of happiness is a result of their defects then they may also be giving up potential opportunities for happiness.

I agree with this, and must add, the whole "Right and Wrong" is being wired
in childs mind, thats why we learn easier in our youth, as we get older it's
harder to redefine, rewire our brain cells.

It's usually a long process when it comes to neural medication. The brain is
already shaped and it takes time to reshape the pattern without doing
much damage to the whole system.

Edit:

What I imply, all emotions that we feel are wired in a fashion to help us
survive in one way or another, humans who can't adapt, or have
defective modules of emotions, these human beings are considered ill-minded,
needing external help in learning to adapt.