Happiness...

happiness 1520s, "good fortune," from happy + -ness. Meaning "pleasant and contented mental state" is from 1500's. ~ http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/happiness?s=t

Really? Happiness has only been known since 1520’s? When I was copying and pasting a definition of happiness I had no idea that that would change my essay.

I was going to type about happiness being a reflection of self, especially when you start to heal your wounds and inner child, but learning that happiness as a defining word for a state of being has only been around since the 1500’s I feel inclined to change my format.

I find it curious to know then, what word they did use to describe this state. But, maybe ‘happiness’ was not necessary to define as they always felt it?

What then has changed since that time? What wheels were set in motion for us as a species that we would have to start defining ‘happiness’.

I researched and found that a lot of world events happened in the 1500's era: war, the Pope excommunicates Martin Luther and dies in the same year, important births and deaths, the world is circumnavigated for the first time, a lot of diets (is a political formal deliberative assembly). From a global perspective, big stuff!

So the world began to really grow bigger for everyone and as people’s worlds grew so too did a need to define ‘happiness’ for oneself. Our world around us now, is in some way, a reflection of this.

So I guess I am going to talk about happiness being a reflection of self especially when you start to heal your wounds and inner child.

Yes, ‘happiness’ is a state that just about every person on this planet would love to feel more of. And for every single person what they ‘need’ to acquire ‘happiness’ will be different for no two people have ever had the same life. require the exact same needs or desire the same conditions.

So happiness is a very personal emotion.

In reading Maslow’s ‘Hierarchy of Human Needs’, those first 4 levels ARE the key to happiness. While I see the higher levels are the key to evolving; to a higher state of being.

Happiness is achievable through ~ your physiological needs being met, being in a secure and safe environment, being a part of community, loving and being loved, raising your self-esteem. Through having these ‘needs’ met people are more than likely to feel happy which in turn gives them the solid foundation to start seeking more positive experiences out of life and attaining higher levels of being. BUT each of these needs are not as basic as they appear.

Physiological ~ food, water, shelter, bodily comforts, for some this is hard to come by. Some have to work in terrible conditions to earn money so that they can buy these basic human needs.

Secure and Safe environment ~ for some they live in worn torn countries, how will they have this need met if they cannot move, hence are they left to live a life unhappy?

Sense of belonging and love ~ the way life is lived today, in most parts of the western world, neighbours do not even know each other’s names. Being part of a family that fight at every gathering so no-one bothers to get together anymore. Having such low self-worth most people find it hard to love themselves let alone truly love another.

Self-Esteem ~ practically from the day we are born we are taught to compare, judge, compete, look for outside validation & approval thus giving all our self-esteem away.

Each of these needs in themselves need consideration, awareness, acceptance and healing, for in each need there will be wounding/s, negative belief/s, negative family patterning’s, negative programming, self-judgements and more.

Through working with these core issues we ultimately begin to change our perspective on our lives, surroundings and loved ones. Through rewriting these negative programmes into powerful positive truths we begin to have hope, look forward to life with anticipation and begin to feel happy.

Happiness is a choice, we can either choose to that is what we want to feel or not. But to truly feel long lasting happiness one must be prepared to do self-work.

Nobody can get in our minds or our emotions and flick the happiness switch to on. It is something that must come from within us in response to our perspectives and perceptions. Some of our perspectives and perceptions are what is blocking us from feeling happiness. We get so caught up in our small immediate worlds that we fail to see other perspectives and perceptions of how it can be.

By looking into what is making us ‘unhappy’ we can begin to see what needs rewriting and healing. So the more we begin to heal what is ‘unhappy’ in our lives we begin to feel more ‘happiness’ in our lives.

Blessings,

Mim

Mystic Pathways Originally written July 2012