What does it take to be happy? Going out with friends? Hanging out at the beach, drinking a mojito? Earning a lot of money? Good health?
Our Stoic friend, Seneca, argued that it was something else. He said: “No one can live happily, or even bearably, without the pursuit of wisdom.”
The problem is that we have a wrong definition of happiness. What is it? Going to dinner and a movie? Watching your favorite artist live? Seeing your team play at the stadium? These are just a few of the things I’ve heard people complaining about not being able to do. Is your attachment to these things worth giving up your happiness for?
You and I both know that those things never led to true happiness in the first place. We should trust the advice from the ancient Stoics, who lived in truly hard times. In Ancient Rome, a lot of men didn’t live beyond age 30. If I lived back then, I would probably be dead by now.
The other day, I watched this documentary called My Octopus Friend. It’s about a relationship between a man and an OCTOPUS. Wait, what? An octopus? Yes, those soft-bodied, eight-legged, alien creatures that swim in the ocean. They became buddies. The man visited his octopus friend every single day for almost a year. Sounds a little weird, and it is, but the film was truly heartwarming. And fascinating too.
That can be you too. You don’t have to dive into the ocean and befriend a cephalopod. Just learn new things. Immerse yourself into the things that make you curious. Dedicate your life to wisdom. It’s the only way to live a consistently happy life. And fortunately, the pursuit of wisdom is something that’s always available to us — even when we’re stuck inside. All the best.
网友评论