Here, in America, we all know that the document which started this country, The Declaration of Independence, gave us all the right to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” I am not going to talk about life and liberty. Although those are two very important rights and concepts. I am going to focus on the “pursuit of happiness” part.
Some people in the United States joke that no one is guaranteed happiness, just the pursuit of it. Cynics and skeptics have justified their disdain for happiness because even the Founding Fathers of America did not proclaim that happiness was a sure thing. I disagree with that point of view…no surprise there, right?!
To me, the Founding Fathers gave us an important piece of advice we all can benefit from, regardless of nationality. The advice is that in order to obtain happiness, you must pursue it and go after it. It simply isn’t some location on a map that you drive or fly to and no, you cannot order it from Amazon or bid for it on eBay but rather it is a state of mind.
Each person has numerous blessings. Some are obvious and others are not. Being aware of those blessings is a key to achieving happiness. How can you be happy if you are unaware of the gifts that surround you?
To pursue happiness is something that we all do. We all want to feel happy. The Founding Fathers were smart men and courageous. It took a whole lot of strength to have stood up to the British Empire. They taught by example: happiness is something you pursue…it is not given…it is earned.
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I love that the word “happiness” was specified. I’m not American but the Declaration of Independence set an important precedent for the rest of the world. Life, liberty and happiness are my three favorite things, no question.
But you are right, only the freedom to pursue is guaranteed. Yet so many rationalize a bad attitude on the economy, or the administration.
David Cain’s most recent blog post..There is No Good and Evil, Just Smart and Dumb (Part 2 of 2)
Well said, Nadia! I especially like the part about how happiness can’t be bought on amazon or bid on at ebay. This speaks to me personally on two different areas of my life that I have been facing. 1.) The accumulation of “stuff” didn’t make me happy, and in fact, led to an even greater unhappiness. Now that I’ve been on my “spiritual decluttering” vibe for so long, I have experienced a lot of happiness in giving stuff away. 2.) Even more recently, I realized that a lot of self-help books are sold on the premise that if you are unhappy, buying this book will make you happier. That’s simply not true. To paraphrase the Matrix, the book might be able to show you the door, but *you* have to walk through it.
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Nadia,
How true!
When I was in high school, I had a teacher that reworded the phrase to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of property”. Unfortunately, I think most people still confuse property with happiness.
Roger – A Content Life’s most recent blog post..Prepare to Die
@ David – Happiness is one of those aspects of life that looks deceptively unattainable. It is easier to blame another than to take responsibility for one’s actions. Many people think it is an external concept but it really isn’t!
@ Jay – I am so happy that you liked the post. The Matrix is another great movie. The part about which pill to take is so true. I know, I went off subject. I just love that movie. Back on the subject…yes, in order to attain happiness, you have to walk through the door. It truly is up to the individual to find it and the good news is that it can be found! Yay!!!
@ Roger – I think you are right about that but maybe once people get all that property and still feel unhappy, then maybe they will realize that happiness is more than material items.
I do like that Life and Liberty are guaranteed, wheras only the PURSUIT of happiness is guaranteed. To actually find it, YOU have to do the work… no one can find happiness for you.
The part that always troubled me about this phrase is the ambiguity of the word happiness. What makes me happy may be silence, while my neighbor is happiest with loud dogs and a litter of loud, chaotic kids, and we are both entitled to pursue our own version of happiness. Often the different interpretations of the word can lead to conflict and misunderstanding… but such is life. It’s all about pursuing our happiness without trampling on the other person’s version of happiness.
Lisis | Quest For Balance’s most recent blog post..Making Money with Personal Development Blogs
Hi Nadia,
Again you’ve selected a very important topic.” Pursuit of Happiness”. The thing is most people have used to think that they are not happy because they haven’t money and other things. So they are going after those things.But when they find the things they came after they understand that still happiness is not with them. I think if you need to find happiness, you must look for it inside your self instead of out side world.
Thanks for inspiring to think about “pursuit of happiness”.
Have a great day !
Hi Nadia .. thanks for reminding us about pursuing happiness – we can’t just wait for it to happen. I am lucky in that my glass is definitely always half full and can always be refilled .. I am positive by nature.
Simple things can make us happy – more importantly make others happy .. be there for them .. smile and laugh, communicate – a necessity of life, understand others – work out what they need or want, do your best
Keep your thoughts in the yes mode .. not in the negative, I can’t mode, go for things .. life will be happier for you & easier ..
Thanks so much -
Hilary Melton-Butcher
Positive Letters
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@ Lisis – That is the great thing about happiness…it means different things to different people yet the feeling of joy is the same. I mean…we all want to have a roof over our heads, food on the table and not to be lacking. However, the kind of roof and food will differ among people yet the feeling of having those things will be the same.
@ Vikum – You are absolutely right, happiness is within.
Hope all is well, my friend! Have a great day too! 
Hi Hilary!
Welcome to Happy Lotus! Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts. I am like you, I am positive by nature. I always have been even when I went through some challenging times. I have come to notice that being happy is a matter of perspective and sometimes having a positive state of mind does make it easier. However, even if some people are not positive by nature, they can learn to see the beauty in life. Nothing in life is hopeless or impossible.
Hey Nadia, I think you are right-on with this post. In America, we seem to be far too results-oriented, as if everything can be “acquired” or located on a map, as you say. I think we put too much emphasis on the direction we’re going, rather than on the manner in which we go. It’s a cliche, but we truly do need to learn the value of the journey rather than the destination.
Thomas’s most recent blog post..Wisdom and Compassion
I love this: “happiness is something you pursue…it is not given…it is earned.” You are so right about that. Happiness is something you have to work at. It’s not something you’re born with or granted or given. It’s up to you to make it happen. Thanks for the reminder!
http://positivelypresent.typepad.com
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This is another great topic and spookily synchronicitous. I’ve been a bit down all day and decided to consciously do something to try and get back on an even keel. I’ve just been reading a book about happiness then popped over here!
There’s also another way of looking at the word pursuit. In older English, ‘pursue’ can mean we practise an activity regularly, make it a habit. Seen like that, “the pursuit of happiness” isn’t even something to chase or work hard at, just something we need to choose to do often. The Dalai Lama says:
Great post! I’m not sure why it is that we have to work at happiness, when it is right here, right now, in stillness. Perhaps the work of discovering what we already have is a necessary lesson.
Thanks!
Kaushik’s most recent blog post..What if Susan Boyle couldn’t sing?
Thanks for this post. To me, it depends on how we think about what “pursuing happiness” means. If we take happiness to be something that we can only get by chasing after something in the outside world, our pursuit will go on forever. For me, I am happiest in the moments where I can give up that chase and accept the world’s perfection.
Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote, “Happiness is a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp but which, if we sit quietly, may alight upon our shoulder.” In this definition, sitting quietly becomes the pursuit. I think of meditating, writing, or rocking a baby to sleep as examples of what Hawthorne meant. Happiness and the act of pursuing it can take many forms.
betaphi’s most recent blog post..At the Wedding
@ Thomas – Great to hear from you! I used to think happiness was in external things until I got all those things and still was unhappy. It was then I really began to search for happiness and that is when I realized happiness is within and a matter of attitude.
@ P.P. – Your comment reminded me of that Mariah Carey song “Make It Happen”. I used to love that song.
@ Janice – Thank you so much for these interesting pieces of information. I love it!
It is always great to know about the original meaning of words or rather the history behind it. Happiness is definitely a habit. I love the Dalai Lama quote, too.
@ Kaushik – To be aware that happiness is now and in stillness is not so obvious for everyone. So for some they have to work to reach it and be at peace with that realization. Good for you for already being at that stage!
@ Chris – Good for you for being at the stage where you are not in pursuit of happiness! Yay!
However, some people are not at that stage and so I guess they have to follow the journey to get there. I think most people have to exhaust the possibility that happiness is outside and then they are ready to realize that it is inside. 
@ Betaphi – I chose to go with your nickname as opposed to your real name!
Thank you so much for the Nathaniel Hawthorne quote. I absolutely love it. 
He was absolutely correct.
I’ll disagree a bit here but I do like your writing. I think happiness is usually found (at least for me personally) in letting go. Letting go of wanting to be happy, letting go of looking for reasons to be happy, letting go of your mind made problems and just letting everything be.
In this moment is the only time you can ever be happy, here, right now. Make the most of it
Cheers,
Glen
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Hi Glen,
Welcome to Happy Lotus! Glad you like the writing. I understand where you are coming from but learning to let go requires the realization that you have to let go. No person, to my knowledge, is born knowing they have to let go. They learn that and in a way learning that is a pursuit.
Then that would go against your own saying because in my knowledge, no person is born knowing they would pursue happiness, or happiness is the ideal emotion / thing to experience while on earth.
Glen Allsopp’s most recent blog post..7 Days of Pure Self-Discipline – You In?
Hi Glen,
I understand why it would seem that I went against what I said. Apologies for not expressing myself more clearly. As I recall, your previous comment was that in your mind happiness meant learning to let go of the idea of being happy and just be. My point was that everyone on some level wants to be happy so they go searching for it only until they reach the point where they realize that happiness is within them and then they are able to let go and just be. To reach the level of perception that they have to let go, requires that they go searching for happiness first. Does that clear it up?
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