a train of thought

My religion can be summed up in two words: be happy.

Now a shallow interpretation might lend one to think this is an easy task. One might think of many sensual pleasures that makes one happy, but these pleasures last as long as water in your hand. What is it that gives us lasting and sustaining happiness?

Through exploration and observation I have noticed that helping others has made me most happy. It’s more than just helping though. It’s loving, caring, sympathizing and empathizing for others.

Now if helping others is what makes one happy one can never stay happy, because there is help always to be need on Earth. Thus we get to Buddha’s first noble truth: The world is suffering.

How does one escape from suffering?

Enlightenment?

Wait let's back up. I said helping others in a loving, caring sympathizing and empathizing way is what makes me most happy. Well, I might not be able to help everyone but I can love everyone. Maybe that's my path to enlightenment.

What's love?

Purpose of Life (part one)

Everyone has a single purpose in life- excuse me when i dip into my Buddhist side of me- and that purpose is quite simple: be happy!!

Well, that isn't exactly simple when taken into deeper context. One has to question what is true sustaining happiness and how to obtain it. I have no general answer for that and I'm glad I don't. Gosh life would be boring if there was an answer. It would be like having a how-to-do manual for art.

What I can say is I found a loose guide lines for myself. I found epiphanies about life's meaning in the most unusual places. One place is a laundry program for the homeless I volunteered for in high school and the other is a crisis hotline that I'm volunteering for currently. The common thread between the two is that I was helping others. The meaning of life for me is to live for others.

Now the goal isn't to try to obtain altruism. Altruism doesn't lead to meaning in life, becuase it is nonexistent. Like I said, the purpose for anyone is to be happy and living for others is a means of acheiving deeper happiness. Donate till your poor and you become richer in your soul. Techniquely this statment indicated that giving is a selfish impluse, because you are benefiting yourself the most.

I'm fine with that. It is ok to help others for the purpose to feel good and make your life richer. This natrual mechanism to feel good when making another feel good encourages behavior that helps the community and not the individual. So basically, being selfish is a must in life, but the more mature forms of being selfish lead to more meaningful lives.

Why Help?

October 18th FSU held a mock presidential debate, with the major student political groups battling it out. The debate got a little chaotic but I was glad to see the enthusiasm among the students. What resonated with me most during the event was one comment made by a young female member of the republican organization. Her question was somewhere along the lines of 'When I'm required to pay someone's else healthcare under Barak Obama's plan, does that make me more or less free?"

Where does one end with a train of thought of that? Should a seveity-year-old women be required to pay the taxes used to help fund public education. Should a wealth bachelor in his forties be required to pay taxes that helps fund a community service that keeps struggling families out of the streets?

How does helping others ever hinder your ability to be free?