Happiness is unfortunately intertwined with sadness in this world. Each and every one of us has to pass through peaks and valleys in life. The amplitude of the peaks and valley may vary for each one of us but, the fact remains that each one of us has to endure the cycles of pain and pleasure. We are forced to experience the twins of night and day, hot and cold, wealth and poverty etc in this world. When we enjoy something we know that it is only temporary. In this world, happiness is short-lived. Is it possible to feel happy forever and ever? How can we reach a state where we feel happy and that level of happiness can never diminish?
Before we can figure out how to reach the permanent state of bliss, we have to understand about our Universe. Our Universe is our home. The Universe is shrouded in mystery. It is diverse, active and ever changing. On one end of the spectrum we have microbial life forms, subatomic particles and on the other end we have stars, constellations and galaxies. The microscopic to macroscopic, the Universe is beyond our understanding. There is order and discipline inherent in the Universe. The Sun and the Moon rise and set every day like clockwork. Planets go around the Sun in an orderly fashion. Galaxies spin around a point in the Universe. Nothing normally goes haywire. When we fully try to comprehend this Universe, we truly understand how insignificant we really are. We look at the star-studded sky at night and wonder about our existence on earth. We are born, live and someday, we will die. Why are we born? What is the purpose for which we should live and what happens to us after death? What is the purpose of our existence? Where do we fit in this giant Universe? What is our role? Where does happiness fit in the cycle of our existence and why do we obsess about happiness? Who are we? Why are we here and what do we seek from our existence?
We can categorise everything we see around us into three categories which are the building blocks of this Universe; living beings, matter and God. The matter is insentient and is called as achit. Our body is insentient which is why it eventually turns to dust. We are different from our body. We are living beings; the sentient beings that experience this Universe. You and me are living beings. So is our dog or cat, the earthworm in the garden, the robin on the tree, the tree, the coyote and the rabbit. Microbial life forms like bacteria to animals, humans, birds, plants and insects are all living beings. The living beings are called as “chit” by the Vedas. The chit is the individual soul. There is equality amongst the individual souls. All souls look alike like grains of rice. There is no status difference amongst the soul. Any differences we perceive in life arise due to the body taken up by the soul. One soul wears the body of a woman while the other a body of a dog. The dog may seem inferior to a human being but, in reality, it is in every way equal to a human. Both are souls and there are no differences of caste, creed, or gender which can make one soul superior to the other.
It is the nature of the individual soul to be always happy. The soul experiences sadness only when it is tied down to this material world. The individual souls are all identical to each other. They are smaller than the smallest particle known to man. The soul is enshrined in a body. Why does the soul descend into this material Universe? Why can’t it attain its natural state of happiness? Why must it endure birth and death? Why must it face sorrow and pain? What is the true identity of the soul?
