Pursuit Of Happiness

Aristotle had it figured out. Happiness is a drug and the pursuit of happiness is an addiction. This is partly why people are miserable when they are unhappy. They are going through a chemical withdrawal. And this withdrawal based misery or depression depends on the original level of addiction.

Level 1: As kids, happiness is achieved easily. Candy, cartoons ... yup, doesn't take much. Even as adults we try to enjoy the little things. Chocolate - The simplest kind of happiness. But very temporary. After a certain point it stops satisfying. What to do? Eat more candy or ...

Level 2: Competition. Winning in sports or any other platform that proves one better than another. I hated sports but I was shamelessly happy when I beat the idiots in class at Math. Some would say this is an evil kind of happiness. It works. Don't break the rules and it's ok. Unfortunately the killer instinct doesn't last. What to do? Find a new discipline and train or ...

Level 3: Help others. Give. Make your family happy, be there for your friends, provide for the needy and world peace. It's a serious endeavor and this is what most people ought to pursue. This is enough. This level of happiness is satisfying enough. But then there are people screwed up enough that need more.

Level 4: Perfection. Addicts who seek this level of the happy drug aren't satisfied until they experience the elusive and rare - love, god, truth, destiny. Those unfortunate enough to not get their fix become severely depressed or kill themselves. Idiots with high standards. They should've quit while they were still ahead.

I guess the pitfalls of experiencing a more meaningful life is an addiction to happiness. The problem isn't that it is self-destructive during withdrawal, the motive to pursue itself seems futile if a possible end result is the exact opposite of happiness.