Laddu Bliss and the Meaning of Life
Let’s started off by asking a light question….what is the meaning of life? Ultimately we all just want to be happy. Simple. But what does 'happy' mean? Is there a difference between happiness, satisfaction, peace, joy and bliss? Hmmm…well experientially – yes. It seems that words like 'peace' and 'satisfaction' refer to a neutral experience, whereas words like 'bliss' and 'joy' refer to a more intense experience of happiness. And 'happiness' is somewhere in between. Right? This is true, from experience. But really all these words are ultimately referring to only 1 and the same thing: 1 happiness. Just different levels of intensity of happiness experience. Our scriptures use these words to mean the same thing: Happiness (Sukham) = Peace (Shanti) = Satisfaction (Tripthi) = Bliss (Ananda). All synonyms. If so, it is a little confused to say: "I don't really want happiness, I want peace" or "I want bliss, not satisfaction". These are all the same thing really speaking. The 'target' meaning (Lakshyartha) is the same. This is useful to remember when you read a text like Bhagavad Gita or Upanishad so we don't think it is talking of pursuing different goals of peace and bliss.
OK, so if it happiness you seek…then just do what makes you happy, no? Try it. Did it work over the last few decades? Yes and No. Let’s take an example: I want laddu, I eat laddu, I enjoy the sweetness of the laddu on my tongue, there is an experience of 'laddu' happiness for a few seconds, BUT then….it goes. And I want another laddu (duhkha/pain/feeling of lack). And I ran out of money to buy another laddu (duhkha/pain/effort to get more money). Plus I feel slightly sick due to the ghee in the laddu (duhkham/ physical pain). So this proves that every happiness we gain ALSO involves pain along with it. It’s a mix of the 2. You cannot separate the 2. Problem is, this is an unavoidable problem of the happiness we experience in the world. Shastra calls this 'unhappiness-mixed-happiness' (duhkha-misrita-sukham). aka dvandva (pairs of opposites).
So what we ideally want is happiness, WITHOUT any pain/unhappiness mixed in. This is "true" happiness. In other words, we want LASTING happiness (nitya-sukha). This 'lasting' (nitya) adjective is very important. It implies happiness unlimited by space, time and objects (desa-kala-vastu-aparicchina-sukha). I want to be happy in the morning & eve (time), in Croydon & Mumbai (space), with my boss and & my in-laws (objects)! What is this 'lasting happiness' famously called in scripture? Moksha. Therefore all of us really seek Moksha, but perhaps we don't realise it or say it explicitly. So how to experience this Moksha? Krshna in Bhagavad Gita (18.46) answers: "by following dharma you will gain moksha" (sva-karmana…siddhim vindati manavah). What is Dharma? The practice of all the values we have been learning over the last few months from Gita (13.7+) such as…non-violence, truth, humility, charity, compassion. Therefore, dharma will lead you to moksha. In other words: Be good, do good, be happy.
