Do good by stealth, and blush to find it fame.
Alexander PopeRead
O happiness! our being's end and aim! _x000D_ _x000D_ Good, pleasure, ease, content! whate'er thy name: _x000D_ _x000D_ That something still which prompts the eternal sigh, _x000D_ _x000D_ For which we bear to live, or dare to die.
Interpretation
Happiness is the ultimate goal of our existence, driven by our desires and hopes.
In this quote, Alexander Pope expresses the idea that happiness is the fundamental purpose of life. He suggests that it encompasses various forms of joy and contentment, but also acknowledges a deeper yearning for fulfillment that may never be fully attained, driving us to experience life’s struggles and savor its joys.
In practice
Using this quote in a motivational speech about finding joy in life’s journey.
Do good by stealth, and blush to find it fame.
What dire offence from am'rous causes springs, What mighty contests rise from trivial things.
Fair tresses man's imperial race ensnare; And beauty draws us with a single hair.
An honest man's the noblest work of God.
One thought of thee puts all the pomp to flight;_x000D_ _x000D_ Priests, tapers, temples, swim before my sight.
Who breaks a butterfly on a wheel?
I had thought joy to be rather synonymous with happiness, but it seems now to be far less vulnerable than happiness. Joy seems to be a part of an unconditional wish to live, not holding back because life may not meet our preferences and expectations. Joy seems to be a function of the willingness to accept the whole, and to show up to meet with whatever is there. It has a kind of invincibility that attachment to any particular outcome would deny us.
Only the development of compassion and understanding for others can bring us the tranquility and happiness we all seek.
Pleasure is the only thing one should live for, nothing ages like happiness.
Happiness and suffering do not depend on being poor or rich, they depend on having the right or wrong understanding in our mind.
The happy people are those who are producing something; the bored people are those who are consuming much and producing nothing.
To forget oneself is to be happy.
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