Happiness," said he, "must be something solid and permanent, without fear and without uncertainty.
Interpretation
Happiness should be a stable and reliable state, free from fear and doubt.
In this quote, Samuel Johnson emphasizes that true happiness is not merely a fleeting emotion but should be founded on solid and enduring principles. He suggests that for one to experience genuine happiness, it must be devoid of any fears or uncertainties that can undermine that joy, implying that a stable sense of happiness is essential for a fulfilling life.
In practice
During a motivational speaking event about finding joy in life.
To be of no church is dangerous. Religion, of which the rewards are distant, and which is animated only by faith and hope, will glide by degrees out of the mind unless it be invigorated and reimpressed by external ordinances, by stated calls to worship, and the salutary influence of example.
He that reads and grows no wiser seldom suspects his own deficiency, but complains of hard words and obscure sentences, and asks why books are written which cannot be understood.
To let friendship die away by negligence and silence is certainly not wise. It is voluntarily to throw away one of the greatest comforts of the weary pilgrimage.
Fly-fishing may be a very pleasant amusement; but angling or float fishing I can only compare to a stick and a string, with a worm at one end and a fool at the other.
When any anxiety or gloom of the mind takes hold of you, make it a rule not to publish it by complaining; but exert yourselves to hide it, and by endeavoring to hide it you drive it away.
A fishing rod is a stick with a hook at one end and a fool at the other.
Living with only the bare essentials has not only provided superficial benefits such as the pleasure of a tidy room or the simple ease of cleaning, it has also led to a more fundamental shift. It's given me a chance to think about what it really means to be happy.
You must work and do good, not be lazy and gamble, if you wish to earn happiness. Laziness may appear attractive, but work gives satisfaction.
It feels good. Kinda like when you have to shut your computer down, just sometimes when it goes crazy, you just shut it down and when you turn it on, it's okay again. That's what meditation is to me.
Happiness, that grand mistress of the ceremonies in the dance of life, impels us through all its mazes and meanderings, but leads none of us by the same route.
The happiest moments my heart knows are those in which it is pouring forth its affections to a few esteemed characters.
Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.
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