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.
We’re young, we’re not monsters, no fools: we’ll conquer happiness for ourselves.
Now is the time for drinking; now the time to beat the earth with unfettered foot.
Keep smiling, because life is a beautiful thing and there's so much to smile about.
Each human being has the right to seek out joy, joy being understood as something which makes one content - not necessarily that which makes others content.
You don't have to justify a beautiful stroke of good luck. Accept it. Smile and say thank you.
It is said that all people who are happy have God within them.
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