My theory is that God created us so that we “pursue happiness”. This I have gathered based on the eco-system that God has created and my understanding of the rules behind this eco-system, which I call “reality”.
It is almost as if heaven and its different levels that have been mentioned in the Muslim faith are parallel to different levels of “happiness”. This can be understood as “a higher form of happiness is experienced in a higher form of heaven” [form and level have been interchangeably used].
If happiness is to be pursued I think it is best pursued in God’s eco-system in a most selfish way.
The reason I say it is best pursued in a selfish manner is that one’s own happiness depends on one’s environment and one’s influence on this environment. We are not independent of this environment at all and so to be happy we would have to be happy in this environment.[Selfishness when all encompassing of reality is not bad at all!] If we harm others in our environment it is not likely that many among them will come forth to save us in times of trouble.
This reciprocal relationship between us helping others and others in turn helping us exists in many other forms. Another such relationship is us learning some skill and that skill helping us out when we need it to. Another relationship is that between us and our ability to “negate ourselves” [self-control], the better we get at this the more control we would have over ourselves when we really need it!
The harder we work at all these relationships the better off we will i.e. the happier we will be in the long run.
I have mentioned in my earlier post that even inactivity on our part will result on some impact on our lives and through our lives the lives of others and through a multiplier effect it will have a great impact on the future of this world, yet this impact may very much result in unhappiness if we are not careful about our actions.
Here is an excerpt from an earlier post On Strategic Management and its implications:
A company can thus respond at one of four levels:
1) Create change: trailblazers, such as Microsoft
2) Those that anticipate change and react before time: Many MNCs
3) Those that react to the environment
4) Those that fail to respond in time
This shows us very well how being pro-active and reactive is not the same thing!
Someone has beautifully said:
“In an African jungle each day there is a chase between lions and gazelles. The fastest lion has to catch the slowest gazelle to be fed.
Just like in the jungle it wouldn't matter if one is the gazelle or the lion but when the sun rises you better start running!”
And so the more selfish you are in your pursuit of happiness, in fact the more passionate you are the higher the level of heaven you will reach!
The pursuit of happiness then is the reason God created man as I understand it.
It is almost as if heaven and its different levels that have been mentioned in the Muslim faith are parallel to different levels of “happiness”. This can be understood as “a higher form of happiness is experienced in a higher form of heaven” [form and level have been interchangeably used].
If happiness is to be pursued I think it is best pursued in God’s eco-system in a most selfish way.
The reason I say it is best pursued in a selfish manner is that one’s own happiness depends on one’s environment and one’s influence on this environment. We are not independent of this environment at all and so to be happy we would have to be happy in this environment.[Selfishness when all encompassing of reality is not bad at all!] If we harm others in our environment it is not likely that many among them will come forth to save us in times of trouble.
This reciprocal relationship between us helping others and others in turn helping us exists in many other forms. Another such relationship is us learning some skill and that skill helping us out when we need it to. Another relationship is that between us and our ability to “negate ourselves” [self-control], the better we get at this the more control we would have over ourselves when we really need it!
The harder we work at all these relationships the better off we will i.e. the happier we will be in the long run.
I have mentioned in my earlier post that even inactivity on our part will result on some impact on our lives and through our lives the lives of others and through a multiplier effect it will have a great impact on the future of this world, yet this impact may very much result in unhappiness if we are not careful about our actions.
Here is an excerpt from an earlier post On Strategic Management and its implications:
A company can thus respond at one of four levels:
1) Create change: trailblazers, such as Microsoft
2) Those that anticipate change and react before time: Many MNCs
3) Those that react to the environment
4) Those that fail to respond in time
This shows us very well how being pro-active and reactive is not the same thing!
Someone has beautifully said:
“In an African jungle each day there is a chase between lions and gazelles. The fastest lion has to catch the slowest gazelle to be fed.
Just like in the jungle it wouldn't matter if one is the gazelle or the lion but when the sun rises you better start running!”
And so the more selfish you are in your pursuit of happiness, in fact the more passionate you are the higher the level of heaven you will reach!
The pursuit of happiness then is the reason God created man as I understand it.
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