Happiness is just a Direction, not the Aim

The modern psyche is perpetually conditioned by two interlocking ideologies: the ephemeral decree of "YOLO—You Only Live Once" and the imperative that, to fulfil it, one must be perpetually happy. This contemporary dogma, however, stands 180 degrees opposite to reality.

This relentless pursuit of elusive happiness is not accidental; it is an engine for continuous change, novelty, and consumerism. When pleasure is fleeting, the need to acquire the next fleeting sensation drives purchasing behaviour. This cycle serves the economic mandate of capitalism, where profit becomes the sole motive. In this model, capital reigns supreme, and humanity finds itself grossly digressing from its intended path of genuine self-realisation.

To understand why happiness cannot be the ultimate aim, we must first recognise the fundamental duality of our existence—the impermanent vessel and the eternal animating force.

The Architecture of Being: Hardware vs. Software

Our existence is defined by two primary, coexisting aspects: the physical body, acting as ‘hardware’, and the imperishable ‘software’ of the soul, or Self. Our experience of the world—and of pleasure and pain—is a result of the interaction between these two distinct systems in a dualistic, dimensional reality.

I. The Outer Shell (Hardware): The Body’s Pursuit of Ease

The physical body, the ‘hardware’, is fundamentally characterised by massivity (or inertia), compelling it to maintain its state of rest and move away from arduous labour. Its function is to interface with the sensory world, providing the soul with data through the five senses.

When the body’s sensors receive favourable and enjoyable information—be it taste, touch, sight, sound, or smell—it enters an excited state that we perceive as pleasure. However, the mind’s natural mechanism dictates that this sensory novelty reduces with the passage of time, leading the body to require a new stimulus or a state of rest. This dependency on external sensory data renders pleasure as an inherently temporary pursuit.

II. The Inner Core (Software): The Soul’s States

The internal, imperishable Self—the soul—also experiences distinct states.

• Pain/Regret: The soul experiences pain not from criticism, insult, the undermining of its truth, or the ignoring of its fundamental existence. The soul's lowest psychological state is regret, a compounding sorrow arising from unaddressed ethical failures.

  
  

• Normal State: The soul’s natural, undisturbed baseline is one of no change or intrinsic self-interest, reflecting its inherent nature of existence.

  
  

• Excited State: The excited state of the soul is popularly defined as happiness. This is a state where the soul feels potential freedom and actualisation. For example, news of winning a lottery or receiving a large sum can make one instantly happy. It is a potential asset which can help an individual receive favourable and choice experiences.

Pleasure, Equanimity, and Addiction

The dichotomy between the body's hardware and the soul's software reveals the fundamental flaw in making happiness the ultimate goal.

The Trap of Excitement: The Neurochemical Loop

Those who conclude that happiness is the aim quickly seek to reverse-engineer that excited state, recognising it as the result of key neurochemicals like dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin. This leads directly to the dangerous trend of artificially inducing the state through external stimulants, such as taking drugs like MDMA.

This external dependence is self-sabotaging because both pleasure and happiness are inherently addictive. Dopamine, in particular, fuels reward-seeking behaviour. Research confirms that unchecked spikes from fleeting pleasures disrupt the neurochemical baseline, compelling the individual to crave increasingly intense external stimulation—a cycle known as the hedonic treadmill. The pursuit of this peak excitement creates profound instability in consciousness, making the soul’s true baseline (equanimity) feel dull and uninteresting.

The Goal: Equanimity, Not Happiness

The true destination of the soul’s journey is not the fleeting, dualistic state of happiness, but equanimity—the "normal" state of the enlightened consciousness. Equanimity (Samata) is defined in ancient philosophy as accepting success and failure with equal ease.

This state is beneficial because it frees the Self from the binding effects of Karma (action and reaction). By mastering equanimity, the 'Self' transcends the push-pull of pleasure and pain, moving beyond the dualistic trap (Nirdvandva). This realisation is the absence of pain (Dukkha), which naturally reverts the soul to its intrinsic quality of Bliss (Ananda).

The Necessity of Duality and Physical Reality

Furthermore, the idea that happiness can be maintained purely as a “state of mind” without accountability to the physical reality is a dangerous fancy. The spiritual journey is explicitly conducted within a dualistic world—the world of the experiencer (Self) and the experienced (nature or environment).

• The Environment as a Variable: The external environment and physical reality are non-negotiable variables that constantly condition our spiritual learning. The body is subject to external dualities like heat and cold, which produce physical pains. Our emotional and psychological well-being is constantly affected by these environmental factors, meaning true spiritual progress must lead to the capacity to act justly and remain centred despite the unpredictable environment.

• Action over Isolation: The physical world acts as a "Human Compressed Learning System"—a school where the soul enters to gain experience and validate its conclusions through action. Therefore, the path of the soul is not to isolate the mind in a fantasy of perpetual happiness but to integrate the mind’s wisdom and the body’s action in alignment with the cosmic ethical code, Dharma.

The ultimate aim (Paramartha) is not to chase a subjective, volatile feeling (happiness), but to achieve a permanent, non-dual state of equanimity by destruction of three pains. A blissful state that is earned through wisdom, experience, and ethical action. This supports the Purushartha—the continuous, conscious evolution of the Self.