why be happy?

well when ur happy life for some reason is more happy and people around tend to be more happy and well you only have 100 years...why waste one

It fills the time up rather nicely untill you die, I find.

why not?

because life is short.

why not?

why not ?

Don't be happy.
The planets being destroyed by pollution.
Its not safe to walk the street
There is no future for our kids
Crime is rife and nearly everyone's on drugs
Murderers,rapists and terrorists live among us.
Disease is rife
Common decency is dead
We're all gonna die
Grat life innit

do'nt be

cuz God loves us :)

Well if you're not happy life becomes a lot harder that's for sure. Believe me I know.

The answer "why not" or "because life is short/you might as well", is a pretty poor attempt in my opinion. I'm sure there are better reasons for being happy, than just because you "might as well", because it's the default thing to do. Bit of a cop-out really. That kind of answer doesn't help someone who's suicidal. Happiness isn't as simple as that. Obviously there are many things in life that cause pain and suffering, and many things that bring joy.

Personally I don't value happiness that highly. It is certainly not the highest goal a human can aspire to. People can be "happy" and still be complete arseholes. Even the word "happiness" really means something that is temporary and fleeting, connected with words like "happen", "mishap", and "happenstance".

Happiness is laughing at a joke, or drinking a cup of tea, or watching a child smile. It comes easily, and goes easily. But as for me, I would rather look for something more permanent. Call it a sense of inner peace, or joy, or whatever you will, "true happiness". Someone who's really at peace, I think (because I can only speculate until I reach that position), is not just "happy". Any fool can be "happy" and dance around like a child saying life is wonderful. That doesn't prove anything, because any smart person can see that, most of the time, life simply is neither happy nor wonderful. A huge part of life for the majority of people, is boring and uncomfortable and painful and sometimes seems pointless.

But, that's ok. Because life doesn't need to be happy. Life is about more than just being "happy". Even if you were "happy", then what? What would it prove? It might make you look better in public. Look how many people in the world are apparently "happy", and yet lead utterly meaningless existences, or simply aren't aware of the suffering of others, or some who don't care. (Don't misunderstand me: I'm not saying that people who are happy are necessarily any less caring. Of course not). But I would far sooner have a meaningful life that wasn't always "happy", than live without knowing a deeper level to life, if the choice was there.

The real task is to be able to acknowledge the darker side of life, the apparent meaninglessness, the unfairness, the bitterness and coldness and wastefulness, the disappointment and shame and rejection, alongside all the good things. The joy, love, warmth, communion, family, friendship, trust, laughter, helping one another, etc. To take life as a two-edged sword, and accept it as it is, and still feel at peace. I believe life is more than we see in this existence.

Surely it's much more meaningful to feel the love and satisfaction when you help someone in need, to experience the joy despite the pain, or to enjoy a deep relationship with a good friend, a relationship made so meaningful because of the shared suffering, than merely to be "happy". People are miserable because they spend their time searching for "happiness", when perhaps it is not what they should be focussing on. "Happiness" is not so difficult to achieve. What's difficult is being able to laugh despite the tears. Because there will be tears. But the smile that comes after tears is the most beautiful kind of smile. Rainbows wouldn't exist if it was always sunny.

I suppose there is not an easy answer to the question. But maybe, when asked "Why be happy?", the answer might be simply "Because I want to be". That might sound like a cop-out. It's the same question in life, "Why live?". Why bother with anything? Again, there is no real answer to the question someone can give you from outside. It has to come from inside. You choose to live because you *want* to live. This is one of the easiest decisions in the world, which is why people can say happiness is a choice, and yet also the hardest, because it has to come from you. If you have a "why" to live, you can cope with almost any "how". Because underneath everything, there is still an order. There is still love. There is still beauty. There is still a reason to be. There are still things to aspire to, goals to work to, people to help and lives to touch, and things to learn. Despite all the nihilistic thinking of the modern age, noone is able to prove this life is all there is, and never will be able to.

This kind of topic is difficult to discuss because English, unlike some other languages, is seriously lacking in words to describe emotional and spiritual concepts, like happiness and love. I would try to make some kind of distinction between "happiness" ie the often fleeting sense of feeling good about life which is usually affected by external things like good health and physical beauty, diet, living environment, loving partner, good job, etc, from a deeper sense of "peace" or "contentment" or "wholeness", which is open to everyone regardless of what they were given or not given at birth. In the world in which we live, people who start out life with more comfortable lifestyles and supportive families, attractive physical bodies, an intelligent mind and good career prospects, and who can choose to live in a peaceful environment with access to the natural world and holidays abroad, are probably going to be happier than someone stuck in a city, who grew up in a poor family that treated them badly or never encouraged them, and who is physically and intellectually challenged. There are clearly things you can do to promote physical and emotional well-being, eg eating and sleeping well, living in a quiet environment, having a good social network and supportive friends, and activities that stimulate you. This is perhaps the kind of happiness most people talk about. But it is completely dependent on external factors. Of course it's important to look after your life physically. But well-being is not the same as true happiness. What happens if you lose your health, or your job, or your partner dies, or when you grow old and are no longer attractive? You're happy when you've bought that new dress and bored a week later. Society seems to only talk about this kind of happiness, which is limited to only certain people because it depends on external factors and factors often not in your control. This then leads to many people being excluded from this and feeling incapable of achieving happiness, while they see some people able to have it so easily, and it baffles them. If happiness exists at all, shouldn't it be possible for everyone to achieve it, regardless of where or how they were born, what has happened to them, where they live, etc? What about true happiness?


Actually, noone can give you true happiness. Because you already have it. You dont need to look for it, and there is nothing you can do and no possessions you can own or experiences you can have or places you can go or people you can be with that will add anything to your happiness, and anyone who tries to tell you otherwise is deceiving you. It won't come from winning the lottery, or buying a big house or fast car, or getting a high-powered job, or meeting a beautiful, "perfect" partner who loves you, or from standing on the top of a mountain or travelling to the moon, or taking drugs, or sleeping with the most beautiful people, or doing anything else you can think of. Sure, you can spend your youth experiencing all these things. Sure, all these things will give you a lot of pleasure and satisfaction and maybe build your self-esteem and pride. But that is not the same as happiness. It won't leave you at peace. They will make you feel incredible for a short period, and each time you will still be left wanting more. Every single time. And each time you will want more. All these searches for happiness are really in effect another form of drug abuse, just in disguise. Because none of these things nourish your soul, and it demands more. You don't need to go anywhere or do anything other than what you're doing, where you're sitting now, in order to be truly at peace.

Because all the happiness you ever need is already in you. This might sound absurd, but hear me out. Perhaps you don't even need to ask the question "why", because in fact you have no choice *but* to be happy. You're already happy, even if you feel the opposite. You just don't realise it because you've buried it under years of negative thoughts and misery. The sun has always been shining, but you've never seen it because of the clouds.

Just some thoughts...feel free to disagree.

Hope that helps :)

You don't have to be if you don't want to, no law in the land says you have, I love been happy, I'm just that sort of person, I have a wonderful husband that makes me very happy, a beautiful dog that makes me laugh with happiness and my life is really good and that is better than been happy, so for me, why be happy, because its what I want to be.

If you are happy but saying - why be happy, you are very lucky that you have a choice .. Some people just can not be happy !!

People spend thier entire lives making a problem out of life, and when it comes time to die they look back and realize that being upset and angry all of the time was not the best way to live. Try to stay in the moment and live for the moment, don't make an issue about the past because it's already over and done with and the future is not here yet. There's no time like right now to start being happy for the rest of your day. One day at a time you can be happy too.

You should be happy to safe your life by having good health.

why be happy I have to take medicin. four types so can stay from killing myself.Happy? I wish to god couldbehappywhy be happyfigure that out for yourself, If you not at least some time whats the worth of liveing?

your happyness may make others happy.
happy is good

Because the alternative sucks! Especially when one realizes he/she is solely responsible for his/her own happiness. Once you got that down it makes no sense to be unhappy.

Cos ur gonna die eventually, so might as well make the time ur alive worthwhile. And, time flies when ur having fun... drags when ur feeling down... so might as well get this sh*t over with asap!

Ooh... think im in a bit of a bad mood tonight! lol

because its better than being a miserable far*

being happy is normal

It just feels so good and makes life so much better I hate mean people !

you can't be happy all the time

why not be happy