Pubali Bardhan
asked:
The Dalai Lama says that it is every person's right to seek happiness. But what if seeking this happiness involves harming others in the process? How can this be justified? And how do we distinguish that sort of happiness from the real deal?
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The Art of Happiness,
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Mary Gargent
I don't think anyone can be truly happy if it is at the cost of someone else's unhappiness.
John Marsh
The true Happiness described here comes from within and is intrinsic to oneself. It is not external or gained at the expense of others and is not win-lose. It does not come out of a bottle, from physical goods or at anyones's expense. It is subltle, light, simple, unique and its footprint is nil. Good question.
Ljiljana Šupraha
Every time we need to hurt someone on the way of our "happiness", it just means that we are not happy. This is the worst expression of our personal unhappiness. Each time I consciously or unconsciously hurt someone, I know that something is wrong in me and with me....
Bob Dunn
He also asserts that the best way to find happiness is through compassion. Connection to others through compassion brings happiness. I struggle to imagine compassion for another driving us to cause harm.
Forked Radish
Don't worry about those who derive happiness from harming others as they're in the minority... Probably only 49% or so of the general population. My recipe for happiness is to seek misery. Since nearly everyone who seeks happiness only finds misery. So, ironically, by seeking misery you'll probably quadruple your chances of finding happiness... Maybe, to something like 0.04% or 4 in 10,000. Not so shabby!
K Lane
You need to really analyse what "happiness" actually is - there can be no joy in anything that has it's roots in harmfulness - and "happiness" has little to do with material things......but much to do with gentle kindness that is shared with others.
Aurélien Thomas
It's not justified.
Harming others means that, either you have no knowledge of the harmful consequences of your action (which goes against one of our most biologically rooted trait: empathy) or you are just being cruel out of carelessness or selfishness. Either way, you are not being compassionate; and compassion is the key to happiness. How do you feel when harming others? Guilt. Remorse. Regret. Everything but peace of mind that is, happiness. In fact, even if you feel nothing, your selfishness will be enough for others to mistrust you - and what a sad and lonely fate will await you then!
The real deal is to have peace of mind; free of negative emotions like anger, frustration, resent, hatred... Only gentleness can achieve that; certainly not the pursuit of goals (themselves rooted in unsatisfied desires) that may blind you to such an extent that you are loosing your empathy.
Harming others means that, either you have no knowledge of the harmful consequences of your action (which goes against one of our most biologically rooted trait: empathy) or you are just being cruel out of carelessness or selfishness. Either way, you are not being compassionate; and compassion is the key to happiness. How do you feel when harming others? Guilt. Remorse. Regret. Everything but peace of mind that is, happiness. In fact, even if you feel nothing, your selfishness will be enough for others to mistrust you - and what a sad and lonely fate will await you then!
The real deal is to have peace of mind; free of negative emotions like anger, frustration, resent, hatred... Only gentleness can achieve that; certainly not the pursuit of goals (themselves rooted in unsatisfied desires) that may blind you to such an extent that you are loosing your empathy.
Saokondanna Khamhseng
if you are seeking happiness by harming others, it doesn't mean mean that you really love happiness, coz if you truly love happiness, whatever actions you take for your happiness you always consider to yourself.
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