The World and Happiness
The wise often assert that true joy and lasting happiness cannot be found in the world, in created things, and yet this is only partially true. Indeed, God has placed within creation delights and pleasures that can lift our hearts—moments of laughter, beauty, and peace. The key lies in the word moments.
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The problem is that all joy drawn from the world is fleeting. Every gift, every pleasure, every success is temporary, and yet our hearts long for something enduring. So we chase these fleeting delights, seeking to capture what cannot be held. When one source of happiness fades, we turn to another, and another, becoming trapped in a cycle of desire that the world can never truly satisfy.
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Christ Himself offers the solution. As He told the Samaritan woman at the well:
“Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (John 4:13–14).
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The joy Christ offers is not fleeting, nor does it depend on external circumstances. It is the living water of the Spirit, a wellspring that rises within our hearts and flows into eternal life. In Him, we find the only satisfaction that does not fade, the only delight that endures beyond the passing moments of this world.
I once asked Swamiji (Swami Sarvapriyananda) about the nature of happiness, and his answer was profound. He said:
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“Happiness, or ananda, is our very nature. It is intrinsic to who we are, and thus we naturally seek it. The difficulty lies in the fact that we look for it in the wrong place. Happiness is not something to be obtained from outside; it already resides within us, as our Self. Because we exist eternally, we desire happiness to be constant. Yet all joy that comes from external sources is fleeting. True happiness must be discovered inwardly, in our natural state of being. Fundamentally, we are existence-being-awareness itself—eternal and complete. Nothing outside is necessary. By turning our attention inward, toward the Self, we realize that we already possess all that is needed for joy and peace.”
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A complementary perspective comes from Michael James, who observes why we often feel happiness arises from external things. The mind is restless, constantly seeking relief from its own turbulence. It may find temporary peace in a new car, a relationship, a meal, or any other object of desire. Once the mind’s craving is momentarily satisfied, it withdraws and we experience a brief calm—a fleeting happiness “off” the mind.
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The theological insight here is striking: the absence of the restless mind is itself happiness. When we no longer crave or depend on anything external, stillness and joy naturally arise. This demonstrates that happiness is never truly given by the world; it dwells within us already. By silencing the mind—or letting it settle unnoticed—and by resting in the awareness of our Self, we touch our eternal joy.
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The simple truth of I Am—our pure existence—is the gateway to this inner happiness. In the silent awareness of the Self, happiness is not sought; it simply is. It is unchanging, ever-present, and divine.
The Dead and the living
Matt 22:32: “I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.”
The God which Christ is referring to is a “living” God. ‘I am’ is the living God that we experience when realizing our true nature. Before that we are as good as dead and seemingly trapped in the cycle of birth and death, i.e. samsara.
The problem is not that we die but that we don’t “really” die as an ego. If we would just die as a rule of nature when the body vanishes, that would be the end of it, then there wouldn’t be any problem. But, because we identify ourselves as some separate being, namely ego, we rise again to experience another dream, we call “my life”.
All the great prophets and Masters have recognized their self and thus they are free from the illusion of an individual being, a particular ‘I’. They have realized that ‘Tat Twam Asi’, That you are ‘is true and there is no other but Brahman.
We, on the other hand are still convinced that there is an ‘I’ in me, somewhere inside my body that has an existence of its own. It was born and someday it will die along with the body. That is why we must investigate and know who we really are. Who am I? That’s the first and only question that needed answered according to Sri Ramana. Otherwise, we are as good as dead.
Christ's Commandment 1
Jesus said:
“Love the Lord your God (allaha) with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”
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The Aramaic word allaha refers to the origin and sustaining power of the universe—omnipresent, infinite, and immanent. It is in the air we breathe, in the beating of our hearts, and in the very awareness of our existence.
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No one loves what is truly unknown to them. Love arises naturally for what is close, intimate, and essential to our being. What is closest to us than ourselves? Each of us loves our own existence more than anything else. Yet, Jesus is not speaking of the body, the personality, or the temporary self. The love He calls us to is directed to the eternal Self, the divine I Am that underlies all being—the God within.
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The certainty of our own existence is perhaps the only truth beyond dispute. All other assumptions, opinions, and beliefs may shift, but the awareness of I am is unshakeable.
In this light, to love God with all one’s heart is inseparable from the practice of self-inquiry. As we turn our attention inward, the illusory, separate “I” gradually dissolves, and the eternal, unbounded God—our true Self—reveals itself. This is not a distant or abstract experience; it is immediate and intimate. Like a flower opening in the heart, the divine I Am blooms within us, revealing the eternal presence that has always been there.
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To love God is, therefore, to awaken to the Self, to recognize our own divine being, and to abide in the unceasing joy and awareness of existence itself.
Why is this particular commandment—the call to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind—the most important? What is its message and ultimate purpose?
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We recall that Jesus also said:​ “Be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect.”
This teaching suggests that our true being, our fundamental reality, is already whole, complete, and perfect. Spiritual practice does not create this perfection; rather, it helps us recognize it. The divine reality is not something to be earned—it is our very nature. Yet unless we directly experience it, it remains only an intellectual idea. Only through lived understanding, through recognition of this perfection within ourselves, can our limited conception of reality be transformed into true awareness.
Jesus emphasizes this instruction because knowing ourselves is the gateway to all other knowledge.
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He said:
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“Seek first the kingdom of heaven, and all these things will be given to you.”
The kingdom of heaven is not a distant realm; it is the recognition of God, the I Am, within our own hearts. Unfortunately, we tend to do the opposite: we search for fulfillment in the world, in fleeting pleasures, achievements, or relationships. When those external pursuits fail to satisfy, we are finally compelled to turn inward, seeking the Higher Power and the eternal source of joy.
When we focus on ourselves—the I that underlies all thought and experience—the mind’s restless turning outward gradually weakens. The more we turn inward, the more natural it becomes to dwell in the awareness of our own divine reality. Self-examination, however, risks remaining abstract if it is dry and detached. To awaken fully, this inward attention must be nourished with love—the love of God, the love of the Self.
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Love is the sacred force that animates self-inquiry, giving us both the courage and the joy to continue. It is love that transforms mere curiosity into devotion, guiding us from the knowledge of the intellect to the experience of the heart. By loving God, our true Self, we enter into the eternal perfection that Jesus calls us to, and in doing so, all else is given—because in God, all is already complete.
Christ's Commandment 2
Jesus said:​ “Love your neighbor as thyself.”
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At first glance, this commandment appears simple. Everyone loves themselves, yet until we truly know and recognize our own eternal Self, we cannot fully recognize it in others. Compassion and care for others are vital; we must reduce self-centeredness by attending to those closest to us and extending our concern even to strangers. Stepping into the shoes of others, empathizing with their joys and sorrows, is an important practice. But the deeper theological significance of Jesus’ statement points to an inward journey: first recognizing our true Self.
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When we turn our gaze inward, we realize that the separate individual “I” is largely a construct of the mind, a fragile identity we cling to, often for many lifetimes. Beneath this illusory ego lies the eternal, unchanging Self—the pure awareness of I Am. This is not merely an intellectual truth; it is a living experience, the very essence of existence.
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Once this recognition dawns, we see that the same I Am that is our true Self is also the Self of every other being. The divine presence in me is the divine presence in you. In this realization, love for oneself and love for one’s neighbor become inseparable: to love oneself is to love all, and to see the Self in another is to recognize that there is only one eternal I, manifesting in all beings.
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Before this awakening, our attempts to love others are partial and conditioned, though still meaningful. Acts of kindness, forgiveness, and compassion are preparatory steps along the path, helping to soften the heart and open the mind. Ultimately, the purpose of this teaching is the same as the goal of every spiritual seeker: liberation from suffering and full recognition of our true nature, which is eternally free, peaceful, and whole.
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In loving our neighbor as ourselves, we are not simply performing a moral duty; we are recognizing and honoring the divine, unchanging Self that pervades all life. In this recognition, Jesus’ instruction becomes not just ethical guidance, but a direct path to union with God and the realization of our eternal freedom.