02.66 – Are we getting the happiness sequence right?

All of us want to be happy. The world makes us believe that we will become happy by fulfilling our material desires.

However, this pathway leads to not happiness but frustration. Why? Because all material desires are insatiable and innumerable.

1. Insatiable: The more we satisfy a desire, the more it blazes forth. Consequently, the brief satisfaction that comes from satisfying it becomes dwarfed by the prolonged dissatisfaction that comes from its increased magnitude.
2. Innumerable: Our unfulfilled desires far outnumber our fulfilled desires. So the torment arising from our unfulfilled desires far outweighs the joy arising from our fulfilled desires.

To become happy, we need to get the happiness sequence right. The Bhagavad-gita (2.66) gives this sequence through rhetorical negation: if we are not connected with Krishna, our intelligence can’t be fixed; if our intelligence is not fixed, our mind can’t be steady; if our mind is not steady, we can’t be peaceful; if we aren’t peaceful, how can we be happy?

Let’s re-analyze this sequence as a progression to happiness:

1. We connect ourselves with Krishna through devotional service. This Krishna-connection fixes our intelligence in the understanding that fulfilling spiritual desires is productive and fulfilling material desires is counterproductive.
2. With this fixed intelligence, we steady our mind and ensure that it doesn’t get conquered or carried away by unwarranted material desires.
3. A steady mind enables us to redirect our quest for happiness from the world to Krishna.
4.  This redirected quest deepens and strengthens our Krishna-connection and thereby enables us to relish lasting happiness.

So, next time when we feel dissatisfied due to worldly desires, let’s get the happiness sequence right: let’s strive to enhance our Krishna-connection, experience spiritual happiness and thereby get rid of both the dissatisfaction and the dissatisfaction-inducing desires.