The worst sin — perhaps the only sin — passion can commit is to be joyless.
—Dorothy L. Sayers (1893–1957) British Novelist, Playwright, Essayist, Translator, Poet
We deem those happy who from the experience of life have learned to bear its ills, without being overcome by them.
—Juvenal (c.60–c.136 CE) Roman Poet
As the great Confucius said, “The one who would be in constant happiness must frequently change”. Flow. But we keep looking back, don’t we? We cling to things in the past and cling to things in the present…Do you want to enjoy a symphony? Don’t hold on to a few bars of the music. Don’t hold on to a couple of notes. Let them pass, let them flow. The whole enjoyment of a symphony lies in your readiness to allow the notes to pass…
—Anthony de Mello (1931–87) Indian-born American Theologian
Be happy while you’re living, for you’re a long time dead.
—Scottish Proverb
Manifest plainness, embrace simplicity, reduce selfishness, have few desires.
—Laozi (b.604BCE–d:Unknown) Chinese Philosopher
A multitude of small delights constitute happiness.
—Charles Baudelaire (1821–67) French Poet, Art Critic, Essayist, Translator
I am learning to understand rather than immediately judge or to be judged. I cannot blindly follow the crowd and accept their approach. I will not allow myself to indulge in the usual manipulating game of role creation. Fortunately for me, my self-knowledge has transcended that and I have come to understand that life is best to be lived and not to be conceptualized. I am happy because I am growing daily and I am honestly not knowing where the limit lies. To be certain, every day there can be a revelation or a new discovery. I treasure the memory of the past misfortunes. It has added more to my bank of fortitude.
—Bruce Lee (1940–73) Hong-Kong-born American Sportsperson, Actor, Philosopher, Film Director, Screenwriter
Happiness cannot come from without. It must come from within.
—Helen Keller (1880–1968) American Author
Don’t say, “I am depressed”. If you want to say, “It is depressed,” that’s all right. If you want to say that depression is there, that’s fine; if you want to say gloominess is there, that’s fine. But not: I am gloomy. You’re defining yourself in terms of the feeling. That’s your illusion; that’s your mistake. There is a depression there right now, but let it be, leave it alone. It will pass. Everything passes, everything. Your depressions and your thrills have nothing to do with happiness. Those are swings of the pendulum. If you seek kicks or thrills, get ready for depression. Do you want your drug? Get ready for the hangover. One end of the pendulum swings over to the other.
—Anthony de Mello (1931–87) Indian-born American Theologian
A great obstacle to happiness is to expect too much happiness.
—Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle (1657–1757) French Essayist
Whoever is happy will make others happy too.
—Anne Frank (1929–45) Holocaust Victim
Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude.
—Denis Waitley (b.1933) American Motivational Speaker, Author
How bitter a thing it is to look into happiness through another man’s eyes!
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
Continuity of purpose is one of the most essential ingredients of happiness in the long run, and for most men this comes chiefly through their work.
—Bertrand A. Russell (1872–1970) British Philosopher, Mathematician, Social Critic
All times are beautiful for those who maintain joy within them; but there is no happy or favorable time for those with disconsolate or orphaned souls.
—Rosalia de Castro
Happiness is a thing to be practiced, like the violin.
—John Lubbock
Happiness is not having what you want, but wanting what you have.
—Hyman Judah Schachtel (1907–90) American Jewish Religious Leader
People who postpone happiness are like children who try chasing rainbows in an effort to find the pot of gold at the rainbow’s end… Your life will never be fulfilled until you are happy here and now.
—Ken Keyes, Jr. (1921–95) American Motivational Speaker, Author, Lecturer
There is no duty we so much underrate as the duty of being happy. By being happy, we sow anonymous benefits upon the world, which remain unknown even to ourselves, or when they are disclosed, surprise nobody so much as the benefactor.
—Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–94) Scottish Novelist
By becoming more unhappy, we sometimes learn how to be less so.
—Sophie Swetchine (1782–1857) Russian Christian Mystic
Suspicion of happiness is in our blood.
—E. V. Lucas (1868–1938) English Author, Historian
Pleasure is the object, duty and the goal of all rational creatures.
—Voltaire (1694–1778) French Philosopher, Author
What can be added to the happiness of a man who is in health, out of debt, and has a clear conscience?
—Adam Smith (1723–90) Scottish Philosopher, Economist
It is impossible for a man to be made happy by putting him in a happy place, unless he be first in a happy state.
—Benjamin Whichcote (1609–83) British Anglican Priest, Theologian, Philosopher
True happiness comes from the joy of deeds well done, the zest of creating things new.
—Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1900–44) French Novelist, Aviator
False happiness is like false money; it passes for a time as well as the true, and serves some ordinary occasions; but when it is brought to the touch, we find the lightness and alloy, and feel the loss.
—Alexander Pope (1688–1744) English Poet
Farms and in castles, in homes, studies, and cloisters — where sensible people manage to live relatively lusty and decent lives, as moral as they must be, as free as they may be, and as masterly as they can be. If we only knew it, this elusive arrangement is happiness.
—Erik Erikson (1902–94) German-born American Psychologist, Psychoanalyst, Writer
The road to happiness lies in two simple principles: find what it is that interests you and that you can do well, and when you find it, put your whole soul into it — every bit of energy and ambition and natural ability you have.
—John D. Rockefeller III (1906–78) American Philanthropist
It has long been an axiom of mine that the little things are infinitely the most important.
—Arthur Conan Doyle (1859–1930) Scottish Writer
Of all created comforts, God is the lender; you are the borrower, not the owner.
—Samuel Rutherford (1600–61) Scottish Presbyterian Theologian, Author
Happiness is something you get as a by-product in the process of making something else.
—Aldous Huxley (1894–1963) English Humanist, Pacifist, Essayist, Short Story Writer, Satirist
There is no cosmetic for beauty like happiness.
—Marguerite Gardiner, Countess of Blessington (1789–1849) Irish Novelist, Writer
Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.
—Marcel Proust (1871–1922) French Novelist
My life has no purpose, no direction, no aim, no meaning, and yet I’m happy. I can’t figure it out. What am I doing right?
—Charles M. Schulz (1922–2000) American Cartoonist, Writer, Artist
The opposite of love is indifference, and the opposite of happiness is—here’s the clincher—boredom.
—Tim Ferriss (b.1977) American Self-help Author
My crown is in my heart, not on my head, Nor decked with diamonds and Indian stones, Nor to be seen: My crown is called content: A crown it is, that seldom kings enjoy.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
To forgive is the highest, most beautiful form of love. In return, you will receive untold peace and happiness.
—Robert Muller
The most satisfying thing in life is to have been able to give a large part of oneself to others.
—Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881–1955) French Jesuit Philosopher, Paleontologist
I had rather have a fool to make me merry than experience to make me sad.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.
—Robert Brault
Happiness is like the penny candy of our youth: we got a lot more for our money back when we had no money.
—Mignon McLaughlin (1913–83) American Journalist, Author
I can sympathize with people’s pains, but not with their pleasures. There is something curiously boring about somebody else’s happiness.
—Aldous Huxley (1894–1963) English Humanist, Pacifist, Essayist, Short Story Writer, Satirist
Man needs, for his happiness, not only the enjoyment of this or that, but hope and enterprise and change.
—Bertrand A. Russell (1872–1970) British Philosopher, Mathematician, Social Critic
The highest happiness of man is to have probed what is knowable and quietly to revere what is unknowable.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) German Poet
To live we must conquer incessantly, we must have the courage to be happy.
—Henri Frederic Amiel (1821–81) Swiss Philosopher, Writer
Plenty of people miss their share of happiness, not because they never found it, but because they didn’t stop to enjoy it.
—William Feather (1889–1981) American Publisher, Author
Employment, which Galen calls “nature’s physician,” is so essential to human happiness that indolence is justly considered as the mother of misery.
—Richard Burton (1925–84) Welsh Actor
The only happiness a brave person ever troubles themselves in asking about, is happiness enough to get their work done.
—Thomas Carlyle (1795–1881) Scottish Historian, Essayist
One joy shatters a hundred griefs.
—Chinese Proverb
Caring about others, running the risk of feeling, and leaving an impact on people brings happiness.
—Harold Kushner (b.1935) American Jewish Religious Leader, Priest
Happiness is that state of consciousness which proceeds from the achievement of one’s values.
—Ayn Rand (1905–82) Russian-born American Novelist, Philosopher, Playwright, Screenwriter
To live and let live, without clamor for distinction or recognition; to wait on divine Love; to write truth first on the tablet of one’s own heart–this is the sanity and perfection of living, and my human ideal.
—Mary Baker Eddy (1821–1910) American Christian Science Religious Leader, Humanitarian, Writer
I would rather be ashes than dust! I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet. The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time.
—Jack London (1876–1916) American Novelist, Journalist
The secret of happiness is to find a congenial monotony.
—V. S. Pritchett (1900–97) British Short Story Writer, Biographer, Memoirist, Literary Critic
Silence is the perfectest herald of joy. I were but little happy if I could say how much.
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616) British Playwright
The search for happiness is one of the chief sources of unhappiness.
—Eric Hoffer (1902–83) American Philosopher, Author
I believe that the very purpose of our life is to seek happiness. That is clear. Whether one believes in religion or not, whether one believes in this religion or that religion, we all are seeking something better in life. So, I think, the very motion of our life is towards happiness.
—The 14th Dalai Lama (b.1935) Tibetan Buddhist Religious Leader, Civil Rights Leader, Philosopher, Author
The happiest people I have known in this world have been the Saints — and, after these, the men and women who get immediate and conscious enjoyment from little things.
—Hugh Walpole (1884–1941) English Novelist, Short Story Writer, Dramatist
Happiness walks on busy feet.
—Anonymous
The only true happiness comes from squandering ourselves for a purpose.
—John Mason Brown (1900–69) American Columnist, Journalist, Author
We have no more right to consume happiness without producing it than to consume wealth without producing it.
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950) Irish Playwright
Many things can make you miserable for weeks; few can bring you a whole day of happiness.
—Mignon McLaughlin (1913–83) American Journalist, Author
Happiness is a form of courage.
—Holbrook Jackson (1874–1948) British Journalist, Writer, Publisher
Happiness quite unshared can scarcely be called happiness; it has no taste.
—Emily Bronte (1818–48) English Novelist, Poet
Money, or even power, can never yield happiness unless it be accompanied by the goodwill of others.
—B. C. Forbes (1880–1954) Scottish-born American Journalist, Publisher
Happiness depends upon ourselves.
—Aristotle (384BCE–322BCE) Ancient Greek Philosopher, Scholar
So long as we can lose any happiness, we possess some.
—Booth Tarkington (1869–1946) American Novelist, Dramatist
When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us.
—Helen Keller (1880–1968) American Author
We all live with the objective of being happy; our lives are all different and yet the same.
—Anne Frank (1929–45) Holocaust Victim
Man’s real life is happy, chiefly because he is ever expecting that it soon will be so.
—Edgar Allan Poe (1809–49) American Poet
The best advice on the art of being happy is about as easy to follow as advice to be well when one is sick.
—Sophie Swetchine (1782–1857) Russian Christian Mystic
I do not know of any sure way of making others happy as being so oneself.
—Arthur Helps (1813–75) English Dramatist, Essayist
The greater part of our happiness or misery depends on our dispositions and not on our circumstances. We carry the seeds of the one or the other about with us in our minds wherever we go.
—Martha Washington (1731–1802) American First Lady
Every now and then, when the world sits just right, a gentle breath of heaven fills my soul with delight … .
—Hazelmarie ‘Mattie’ Elliott
Seek happiness for its own sake, and you will not find it; seek for duty, and happiness will follow as the shadow comes with the sunshine.
—Tryon Edwards American Theologian
Amusement is the happiness of those who cannot think.
—Alexander Pope (1688–1744) English Poet
The secret of happiness is to admire without desiring. And that is not happiness.
—F. H. Bradley (1846–1924) British Philosopher
Happiness is like a cat. If you try to coax it or call it, it will avoid you; it will never come. But if you pay not attention to it and go about your business, you’ll find it rubbing against your legs and jumping into your lap.
—William Bennett (b.1943) American Politician, Political Theorist, Government Official
This is life! It can harden and it can exalt.
—Henrik Ibsen (1828–1906) Norwegian Playwright
Perfect happiness is the absence of striving for happiness.
—Zhuang Zhou (369BCE–286BCE) Chinese Philosopher
No man is happy who does not think himself so.
—Publilius Syrus (fl.85–43 BCE) Syrian-born Roman Latin Writer
No man should desire to be happy who is not at the same time holy. He should spend his efforts in seeking to know and do the will of God, leaving to Christ the matter of how happy he should be.
—A. W. Tozer (1897–1963) American Christian Pastor, Preacher, Author, Editor
Work and live to serve others, to leave the world a little better than you found it and garner for yourself as much peace of mind as you can. This is happiness.
—David Sarnoff (1891–1972) American Broadcaster, Businessman
Happiness consists in activity. — Such is the constitution of our nature. — It is a running stream, and not a stagnant pool.
—John Mason Good
No one is in control of your happiness but you; therefore, you have the power to change anything about yourself or your life that you want to change.
—Barbara De Angelis (b.1951) American Lecturer, Author, TV Personality, Motivational Speaker
The man who follows the crowd will usually get no further than the crowd. The man who walks alone is likely to find himself in places no one has ever been.
—Alan Ashley-Pitt (Francis Phillip Wernig) American Writer, Aphorist
Happy people plan actions, they don’t plan results.
—Dennis Wholey
Happiness lies first of all in health.
—George William Curtis (1824–92) American Essayist, Public Speaker, Editor, Author
Real happiness is cheap enough, yet how dearly we pay for its counterfeit.
—Hosea Ballou (1771–1852) American Universalist Clergyman, Writer
Act happy, feel happy, be happy, without a reason in the world. Then you can love, and do what you will.
—Dan Millman (b.1946) American Children’s Books Writer, Sportsperson
Happiness is not in our circumstances, but in ourselves. It is not something we see, like a rainbow, or feel, like the heat of a fire. Happiness is something we are.
—John B. Sheerin (1907–92) American Catholic Columnist
Happiness comes more from loving than being loved; and often when our affection seems wounded it is only our vanity bleeding. To love, and to be hurt often, and to love again — this is the brave and happy life.
—J. E. Buckrose
I’m not happy, I’m cheerful. There’s a difference. A happy woman has no cares at all. A cheerful woman has cares but has learned how to deal with them.
—Beverly Sills (1929–2007) American Singer, Musician
The happiness of this life depends less on what befalls you than the way in which you take it.
—Elbert Hubbard (1856–1915) American Writer, Publisher, Artist, Philosopher
Happiness is a Swedish sunset; it is there for all, but most of us look the other way and lose it.
—Mark Twain (1835–1910) American Humorist
All mankind are happier for having been happy, so that if you make them happy new, you make them happy twenty years hence by the memory of it.
—Sydney Smith (1771–1845) English Anglican Writer, Critic
The true object of all human life is play. Earth is a task garden; heaven is a playground.
—G. K. Chesterton (1874–1936) English Journalist, Novelist, Essayist, Poet
You can give without loving, but you can never love without giving. The great acts of love are done by those who are habitually performing small acts of kindness. We pardon to the extent that we love. Love is knowing that even when you are alone, you will never be lonely again. & great happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved. Loved for ourselves. & even loved in spite of ourselves.
—Victor Hugo (1802–85) French Novelist
On the whole, the happiest people seem to be those who have no particular cause for being happy except that they are so.
—William Ralph Inge (1860–1954) English Anglican Clergyman, Priest, Mystic
You are forgiven for your happiness and your successes only if you generously consent to share them.
—Albert Camus (1913–60) Algerian-born French Philosopher, Dramatist, Essayist, Novelist, Author
Unquestionably, it is possible to do without happiness; it is done involuntarily by nineteen-twentieths of mankind.
—John Stuart Mill (1806–73) English Philosopher, Economist
My advice to you is not to inquire why or whither, but just enjoy your ice cream while it’s on your plate.
—Thornton Wilder (1897–1975) American Novelist, Playwright
My creed is this: Happiness is the only good. The place to be happy is here. The time to be happy is now. The way to be happy is to make others so.
—Robert G. Ingersoll (1833–99) American Atheist Politician, Orator, Social Critic, Essayist
Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.
—Marcus Aurelius (121–180) Emperor of Rome, Stoic Philosopher
When neither their property nor their honor is touched, the majority of men live content.
—Niccolo Machiavelli (1469–1527) Florentine Political Philosopher
This is my “depressed stance.” When you’re depressed, it makes a lot of difference how you stand. The worst thing you can do is straighten up and hold your head high because then you’ll start to feel better. If you’re going to get any joy out of being depressed, you’ve got to stand like this.
—Charles M. Schulz (1922–2000) American Cartoonist, Writer, Artist
If we cannot live so as to be happy, let us at least live so as to deserve it.
—Immanuel Hermann Fichte (1796–1879) German Philosopher
Every period of life is obliged to borrow its happiness from time to come.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.
—Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869–1948) Indian Hindu Political leader
As we are now living in an eternity, the time to be happy is today.
—Grenville Kleiser (1868–1935) Canadian Author
Pleasure is a reciprocal; no one feels it who does not at the same time give it. To be pleased, one must please.
—Earl of Chesterfield
If you have nothing else to do, look at yourself and see if there isn’t something close at hand that you can improve. It may make you wealthy, although it is more likely it will make you happy.
—George Madison Adams (1837–1920) American Politician, Military Leader
The secret of living is to find a pivot, the pivot of a concept on which you can make your stand.
—Luigi Pirandello (1867–1936) Italian Dramatist, Novelist, Short Story Writer, Author
Again and again I therefore admonish my students in Europe and America: Don’t aim at success — the more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side effect of one’s personal dedication to a cause greater than oneself or as the by-product of one’s surrender to a person other than oneself. Happiness must happen, and the same holds for success: you have to let it happen by not caring about it. I want you to listen to what your conscience commands you to do and go on to carry it out to the best of your knowledge. Then you will live to see that in the long-run — in the long-run, I say! — success will follow you precisely because you had forgotten to think about it.
—Viktor Frankl (1905–97) Austrian Psychiatrist, Psychotherapist
Happiness is the only sanction of life; where happiness fails, existence remains a mad and lamentable experiment.
—George Santayana (1863–1952) Spanish Philosopher
A bit of fragrance always clings to the hand that gives you roses.
—Chinese Proverb
Service to a just cause rewards the worker with more real happiness and satisfaction than any other venture of life.
—Carrie Chapman Catt (1859–1947) American Civil Rights Leader
Your readiest desire is your path to joy even if it destroys you.
—Holbrook Jackson (1874–1948) British Journalist, Writer, Publisher
Action may not always bring happiness, but there is no happiness without action.
—Benjamin Disraeli (1804–81) British Head of State
Contempt for happiness is usually contempt for other people’s happiness, and is an elegant disguise for hatred of the human race.
—Bertrand A. Russell (1872–1970) British Philosopher, Mathematician, Social Critic
The object of living is work, experience, and happiness. There is joy in work. All that money can do is buy us someone else’s work in exchange for our own. There is no happiness except in the realization that we have accomplished something.
—Henry Ford (1863–1947) American Businessperson, Engineer
We must learn that to enjoy happiness we must conscientiously and continuously seek to spread happiness. Selfishness is suicidal to happiness.
—B. C. Forbes (1880–1954) Scottish-born American Journalist, Publisher
A mind always employed is always happy. This is the true secret, the grand recipe, for felicity.
—Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826) American Head of State, Lawyer
Few rich men own their own property. Their property owns them.
—Robert G. Ingersoll (1833–99) American Atheist Politician, Orator, Social Critic, Essayist
I am more and more convinced that our happiness or our unhappiness depends far more on the way we meet the events of life than on the nature of those events themselves.
—Wilhelm von Humboldt (1767–1835) German Philosopher, Diplomat, Educator, Public Administrator
A single sunbeam is enough to drive away many shadows.
—Saint Francis of Assisi (1181-1226) Italian Monk, Founder of the Franciscan Order
If one only wished to be happy, this could be easily accomplished; but we wish to be happier than other people, and this is always difficult, for we believe others to be happier than they are.
—Montesquieu (1689–1755) French Political Philosopher, Jurist
Happiness comes only when we push our brains and hearts to the farthest reaches of which we are capable.
—Leo Rosten (1908–97) Russian-born American Humorist, Teacher, Academic, Short Story Writer
Perfect love casts out fear. Where there is love there are no demands, no expectations, no dependency. I do not demand that you make me happy; my happiness does not lie in you. If you were to leave me, I will not feel sorry for myself; I enjoy your company immensely, but I do not cling.
—Anthony de Mello (1931–87) Indian-born American Theologian
Salvation of the Dawn
Look to this day,
For it is life,
The very life of life.
In its brief course lie all the truths
And realities of your existence;
The bliss of growth
The glory of action, and
The splendor of beauty;
For yesterday is but a dream
And tomorrow is only a vision,
But today well lived makes
Every yesterday a dream of happiness
And every tomorrow a vision of hope.
Look well, therefore, to this day.
Such is the salvation of the dawn.
—The Bhagavad Gita Hindu Scripture
Happiness is often the result of being too busy to be miserable.
—Unknown
In order to be utterly happy, the only thing necessary is to refrain from comparing this moment with other moments in the past, which I often did not fully enjoy because I was comparing them with other moments of the future.
—Andre Gide (1869–1951) French Novelist
There is no end of craving. Hence contentment alone is the best way to happiness. Therefore, acquire contentment.
—Sivananda Saraswati (1887–1963) Hindu Yogi, Spiritual Teacher
Some cause happiness wherever they go; others, whenever they go.
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish Poet
We are seldom happy with what we now have, but would go to pieces if we lost any part of it.
—Mignon McLaughlin (1913–83) American Journalist, Author
Part of the happiness of life consists not in fighting battles, but in avoiding them. A masterly retreat is in itself a victory.
—Norman Vincent Peale (1898–1993) American Clergyman, Self-Help Author
If all were gentle and contented as sheep, all would be as feeble and helpless.
—John Lancaster Spalding (1840–1916) American Catholic Clergyman, Educator, Essayist, Biographer
There is work that is work and there is play that is play; there is play that is work and work that is play. And in only one of these lies happiness.
—Gelett Burgess
Happiness comes from within a man, from some curious adjustment to life.
—Hugh Walpole (1884–1941) English Novelist, Short Story Writer, Dramatist
I am a kind of paranoiac in reverse. I suspect people of plotting to make me happy.
—J. D. Salinger (1919–2010) American Actor
Happiness includes chiefly the idea of satisfaction after full honest effort. No one can possibly be satisfied and no one can be happy who feels that in some paramount affairs he failed to take up the challenge of life.
—Arnold Bennett (1867–1931) British Novelist
One of things I keep learning is that the secret of being happy is doing things for other people.
—Dick Gregory
Consciously or unconsciously, every one of us does render some service or other. If we cultivate the habit of doing this service deliberately, our desire for service will steadily grow stronger, and will make not only for our own happiness but that of the world at large.
—Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869–1948) Indian Hindu Political leader
Wealth I ask not, hope nor love, nor a friend to know me; all I ask, the heavens above, and the road below me.
—Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–94) Scottish Novelist
It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that makes happiness.
—Charles Spurgeon (1834–92) British Baptist Preacher, Theologian, Hymn writer
Pleasure only starts once the worm has got into the fruit; to become delightful, happiness must be tainted with poison.
—Georges Bataille (1897–1962) French Philosopher, Writer
Those who seek happiness miss it, and those who discuss it, lack it.
—Holbrook Jackson (1874–1948) British Journalist, Writer, Publisher
Instinct teaches us to look for happiness outside ourselves.
—Blaise Pascal (1623–62) French Catholic Mathematician, Physicist, Inventor, Philosopher, Writer
Being happy is something you have to learn. I often surprise myself by Saying, “Wow, this is it. I guess I’m happy. I’ve got a home that I love. A career that I love. I’m even feeling more and more at peace with myself”. If there’s something else to happiness, let me know. I’m ambitious for that, too.
—Harrison Ford (b.1942) American Actor
Do all the good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as ever you can.
—John Wesley (1703–91) British Methodist Religious Leader, Preacher, Theologian
Set happiness before you as an end, no matter in what guise of wealth, or fame, or oblivion even, and you will not attain it. — But renounce it and seek the pleasure of God, and that instant is the birth of your own.
—Arthur Sherburne Hardy (1847–1930) American Engineer, Educator, Editor, Diplomat, Novelist, Poet
To be happy means to be free, not from pain or fear, but from care or anxiety.
—W. H. Auden (1907–73) British-born American Poet, Dramatist
If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.
—The 14th Dalai Lama (b.1935) Tibetan Buddhist Religious Leader, Civil Rights Leader, Philosopher, Author
No man is happy unless he believes he is.
—Publilius Syrus (fl.85–43 BCE) Syrian-born Roman Latin Writer
Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort. The joy and moral stimulation of work no longer must be forgotten in the mad chase of evanescent profits. These dark days will be worth all they cost us if they teach us that our true destiny is not to be ministered unto but to minister to ourselves and to our fellow men.
—Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945) American Head of State, Lawyer
Happiness doesn’t depend on what we have, but it does depend on how we feel towards what we have. We can be happy with little and miserable with much.
—William D. Hoard (1836–1918) American Elected Rep
Man must search for what is right, and let happiness come on its own.
—Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi (1746–1827) Swiss Educator
The main obligation is to amuse yourself.
—S. J. Perelman (1904–79) American Humorist, Author, Screenwriter
In vain do they talk of happiness who never subdued an impulse in obedience to a principle. He who never sacrificed a present to a future good, or a personal to a general one, can speak of happiness only as the blind do of colors.
—Horace Mann (1796–1859) American Educator, Politician, Educationalist
Never mind your happiness; do your duty.
—Will Durant (1885–1981) American Historian, Philosopher, Memoirist, Socialist
The principle of happiness should be like the principle of virtue: it should not be dependent of things, but be a part of personality (and character).
—William Lyon Phelps (1865–1943) American Author, Critic, Scholar
In theory there is a possibility of perfect happiness: To believe in the indestructible element within one, and not to strive towards it.
—Franz Kafka (1883–1924) Austrian Novelist, Short Story Writer
There is no way to happiness, happiness is the way.
—Thich Nhat Hanh (b.1926) Vietnamese Buddhist Religious Leader, Teacher, Author, Peace Activist
The happy people are those who are producing something; the bored people are those who are consuming much and producing nothing.
—William Ralph Inge (1860–1954) English Anglican Clergyman, Priest, Mystic
Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness. It is far better take things as they come along with patience and equanimity.
—Carl Gustav Jung (1875–1961) Swiss Psychologist, Psychiatrist, Philosopher
If you were happy every day of your life, you wouldn’t be a human being. You’d be a game show host.
—Anonymous
Life’s greatest happiness is to be convinced we are loved.
—Victor Hugo (1802–85) French Novelist
Blessedness consists in the accomplishment of our desires, and in our having only regular desires.
—Augustine of Hippo (354–430) Roman-African Christian Philosopher
Joy descends gently upon us like the evening dew, and does not patter down like a hailstorm.
—Jean Paul (1763–1825) German Novelist, Humorist
Real success is not on the stage, but off the stage as a human being, and how you get along with your fellow man.
—Sammy Davis, Jr. (1925–90) American Singer, Musician, Dancer, Actor
Rich bachelors should be heavily taxed. It is not fair that some men should be happier than others.
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish Poet
Training and managing your own mind is the most important skill you could ever own, in terms of both happiness and success.
—T. Harv Eker American Motivational Speaker, Lecturer, Author
Happiness is always a by-product. It is probably a matter of temperament, and for anything I know it may be glandular. But it is not something that can be demanded from life, and if you are not happy you had better stop worrying about it and see what treasures you can pluck from your own brand of unhappiness.
—Robertson Davies (1913–95) Canada Journalist, Playwright, Academic, Critic, Novelist
The truth is that all of us attain the greatest success and happiness possible in this life whenever we use our native capacities to their greatest extent.
—Smiley Blanton
We must have courage to bet on our ideas, on the calculated risk, and to act. Everyday living requires courage if life is to be effective and bring happiness.
—Maxwell Maltz (1899–1975) American Surgeon, Motivational Writer
If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun.
—Katharine Hepburn (1907–2003) American Actor, TV Personality
The human spirit needs to accomplish, to achieve, to triumph to be happy.
—Ben Stein (b.1944) American Lawyer, Writer, Economist, Humorist
If you are not happy here and now, you never will be.
—Taisen Deshimaru (1914–82) Japanese Buddhist Teacher
To attain happiness in another world we need only to believe something, while to secure it in this world we must needs do something.
—Charlotte Perkins Gilman (1860–1935) American Sociologist, Novelist, Short Story Writer, Poet, Feminist
There is this difference between happiness and wisdom, that he that thinks himself the happiest man really is so; but he that thinks himself the wisest is generally the greatest fool.
—Charles Caleb Colton (1780–1832) English Angelic Priest, Writer, Collector
Grief can take care of itself; but to get the full value of a joy you must have somebody to divide it with.
—Mark Twain (1835–1910) American Humorist
I had always imagined paradise as a kind of library.
—Jorge Luis Borges (1899–1986) Argentine Writer, Essayist, Poet
Yes, there is a Nirvanah; it is in leading your sheep to a green pasture, and in putting your child to sleep, and in writing the last line of your poem.
—Khalil Gibran (1883–1931) Lebanese-born American Philosopher, Poet, Painter, Theologian, Sculptor
Now and then it’s good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy.
—Guillaume Apollinaire (1880–1918) Italian-born French Poet, Playwright
A happy man or woman is a better thing to find than a five-pound note. He or she is a radiating focus of goodwill; and their entrance into a room is as though another candle had been lighted.
—Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–94) Scottish Novelist
First health, then wealth, then pleasure, and do not owe anything to anybody.
—Catherine II of Russia (1729–96) Russian Empress
If you want happiness for an hour — take a nap. If you want happiness for a day — go fishing. If you want happiness for a month — get married. If you want happiness for a year — inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime — help someone else.
—Chinese Proverb
When someone does something good, applaud! You will make two people happy.
—Samuel Goldwyn (1879–1974) Polish-born American Film Producer, Businessperson
Success is getting what you want. Happiness is wanting what you get.
—Benjamin Haydon (1786–1846) English Painter, Writer
The good life, as I conceive it, is a happy life. I do not mean that if you are good you will be happy; I mean that if you are happy you will be good.
—Bertrand A. Russell (1872–1970) British Philosopher, Mathematician, Social Critic
The habit of being uniformly considerate toward others will bring increased happiness to you.
—Grenville Kleiser (1868–1935) Canadian Author
But what is happiness except the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads?
—Albert Camus (1913–60) Algerian-born French Philosopher, Dramatist, Essayist, Novelist, Author
Human felicity is produced not as much by great pieces of good fortune that seldom happen as by little advantages that occur every day.
—Benjamin Franklin (1706–90) American Political Leader, Inventor, Diplomat
Contrary to what most of us believe, happiness does not simply happen to us. It’s something that we make happen, and it results from doing our best. Feeling fulfilled when we live up to our potentialities is what motivates differentiation and leads to evolution.
—Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (b.1934) Hungarian-American Psychologist
We must laugh before we are happy, for fear of dying without having laughed at all.
—Jean de La Bruyere
When unhappy, one doubts everything; when happy, one doubts nothing.
—Philibert Joseph Roux (1780–1854) French Surgeon
No thoroughly occupied man was ever yet very miserable.
—Letitia Elizabeth Landon (1802–38) English Poet, Novelist
Labor and trouble one can always get through alone, but it takes two to be glad.
—Henrik Ibsen (1828–1906) Norwegian Playwright
Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.
—Helen Keller (1880–1968) American Author
The secret of happiness is not in doing what one likes, but in liking what one does.
—J. M. Barrie (1860–1937) Scottish Novelist, Dramatist, Author
We communicate happiness to others not often by great acts of devotion and self-sacrifice, but by the absence of fault-finding and censure, by being ready to sympathize with their notions and feelings, instead of forcing them to sympathize with ours.
—Adam Clarke (1762–1832) British Methodist Scholar, Theologian, Clergyman
He is happy whose circumstances suit his temper; but he is more excellent who can suit his temper to any circumstances.
—David Hume (1711–76) Scottish Philosopher, Historian
Love is the condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.
—Robert A. Heinlein (1907–88) American Novelist, Short story Author, Essayist, Screenwriter
Happiness doesn’t come from doing what we like to do but from liking what we have to do.
—Wilferd Arlan Peterson (1900–95) American Author
Pleasure is very seldom found where it is sought. Our brightest blazes of gladness are commonly kindled by unexpected sparks. The flowers which scatter their odours from time to time in the paths of life, grow up without culture from seeds scattered by chance. Nothing is more hopeless than a scheme of merriment.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
I remember hearing in a talk that the more we express our gratitude to God for our blessings, the more he will bring to our mind other blessings. The more we are aware of to be grateful for, the happier we become.
—Ezra Taft Benson (1899–1994) American Mormon Religious Leader
Happiness radiates like the fragrance from a flower, and draws all good things toward you. Allow your love to nourish yourself as well as others. Do not strain after the needs of life. It is sufficient to be quietly alert and aware of them. In this way life proceeds more naturally and effortlessly. Life is here to Enjoy!
—Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (1914–2008) Indian Hindu Religious Leader
A life of ease is a difficult pursuit.
—William Cowper (1731–1800) English Anglican Poet, Hymn writer
Happiness is not so much in having as sharing. We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.
—Norman MacEwen British Military Leader
Happiness makes up in height what it lacks in length.
—Robert Frost (1874–1963) American Poet
The best things in life are nearest: Breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of right just before you. Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life’s plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life.
—Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–94) Scottish Novelist
To do the useful thing, to say the courageous thing, to contemplate the beautiful thing: that is enough for one man’s life.
—T. S. Eliot (1888–1965) American-born British Poet, Dramatist, Literary Critic
Happiness lies neither in vice nor in virtue; but in the manner we appreciate the one and the other, and the choice we make pursuant to our individual organization.
—Marquis de Sade (1740–1814) French Political leader, Revolutionary, Novelist, Poet, Critic
No man can tell whether he is rich or poor by turning to his ledger. It is the heart that makes a man rich. He is rich according to what he is, not according to what he has.
—Henry Ward Beecher (1813–87) American Protestant Clergyman, Social Reformer, Abolitionist
The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance; the wise grows it under his feet.
—James Oppenheim (1882–1932) American Poet, Novelist, Editor
Happiness depends more on how life strikes you than on what happens.
—Andy Rooney (b.1919) American Writer, Humorist, TV Personality
To be happy, we must not be too concerned with others.
—Albert Camus (1913–60) Algerian-born French Philosopher, Dramatist, Essayist, Novelist, Author
Happiness will never be any greater than the idea we have of it.
—Maurice Maeterlinck (1862–1949) Belgian Playwright, Poet, Essayist
It is the paradox of life that the way to miss pleasure is to seek it first. The very first condition of lasting happiness is that a life should be full of purpose, aiming at something outside self. As a matter of experience, we find that true happiness comes in seeking other things, in the manifold activities of life, in the healthful outgoing of all human powers.
—Hugo Black (1886–1971) American Politician, Jurist
All men have happiness as their object: there are no exceptions. However different the means they employ, they aim at the same end.
—Blaise Pascal (1623–62) French Catholic Mathematician, Physicist, Inventor, Philosopher, Writer
Happiness is not a destination. It is a method of life.
—Burton Hillis (William E. Vaughan) (1915–77) American Columnist, Author
Happiness is good health and a bad memory.
—Ingrid Bergman (1915–82) Swedish Actor
The happy have whole days,
and those they choose.
The unhappy have but hours,
and those they lose.
—Colley Cibber (1671–1757) English Playwright, Poet, Actor
We are long before we are convinced that happiness is never to be found; and each believes it possessed by others, to keep alive the hope of obtaining it for himself.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
Happiness is a matter of one’s most ordinary and everyday mode of consciousness being busy and lively and unconcerned with self.
—Iris Murdoch (1919–99) English Novelist, Philosopher
Money is human happiness in the abstract; and so the man who is no longer capable of enjoying such happiness in the concrete, sets his whole heart on money.
—Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860) German Philosopher
Happiness is the sense that one matters. Happiness is an abiding enthusiasm. Happiness is single-mindedness. Happiness is whole-heartedness. Happiness is a by-product. Happiness is faith.
—Sam Shoemaker (1893–1963) American Episcopal Priest
To be happy is not the purpose of our being, but to deserve happiness.
—Immanuel Hermann Fichte (1796–1879) German Philosopher
It is one of the beautiful compensations of life that no man can sincerely try to help another, without helping himself.
—Gamaliel Bailey
Who is the happiest of men? He who values the merits of others, and in their pleasure takes joy, even as though it were his own.
—Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749–1832) German Poet
A good character is the only guarantee of everlasting, carefree happiness.
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) Roman Philosopher, Political leader, Dramatist
I look at what I have not and think myself unhappy; others look at what I have and think me happy.
—Philibert Joseph Roux (1780–1854) French Surgeon
To be of use in the world is the only way to happiness.
—Hans Christian Andersen (1805–75) Danish Author, Poet, Short Story Writer
For most of life, nothing wonderful happens. If you don’t enjoy getting up and working and finishing your work and sitting down to a meal with family or friends, then the chances are you’re not going to be very happy. If someone bases his happiness or unhappiness on major events like a great new job, huge amounts of money, a flawlessly happy marriage or a trip to Paris, that person isn’t going to be happy much of the time. If, on the other hand, happiness depends on a good breakfast, flowers in the yard, a drink or a nap, then we are more likely to live with quite a bit of happiness.
—Andy Rooney (b.1919) American Writer, Humorist, TV Personality
To be happy, one must have a good stomach and a bad heart.
—Bernard le Bovier de Fontenelle (1657–1757) French Essayist
Happiness lies, first of all, in health.
—George William Curtis (1824–92) American Essayist, Public Speaker, Editor, Author
Folks are usually about as happy as they make their minds up to be.
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–65) American Head of State
In every part and corner of our life, to lose oneself is to be the gainer; to forget oneself is to be happy.
—Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–94) Scottish Novelist
We act as though comfort and luxury were the chief requirements of life, when all that we need to make us really happy is something to be enthusiastic about.
—Charles Kingsley (1819–75) English Clergyman, Academic, Historian, Novelist
Happiness is a by-product. You cannot pursue it by itself.
—Sam Levenson (1911–80) American Humorist, Writer, TV Personality, Journalist
Do not worry; eat three square meals a day; say your prayers; be courteous to your creditors; keep your digestion good; exercise; go slow and easy. Maybe there are other things your special case requires to make you happy, but my friend, these I reckon will give you a good lift.
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–65) American Head of State
The man who is aware of himself is henceforward independent; and he is never bored, and life is only too short, and he is steeped through and through with a profound yet temperate happiness.
—Virginia Woolf (1882–1941) English Novelist
Life finds its purpose and fulfillment in the expansion of happiness.
—Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (1914–2008) Indian Hindu Religious Leader
To find out what one is fitted to do, and to secure an opportunity to do it, is the key to happiness.
—John Dewey (1859–1952) American Philosopher, Psychologist, Educator
Happiness is to be found along the way, not at the end of the road, for then the journey is over and it is too late. Today, this hour, this minute is the day, the hour, the minute for each of us to sense the fact that life is good, with all of its trials and troubles, and perhaps more interesting because of them.
—Robert R. Updegraff
Life begins on the other side of despair.
—Jean-Paul Sartre (1905–80) French Philosopher, Playwright, Novelist, Screenwriter, Political Activist
Point me out the happy man and I will point you out either egotism, selfishness, evil –or else an absolute ignorance.
—Graham Greene (1904–91) British Novelist, Playwright, Short Story Writer
The world is full of people looking for spectacular happiness while they snub contentment.
—Doug Larson
True happiness is to understand our duties toward God and man; to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence on the future; not to amuse ourselves with either hopes or fears, but to rest satisfied with what we have, which is abundantly sufficient
—Seneca the Younger (Lucius Annaeus Seneca) Roman Philosopher, Political leader, Dramatist
Without pleasure man would live like a fool and soon die.
—Pierre Beaumarchais (1732–99) French Inventor, Diplomat, Musician, Fugitive, Revolutionary
Laughter is the best medicine.
—Common Proverb
Not only is there a right to be happy, there is a duty to be happy. So much sadness exists in the world that we are all under obligation to contribute as much joy as lies within our powers.
—John Sutherland Bonnell (1893–1992) American Preacher
It takes great wit and interest and energy to be happy. The pursuit of happiness is a great activity. One must be open and alive. It is the greatest feat man has to accomplish.
—Robert Henri (1865–1929) American Painter, Teacher
Indolence is a delightful but distressing state; we must be doing something to be happy. Action is no less necessary than thought to the instinctive tendencies of the human frame.
—William Hazlitt (1778–1830) English Essayist
The thirst after happiness is never extinguished in the heart of a man.
—Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–78) Swiss-born French Philosopher
Don’t be a cynic and disconsolate preacher. Don’t bewail and bemoan. Omit the negative propositions. Nerve us with incessant affirmatives. Don’t waste yourself in rejection, nor bark against the bad, but chant the beauty of the good. When that is spoken which has a right to be spoken, the chatter and the criticism will stop. Set down nothing that will help somebody.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
The great happiness of life, I find, after all, to consist in the regular discharge of some mechanical duty.
—Friedrich Schiller (1759–1805) German Poet, Dramatist
I am still determined to be cheerful and happy,
in whatever situation I may be; for I have also
learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness
or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances.
—Martha Washington (1731–1802) American First Lady
Only action gives life strength, only moderation gives it charm.
—Charles Spurgeon (1834–92) British Baptist Preacher, Theologian, Hymn writer
The man who makes everything that leads to happiness depend upon himself, and not upon other men, has adopted the very best plan for living happily. This is the man of moderation, the man of manly character and of wisdom.
—Plato (428 BCE–347 BCE) Ancient Greek Philosopher, Mathematician, Educator
Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving; make every day a holiday and celebrate just living.
—Amanda Bradley
The happiness of a man in this life does not consist in the absence, but in the mastery, of his passions.
—Alfred, Lord Tennyson (1809–92) British Poet
Our happiness depends on the habit of mind we cultivate. So practice happy thinking every day. Cultivate the merry heart, develop the happiness habit, and life will become a continual feast.
—Norman Vincent Peale (1898–1993) American Clergyman, Self-Help Author
Those who take up any subject with an open mind, willing to learn anything that will contribute to their advancement, comfort and happiness, are wise.
—Roger McDonald (b.1941) Australian Novelist, Poet, Screenwriter, Writer
I must accept life unconditionally. Most people ask for happiness on condition. Happiness can only be felt if you don’t set any condition.
—Arthur Rubinstein (1887–1982) Polish-born American Composer, Musician
True happiness must arise from well-regulated affections, and an affection includes a duty.
—Mary Wollstonecraft (1759–97) English Writer, Feminist
Unhappy is the man who is not so much dissatisfied with what he has as with what the other fellow possesses.
—Chauncey Depew (1834–1928) American Businessperson, Politician
For every minute you remain angry, you give up sixty seconds of peace of mind.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) American Philosopher
Happiness seems to require a modicum of external prosperity.
—Aristotle (384BCE–322BCE) Ancient Greek Philosopher, Scholar
The fact is always obvious much too late, but the most singular difference between happiness and joy is that happiness is a solid and joy a liquid.
—J. D. Salinger (1919–2010) American Actor
Hope is itself a species of happiness, and, perhaps, the chief happiness which this world affords.
—Samuel Johnson (1709–84) British Essayist
In this world there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it. The last is much the worst; the last is a real tragedy!
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish Poet