The Key to Happiness in the Modern World

The Path to True Happiness Requires Self-Sacrifice

I believe the key to happiness in the modern world that opens the gates of enlightenment exists. Being happy—no matter what happens. It is a path that often requires sacrifice. It may be the abandonment of the family, relatives, and total isolation from civilization. For example, by closing yourself in a temple where you will meditate for most of the day.

How to Live Western Life and Be Happy?

Just the thought of going to an isolated temple for a long time is, for many of us in the west, quite scary. You want to live your daily life and at the same time, to be happy. Is it even possible? If you live in a place full of stress, smog, cold, and rain, one of the possibilities is to move to a warm region.

Ideally, somewhere to the sea where the sun shines, the air is fresh and life is slow. But moving to the seaside is not the key to eternal happiness. It’s easy to complain about a boring life while laying on the beach and drinking fresh coconut. Much easier than swearing at the daily traffic in a big city.

Balance – the Key to Happiness in the Modern World

Is there an easier way for us in the west than isolation or moving to distant lands? There is, and that way is life balance.

“Balance is the key to everything.
What we do, think, say, eat, feel, they all require awareness,
and through this awareness we can grow.”
Koi Fresco

Even in ancient philosophies such as yoga and Taoism, you can find balance in their roots. Yoga is about the unification of body, mind, and spirit, but how do you unite these three together? The key to unification is the balance of our lives. You can find the same in the energies of yin and yang. You will reach the goal if you manage to balance these energies in you.

Modern Concept of Balanced Life

In the modern world, Robert Owen came up with the same idea of being happier. He proposed to reduce excessively long working hours to “only” eight hours and thus balance our daily lifestyle — “Eight hours of work, eight hours of recreation, eight hours of rest“.

The Key to Happiness in the Modern World

Did This Balance Lead Us to Happiness?

We have known and practiced this idea since ancient times, then how is it possible that we are still not happy? As a little boy, I liked the idea of dividing the day into three parts – work, rest, and fun. Life changes every moment and with it, we should adapt our habits and standards.

Unfortunately, our desire for convenience is against it. We often find ourselves in a situation where we live according to habits decades—even hundreds of years old. As a result, there is an imbalance in our personal lives. Some work too hard, others too little. We live in a world of extremes, not balance. It is difficult for us to balance even that physical life, let alone tip the balance into the spiritual one.

Is Extreme the Right Way?

The path of extremes has never been a way to a happy life. You may think that if you are overly kind, you are far better than overly bad people. However, the opposite is true. You are furthest from the extreme if your life is in balance.

“The middle way cannot be achieved by dividing two extremes in half.”
Eric Maisel

Let’s Balance Our Lives and Be Happy

The easiest way to satisfaction is through the balance of your daily life. Let’s think about your daily life. Can you find something that prevails in it? Get rid of these extremes. Replace the long sitting session with a regular movement, uncontrolled overeating, by conscious eating. Balance the time spent in isolation with time spent with your loved ones. We are all different, but all of us have the same opportunity to live a balanced life. Through small changes to your life, you can make a huge difference.

This is the eleventh article in the series:

The beginning of my journey