Happiness Vs. Peace

Day 307 / 366

Instagram reels are usually just a bottomless pit of time wastage. But every now and then, I find something of use there, usually an inspirational quote.

I came across a reel recently that explained how happiness should never be someone’s goal, as happiness is never permanent. The real goal in life should be peace. And peace can only come through sacrifice.

Life has ups and downs. You win some you lose some. If your goal is to be happy, and you manage to reach that goal as well, you will know that the happiness is not going to last forever. My personal experience with success based on happiness has been like this. While at first, it feels good, it is soon followed by fear. Fear that this happiness is fleeting. Fear that if you lose this, you may never be able to get it back.

This is why you should never go after happiness. You should go after peace instead. Peace comes from being content. And the best way to achieve it is to let go. Let go of your unnecessary material wants. Let go of your need for approval. Let go of your desires. Only then will you find true peace.

Real, lasting peace comes from deep inside. While happiness goes up and down with each success and failure, peace remains steady because it’s built on feeling content and accepting things as they are.