And what happiness it is. What does it mean to be happy. Sayings of great people

HAPPINESS

Tatarkevich V., About S. and human perfection, lane With Polish, M., 1981.

Philosophical encyclopedic dictionary. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. Ch. editor: L. F. Ilyichev, P. N. Fedoseev, S. M. Kovalev, V. G. Panov. 1983 .

HAPPINESS

a state of complete, highest satisfaction, absolute absence of desires, which one strives to realize through rational and joint action (see. Eudaimonism).“The highest possible physical good in the world and the ultimate goal of our aspirations is happiness, under the objective condition of a person’s agreement with the laws of morality - this is to be happy” (Kant. Critique of Judgment). In Schiller's poem Happiness we read:

Philosophical Encyclopedic Dictionary. 2010 .

HAPPINESS

the experience of the fullness of being associated with self-realization.

Original the meaning of the word S. is luck, a favorable fate (cf. the etymology of this word: ancient Greek εὐδαιμονία, lit. - patronage of the gods, and also in Russian: "with-part", i.e. "part" , “fate”, “share”), later expanded - it began to mean the experience, the feeling of S., in contrast to eutychy, denoting the favor of circumstances and the favor of fate. S. turned out to be one of the main. principles of antiquity worldview and a number of teachings of modern times (see Eudaimonism, Epicureanism).

On the subjective side, S. always expresses the desire for experience, the thirst to feel, the ability to constantly exert mental strength. On the contrary, the idea of ​​the ideal of life as the absence of any experience (ataraxia, nirvana) indicates a weakening of the vital principle, mortification or fatigue (for the opposition of S. to the ideal of stoic equanimity, see Pushkin: “There is no happiness in the world, but there is also will” - “I thought: freedom and peace are a substitute for happiness. My God! How wrong I was, how I was punished...”). The ability to suffer, like the ability to “prolonged suffering” (Camus), expresses the depth of personality. S. as an upsurge of life and creativity. energy is a witness of fidelity to life’s truth. Related to creativity spirit (being a continuous creativity of life states, promoting creative activity) S. is the opposite of that state of indifference and lethargy, which is so characteristic of internal stagnation. strength, depression of man. potency. How creative. the element of S. is the realization of internal. freedom, the deepest personal “want”. The attitude of abandoning S. is a betrayal of the individual, drowning out the life-giving sources within oneself. Existence turned into debt turns out to be an exhaustion and profanation of life; refusal to experience being as meaning and good leads to internal. devastation. It is as a result of life's manipulations and a perverted way of existence associated with the spiritual weakness of the individual that S. is replaced by the imperative, vital forces - by functioning, internal. strong-willed – by the hypnosis of business or the inertia of household chores.

Loss of the ability to S. is an indicator of personality degradation, mental chaos, and powerlessness to find the main line in life. Unhappiness is characteristic of neurasthenic people. bohemians and for the spiritual philistinism, incapable of concentration of personality, of a lifestyle not concerned with guaranteeing a prosperous everyday life. Bourgeois dissipates in materiality, in the possession of things ("bourgeois happiness" is only a definite stamp of well-being). Separated from true meaning and personal dignity, S. turns into and loses its transformative, sublimating power. The psychology of consumerism found its way into the concepts of hedonism and utilitarianism.

S. lives only in exchange, in transmission from one to another. It cannot be owned as a house or estate, isolated from everyone else. Dostoevsky wrote: “A highly developed personality, completely confident in its right to be a person, no longer having any fear for itself, cannot make anything else out of its personality, that is, there is no other use than to give it all to everyone, so that others will were exactly the same self-righteous and happy individuals" (Collected works, vol. 4, 1956, p. 107). The S. that exists in communication is itself, the giving of oneself, i.e. , therefore, S. is associated with the Crimea, never, but always a person.

Since S. depends on the external world, on the existence external to the subject, it may turn out to be unattainable. S. is impossible without all the powers of the soul finding application and expression, so that the individual has the opportunity to “waste” (see M. Tsvetaeva, in the magazine: “New World”, 1969, No. 4, p. 195). The absence of a situation that corresponds to the intensity of the personality, and therefore necessary for its full self-expression, the absence of reciprocal understanding, and separation creates a feeling of tragedy. Thus, S. presupposes readiness for suffering (while pleasure, associated with possible displeasure, with minor troubles, does not require any courage). In the inescapability of melancholy caused by the mere idea of ​​the loss of that one, chosen one that gives meaning to existence, this only thing is contrasted with the meagerness of the rest of life’s context: “... There is no adversity, but there is one...” (Shakespeare V., Sonnets , M., 1963. p. 108).

Genuine S. embodies not only the individual’s plan for life, but also, as it were, the plan for the life of the individual (internal personality, in contrast to the narcotic illusion - a surrogate for S). From this perspective, it is possible to completely overcome the tragic. despair as the realization of internal ideas despite the most unfavorable circumstances and through the sublimation of suffering.

The classics of Marxism criticized individualism. ideas about S., the desire for it in isolation from society. goals: namely the conscious service of societies. progress, revolutionary the struggle for the reconstruction of society, for a better future for all humanity, fill a person with that meaning and give him that deep satisfaction, without which the feeling of S.T.O., revolutionary is unthinkable. Marxism connects ideas about socialism with struggle (see also K. Marx, in the book: K. Marx and F. Engels, Works, 2nd ed., vol. 31, p. 492).

T. Marinina. Moscow.

Philosophical Encyclopedia. In 5 volumes - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. Edited by F. V. Konstantinov. 1960-1970 .

HAPPINESS

HAPPINESS is a concept denoting the highest good as a completed, self-valuable, self-sufficient state of life; the generally accepted final subjective goal of human activity. As a word in a living language and a cultural phenomenon, happiness has many aspects. Polish researcher V. Tatarkiewicz identified four main meanings of the concept of happiness: 1) favor of fate, luck, successful life, luck; Initially, apparently, such an understanding prevailed over other meanings, which was reflected in the etymology of the word (the Proto-Slavic Sbcestbj goes back to the ancient Indian su “good” and from stb “part”, which meant “good inheritance”, according to the version - “shared part, share” ; ancient Greek ευδαιμονία literally meant the patronage of a good genius); 2) a state of intense joy; 3) possession of the highest benefits, an overall positive balance of life; 4) feeling of satisfaction with life.

The philosophical and ethical analysis of happiness begins with the distinction in its content of two components that are fundamentally different in origin: a) that which depends on the subject himself, is determined by the measure of his own activity, and b) that which does not depend on him, is predetermined by external conditions (circumstances, fate). That which depends on a person in happiness is called virtue. It was in connection with the concept of happiness that human ideas about virtue were formed and its philosophical and ethical understanding was carried out. In answering the question of what constitutes human perfection, which leads to his happiness, the concept of moral perfection and moral (ethical) virtues was developed.

The relationship between virtue and happiness, or more precisely, the role and place of moral virtues in the factors that create happiness, has become the central problem of ethics. The various solutions to this problem in the history of European ethics can be reduced to three main traditions.

The first tradition sees moral virtues as a means to happiness, which acts as an end. Happiness, identified in one case with pleasure (interpretation developed in hedonism), in another - with benefit, success (utilitarianism), in the third - with the absence of suffering and serenity of the soul (Epicurus), becomes the criterion and the highest sanction of individual human morality. This tradition was called Epicurean or actually eudaimonistic (see Eudaimonism).

The second tradition, called the Stoic, views happiness as a consequence of virtue. According to the Stoics, the moral perfection of a person does not depend on his fate, the specific circumstances of life, and coincides with the internal fortitude arising from reason; since the individual is connected through the mind with the cosmos as a whole, moral perfection in itself turns out to be happiness. According to this understanding, a person is happy not in the individual and special manifestations of his life, but in its generic essence, which coincides with the mind.

The third tradition, in relation to which the first two can be considered marginal, is synthetic. It was founded by Aristotle and can be called by his name - Aristotelian; in modern times it is most clearly represented by Hegel. According to this understanding, moral virtues are both the path to happiness and its most essential element. If in the Epicurean tradition happiness coincides with naturalness (in the perfection of its individually expressed human concreteness), in the Stoic tradition it is identified with the elevation to a rationally equanimous attitude towards the natural empiricity of individual life, then Aristogelism interprets happiness as a second nature, acting as a perfect activity, an active mind . Intelligently transformed nature has its own pleasures. This approach connects the problem of happiness with a specific analysis of types of human activity, thereby opening up the possibility of creating a theory of happiness. Essential in this case are questions about the happiness of the individual and the happiness of society (the state), as well as about the actual human and highest (divine) levels of happiness.

The ethical teachings of antiquity, the Middle Ages, and the Enlightenment were based on the image of a person whose main aspiration is the pursuit of happiness. In this general sense they were all eudaimonic. The differences began when specifying what happiness is and how it is achieved. According to eudaimonic teachings (in the proper sense of the word), a person achieves a happy state directly - to the extent that he is guided by his desire for happiness and tries to satisfy it as fully as possible. According to representatives of other ethical schools, neither the understanding of happiness nor the pursuit of it can be guided by a feeling of pleasure; the path to happiness may even involve abandoning it. This second tradition, which includes the Stoics, skeptics, and many religious thinkers, cannot, however, be considered anti-eudaimonistic. She also recognizes the primacy and essentiality of the desire for happiness, but at the same time believes that in reality happiness is something that is usually considered to be. Therefore, it should be distinguished from eudaimonism in the narrow sense (as an ethical tradition, mainly associated with the name of Epicurus) in the broad sense of the word as a certain initial axiomatic position of ethical theory. This, in particular, the identification of eudaimonism in the broad sense of the word, is important for understanding the fundamental meaning of happiness in the system of moral concepts. Happiness is a fundamental category of human existence. In a certain sense, man himself can be defined as a being whose purpose is to be happy.

In the philosophical and ethical analysis of happiness, along with the problem of its relationship with virtue, important questions were about 1) whether happiness belongs to the sphere of goals or is a supergoal, an imperative, and 2) whether a person can be happy if those around him are unhappy. Happiness is the goal of activity; it is within the capabilities of a person. But as soon as one imagines this state has been achieved, life in the form of consciously purposeful activity turns out to be exhausted. This results in a paradoxical situation: happiness cannot but be thought of as an achievable goal, but it cannot be thought of as such. The way out of it is most often seen in the distinction between different forms and levels of happiness - first of all, we are talking about the distinction between human and superhuman happiness. Aristotle already distinguished the first (highest) eudaimonia, associated with contemplative activity, dianoetic virtues (virtues of reason) and representing something rare, divine, and the second eudaimonia, which is available to all free people (citizens) and is associated with ethical virtues. He uses two words - ευδαιμονία and μακαριτας, the difference between which subsequently acquired a terminological meaning (happiness and bliss).

Happiness lies in an individual's feeling of satisfaction with how his life is going overall. It does not follow from this, however, that happiness is subjective. It is not reduced to individual pleasures, but represents their harmonious combination, synthesis. Even as an emotional state, happiness, at least in part, is of a secondary nature and is conditioned by certain ideas about it that claim to be universally valid. This is especially true for assessments in terms of happiness and unhappiness. Behind the subjective feeling and idea of ​​happiness there is always some kind of canon, an example of what happiness and a happy person are in themselves. In other words, in his desire for happiness, a person always proceeds from the fact that the same desire is inherent in other people. Moreover: the happiness of some individuals directly depends on the happiness of others. The whole question is how wide is this circle of feedback loops of happiness. According to L. Feuerbach, eudemoism becomes an ethical principle as the desire for happiness to another. This means that the happiness of some individuals is connected with the happiness of others through moral relations between them, through a happy society. A happy person in a happy society - this is one of the typical and central themes of philosophical treatises on happiness.

Many people think - what is happiness? As a rule, happiness is the most important thing for each of us. However, what exactly this concept means, many scientists and philosophers cannot understand. Since ancient times, people believed
that if a person is protected by God in life, then in this case he is truly happy.

But the great Aristotle believed that happiness is the soul that exists in a bright person. At the same time, each person must help others at their first call. Now let's find out what happiness is in the modern world.

In many philosophy textbooks, the concept of happiness is described as an emotional and psychological state during which a person feels completely satisfied with his life. A remarkable fact is that modern man does not have the opportunity to feel fully happy. A fairly common emotion in life is the fear that we will never achieve the goal that we have dreamed of for a very long time. It is this factor that forces each of us to be in constant search of what happiness is.

Every person on the planet has their own ideas about what happiness is. Some believe that happiness is family, children, success, recognition, financial stability or self-realization. Many other terms can be added to this list for a long time, but these are the most basic. But there are also people for whom happiness is, first of all, spiritual development.

As a rule, such a person will read more fiction or scientific literature and replenish his spirituality in any way. Therefore, each of us has our own personal happiness, and it depends precisely on the goals that we have set for ourselves. Sometimes even twins feel joy from completely different things that surround them. Most people are trying to catch up with their happiness and be financially prosperous in life. However, when they achieve their intended goals, many years pass.

Ways to achieve happiness

From all of the above, we can conclude that each person has his own symbol of happiness, and two main ways can be distinguished:

1. interior
2. and external.

Internal refers to the internal growth of a person. With this choice, a person develops spiritually and constantly strives to learn or achieve something new and find out what happiness is for him. Only in moments of achieving a cherished goal can a person feel truly happy because he was able to bring his plans to life.

The external path to happiness implies that happiness is everything that surrounds us, so many people try to create a good family, have true friends and be financially stable. Many people can also agree that buying things makes us happier. But such joy lasts only a short period, and after that all emotions are forgotten and disappear somewhere.

Like, for example, a small baby who was given a new toy. He will rejoice at her at first, experience great happiness, but later he will forget about her existence and begin to dream of other fun. Of course, purchased things will help make us happy, but only for a certain period of time.

That is, such positive emotions do not guarantee that they will help a person become happy in the future, and you need to know about this. Thus, neither the inner nor the outer path can guarantee happiness for every person throughout life. That is why each of us has to independently look for ways to achieve our goals.

Secrets of cherished happiness

The question of what happiness is is of interest to many people, which is why throughout their lives they try to find the answer to it.

For some people, happiness is great weather outside the window, for others it is a loved one nearby, or, for example, when you are healthy and simply have the opportunity to walk and move.

But in fact, the concept of happiness is just a mirage that haunts each of us throughout our lives. And no matter what a person does, no matter where he strives, he always thinks about what his cherished happiness is.

In addition, he is constantly dependent on various events that may not always coincide with his expectations, which can cause him to become unhappy. And usually, the stronger a person wants to become happy, the harder it is for him. After all, a person is not interested in the purchase of an apartment, furniture or car, but precisely in the pleasure that he receives at the time of these transactions.

In most cases, happiness is what a person dreams of, but it is not always necessary for him. To be happy and enjoy ordinary things every day, we need to find something that will help us become confident in the future.

First of all, you need to learn to understand yourself and live for today, and not just plans for the future, because life passes, and it can no longer be returned. For many sick people, happiness is the opportunity to recover or begin to walk and live again, like all normal people.

After all, many people live their lives in vain and only then understand that happiness is when you live in a beloved family, you have a favorite job and friends who can support you in many ways.

What prevents us from being happy?

What is necessary for happiness?

• In the end, what is happiness? To find it, first of all, you need to learn to notice the beauty in everything that constantly surrounds us, for example, to enjoy any weather and ordinary everyday things.
• In addition, you need to reconsider your goals in life and set the right priorities in favor of those that will actually bring great joy and benefit in the future.
• There is no point in wasting your life, getting distracted by little things that simply take away our valuable time. That is, only at the moment when a person finds harmony within himself can he be happy.

Quotes about happiness

Democritus “Happy is he who, with little means, enjoys a good mood; unhappy is he who, with great means, does not have peace of mind.”

Plato “By seeking the happiness of others, we find our own.”

Aristotle “Happiness is on the side of the one who is content.”

Plautus Titus Maccius “No one has permanent happiness.”

Cicero Marcus Tullius “Neither fools are happy, nor wise people are unhappy.”

Cicero Marcus Tullius “I see the essence of a happy life entirely in the strength of the spirit.”

Cicero Marcus Tullius “He is happiest who depends only on himself.”

Poems about happiness

We look for happiness here and there,
We follow on his heels,
We repeat to him endlessly -
We want to be with you forever!

Dreaming of dissolving in happiness
We peered into faces for a long time,
We are trying to find the answer -
What is happiness? Is it there or not?

We are in error
That happiness is the creation of someone’s hands,
That a wizard is about to come to us
And will make us happy at this moment!

And happiness walks next to us,
With a smile saying: “Look!
There's no need to look for me at all,
I always exist, because I am inside!”

What is happiness? Guess!
Happiness consists of nothing
Open the windows early in the morning
And let him in with the sun.

Happiness is a path, movement towards a goal,
We can’t forget a happy moment,
Let the years and weeks pass.
Happiness means simply BEING:

Hear children's laughter and mother's songs,
See the earth, sky and dawn,
Be a creator, write poetry, novels,
The joy of feeling and the taste of victory.

Happiness is living and being open to the world,
Live today and know how to love,
Happiness is to feel such strength,
That she is capable of conquering her fear.

To be happy... How simple it is!
As simple as looking, breathing.
If there is a reliable framework in life,
Everyone can feel happiness!

Happiness is when there is peace in the soul,
When the heart doesn't groan in pain,
When living your life,
You yourself are the owner of the chosen share...

Happiness is when you are healthy
And your relatives are healthy nearby,
When every sip of life
You savored it like moisture in the desert

Happiness is if a loved one
Separates words and actions,
When having lived the measured century,
Enjoyed every minute...

Happiness is when leaving,
You left a mark with your life,
With a warm feeling that I didn’t live in vain,
And it doesn’t matter how many years you have lived.

The main dream of any person is to be happy. What is real happiness? And how to become happy? For many centuries, scientists and philosophers have been unable to find unambiguous answers to these questions. Let's try and figure them out.

What is happiness for a person?

1. Family
2. Harmony
3. Self-realization
4. Love
5. Financial well-being
6. Success

So, if happiness for you is family and children, then this is what you will strive for. But if for you happiness is self-realization, then you will look for your calling in life, and having found it, you will do everything to realize it. The criterion of happiness in the form of financial well-being will force you to build your financial independence. But with all this, you will always be afraid of losing what you have acquired on the external path. And fear will not allow you to fully enjoy happiness.

Two ways to achieve true happiness

The External Path to Happiness
With this path, a person decides for himself that happiness is the external world. And he will try to have a prosperous family, good friends, and financial wealth. At the same time, he will, of course, feel happy for some time, but not for long. Here you can remember a small child who was given a new toy. At first he rejoices and is happy with her, but very soon he forgets about her and wants a new one. And this can be endless. This path leads us only to short-term happiness.

The Inner Path to Happiness
The second road we can take in search of our happiness is internal growth. With this choice, we develop spiritually, engage in personal growth, and at a certain moment we can also feel happy.

Many people will agree that the feeling of happiness from acquiring some new things or knowledge is too short-lived and is forgotten very quickly. This feeling of happiness lives in our past and does not help us to be happy today.

Thus, neither the external nor the internal path guarantees us that we will find permanent happiness in our lives. Therefore, a logical question arises: what to do then? Are we really doomed to search our entire lives for this notorious happiness? Let us return once again to the concept of happiness. What do people really want when they think about it?

The secret of true happiness for a person

Happiness is our most important desire. After all, we don’t want a car, an apartment, a job, but rather to become happy. Happiness is what we want, but not what we really need.

What do we need then? It's very simple - we need to find something that will give us confidence in the future, peace and understanding of what is happening to us. You need to learn to understand yourself, feel and live here and now.

In order to find true happiness, you need to learn to be aware of yourself here and now. To realize who we are in this world and why we came to this planet. By learning to be aware, we can finally achieve our happiness. And this happiness will not depend on external factors. It will always be with us and we will always be able to feel it, if only we want it.

A simple secret to happiness:

Interpretations of happiness at different times

But Aristotle believed that happiness is a soul living in virtue. Virtue in those days was considered an integral part of happiness.

How is the word happiness interpreted today? In most psychology textbooks, the concept of happiness is presented as a psychological state of a person during which he feels satisfied with his life.

The most interesting thing is that modern man never feels absolutely happy. The emotion he almost always experiences is fear. Fear that he will never be able to be happy. And this fear makes him seek this happiness with even greater zeal.

Quotes about happiness

• Happiness comes to those who work hard (Leonardo da Vinci)
• If you want to be happy, be it! (K. Prutkov)
• Enjoyment and happiness are two completely different things (O. Wilde)
• Misfortune can also be an accident. Happiness is not luck or grace; happiness is a virtue or merit. (Grigory Landau)
• Happiness is a byproduct of trying to make someone else happy. (G. Palmer)
• Don't chase happiness, it is always within you.
• Happiness seems so blind to no one as to those to whom it has never smiled. (F. La Rochefoucauld)
• The road to happiness is not always asphalt. (T. Capote)
• A person is happy only when he is in his place. (L. Vauvenargues)
• If they were building a house of happiness, the largest room would have to be used as a waiting room.
• Happiness is a ball that we chase while it is rolling and that we kick when it stops. (P. Buast)
• For every minute you are angry, sixty seconds of happiness are lost.

Poems about happiness

What is happiness?
Some say: "These are passions:
Cards, wine, hobbies -
All the thrills."

Others believe that happiness is
With a large salary and power,
In the eyes of the secretaries of the prisoners
And the trembling of subordinates.

Still others believe that happiness is
This is a great participation:
Care, warmth, attention
And a commonality of experience.

According to the fourth, this is -
Sit with my dear until dawn,
One day confess your love
And never part again.

There is also an opinion
That happiness is burning:
Search, dream, work
And daring wings of takeoff!

And happiness, in my opinion, is simple
Comes in different heights:
From the hummock to Kazbek,
Depending on the person.

Asadov Eduard

*****
What is happiness?
Happiness is simple!
Happiness has no weight
Happiness has no growth.

Happiness cannot be measured
In bright words,
You won't see happiness
With clear eyes.

How then to answer,
What is happiness?
After all, it happens
Of all different colors.

Happiness... that's the word
Has many faces
Everyone understands
Happiness as best he can!

*****
Happiness

The mental turmoil has passed,
The grief is left behind
Fiery passions rage
In my wounded chest.

The soul has almost cooled down,
But it flared up brightly again,
Revived her for life
Completely unexpected love.

And again I feel happiness
I won't miss him anymore
Don't let bad weather settle in
In my healed soul.

A. Bolutenko

*****
We always only remember about happiness.
And happiness is everywhere. Maybe it's
This autumn garden behind the barn
And clean air flowing through the window.

In the bottomless sky with a light white edge
The cloud rises and shines. For a long time
I'm watching him... We see little, we know,
And happiness is given only to those who know.

The window is open. She squeaked and sat down
There's a bird on the windowsill. And from books
I look away from my tired gaze for a moment.

The day is getting dark, the sky is empty.
The hum of a threshing machine can be heard on the threshing floor...
I see, I hear, I am happy. Everything is in me.

I. Bunin

*****
Happiness is when there is peace in the soul,
When the heart doesn't groan in pain,
When living your life,
You yourself are the owner of the chosen share...

Happiness is when you are healthy
And your relatives are healthy nearby,
When every sip of life
You savored it like moisture in the desert

Happiness is if a loved one
Separates words and actions,
When, having lived a measured century,
Enjoyed every minute...

Happiness is when leaving,
You left a mark with your life,
With a warm feeling that I didn’t live in vain,
And it doesn’t matter how many years you’ve lived.