We fear that this moment will end, that we won’t get what we need, that we will lose what we love, or that we will not be safe. Often, our biggest fear is the knowledge that one day our bodies will cease functioning. So even when we are surrounded by all the conditions for happiness, our joy is not complete.

Man only likes to count his troubles, but he does not count his joys.

He who is overly attached to his family members experiences fear and sorrow, for the root of all grief is attachment. Thus one should discard attachment to be happy.

Life would be infinitely happier if we could only be born at the age of eighty and gradually approach eighteen.

What is this world that is hastening me toward I know not what, viewing me with contempt?

Because in a split second, it’s gone.

Some people seem to fade away but then when they are truly gone, it’s like they didn’t fade away at all.

I really believed that fear is contagious.

To keep oneself safe does not mean to bury oneself.

Fear is the mother of morality.

True happiness arises, in the first place, from the enjoyment of one’s self, and in the next, from the friendship and conversation of a few select companions.

Fear, separation, hate and anger come from the wrong view that you and the Earth are two separate entities, the Earth is only the environment. You are in the centre and you want to do something for the Earth in order for you to survive. That is a dualistic way of seeing.

Do not give in too much to feelings. A overly sensitive heart is an unhappy possession on this shaky earth.

I regard the brain as a computer which will stop working when its components fail. There is no heaven or afterlife for broken down computers; that is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark.

Happiness depends upon ourselves.

If you have only one smile in you give it to the people you love.

A man is in general better pleased when he has a good dinner upon his table, than when his wife talks Greek.

Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.

Have no fear of perfection – you’ll never reach it.

Love is the joy of the good, the wonder of the wise, the amazement of the Gods.

It matters not how a man dies, but how he lives. The act of dying is not of importance, it lasts so short a time.

If you only do things where you know the answer in advance, your company goes away.

A happy life is one which is in accordance with its own nature.

It is possible to live happily in the here and the now. So many conditions of happiness are available – more than enough for you to be happy right now. You don’t have to run into the future in order to get more.

Happy is he who still loves something he loved in the nursery: He has not been broken in two by time; he is not two men, but one, and he has saved not only his soul but his life.

She would have thrived as a grandmother. I know how much she would have contributed to their lives, and I am sad they will miss out on that.

We are more often frightened than hurt; and we suffer more from imagination than from reality.

In crises the most daring course is often safest.

I believe that a trusting attitude and a patient attitude go hand in hand. You see, when you let go and learn to trust God, it releases joy in your life. And when you trust God, you’re able to be more patient. Patience is not just about waiting for something… it’s about how you wait, or your attitude while waiting.

However happy people say they are, nobody is satisfied: we always have to be with the prettiest woman, buy a bigger house, change cars, desire what we do not have.

God wants us to prosper financially, to have plenty of money, to fulfill the destiny He has laid out for us.

Neither a man nor a crowd nor a nation can be trusted to act humanely or to think sanely under the influence of a great fear.

But now, being a parent, I go home and see my son and I forget about any mistake I ever made or the reason I’m upset. I get home and my son is smiling or he comes running to me. It has just made me grow as an individual and grow as a man.

Courage is a mean with regard to fear and confidence.

We can feel joy even while having a bad day, a bad week, or even a bad year!

The happiest people I know as a nation are the Burmese; their brightness and cheeriness are proverbial. Kindness to animals is one of their greatest ‚weaknesses‘; no Burmese will kill an animal, even if it is to put it out of pain.

It would be my guess that Madonna is not a very happy woman. From my own experience, having gone through persona changes like that, that kind of clawing need to be the center of attention is not a pleasant place to be.

I’ve never thought about songwriting as a weapon. I’ve only thought about it as a way to help me get through love and loss and sadness and loneliness and growing up.

My faith helps me understand that circumstances don’t dictate my happiness, my inner peace.

Man falls from the pursuit of the ideal of plan living and high thinking the moment he wants to multiply his daily wants. Man’s happiness really lies in contentment.

I still make sure to go, at least once every year, to a country where things cannot be taken for granted, and where there is either too much law and order or too little.

I’ve run the Boston Marathon 6 times before. I think the best aspects of the marathon are the beautiful changes of the scenery along the route and the warmth of the people’s support. I feel happier every time I enter this marathon.

I’m not resigned, but I’m realistic too. The statistics in my case are very poor. Not many people come through esophageal cancer and live to talk about it, or not for long. And the other wager is, the part of the wager, it’s a certainty you’ll have a terrible time and you may wish you were dying because it’s an awful process.

I collect records. And cats. I don’t have any cats right now. But if I’m taking a walk and I see a cat, I’m happy.

I won’t touch on risky, because that’s subjective. People are just afraid of things too much. Afraid of things that don’t necessarily merit fear.

I want to marry Arline because I love her – which means I want to take care of her. That is all there is to it. I want to take care of her. I am anxious for the responsibilities and uncertainties of taking care of the girl I love.

I am criticised for not celebrating my goals enough. I am very happy from within, very calm. I just don’t celebrate. I celebrate inside.

You want to do good things, and once you’ve done a couple of good things in a row, you think ‚Well gee, let’s not mess this up.‘ But I am lucky at this point that I have something I really love to do, and it completely holds my attention. I never feel frustrated by it.

Having nothing, nothing can he lose.

We go on in our pleasures thinking they’re going to last forever.

A table, a chair, a bowl of fruit and a violin; what else does a man need to be happy?

The deepest desire of the human spirit is to be acknowledged.

On the plus side, death is one of the few things that can be done as easily lying down .

There are more people dying of malaria than any specific cancer.

I like the city. I like the concrete. I like big business. I like being a CEO of my own company and having a lot of responsibilities. At the same time, when I can go off with a backpack or off on a surfboard or even off on a run somewhere in the woods – that’s where I’m really happy.

I think that a good mountaineer is usually a sensible mountaineer.

Happiness is a how; not a what. A talent, not an object.

The loss of life will be irreplaceable.

We could never learn to be brave and patient, if there were only joy in the world.

Some people will have to be afraid. Those who plunder the nation, deliver injustice, will have to feel scared of me. And I am not afraid of admitting this. Government cannot be so lenient that it forgives them.

An oppressive government is more to be feared than a tiger.