Authentic Happiness:
God's Bliss
Authentic happiness is our true heart's desire. Hindu philosophy teaches that this
is related to God. Two important points related to God's personality are:
- God is only one
- God is bliss
Hinduism describes God as an absolute, singular, supreme divine existence.
He is absolutely one. If something declared to be absolute could be cut into
pieces or sections, then it wouldn't be absolute or divine. Being indivisible
is a feature of God's personality.
The other aspect of God's nature is described as sat-chit-ananda.
This Sanskrit phrase means that God is absolute divine existence (sat),
absolute divine knowledge (chit), and absolute divine bliss (ananda).
This could also be stated as divine omnipresence, divine omniscience, divine bliss.
Divine bliss is perfect and authentic happiness. Two unique characteristics
define this:
- It is eternal
- It is unlimited
Eternal means that once divine happiness is attained, it is attained forever. There is no
way to lose it, there is no sorrow that could overshadow it, and there is no other
kind of greater happiness that could surpass it. Period.
Unlimited means it is vast, unbounded and immeasurable. Like
an ocean that is infinite and unending. Enlightened Saints who have experienced
God's bliss add to this description and say that every moment it is also ever-increasing.
So 'perfect happiness' and 'bliss' and 'God' are three synonymous terms.
What is most amazing is this vast and immeasurable ocean of divine bliss can be realized
in the smallness of our being. This realization is our ultimate quest.
As a soul, we are a part of Him. The soul is a fraction
or a part of God and every fraction naturally desires its source. We are naturally drawn
to Him. By attaining our source (God) we become complete (perfectly happy). We
will not, and in fact, cannot stop our search for happiness until we reach Him.
Bhakti yoga meditation gives us the tools we need to attain the true happiness we are seeking.
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