Is happiness an illusion?

A Journey to True Happiness

From childhood, we are told to be happy, not sad. We grow up under a subtle pressure to avoid sadness, to hide discomfort, to fit into the frame society sets for us. And in this pressure, how can anyone truly be happy?

There is a proverb that says, “Happiness is a choice.” But how can we choose happiness when our inner world is dominated by sadness, fear, confusion, and every other human emotion? The truth is, we cannot simply choose happiness like selecting an item from a shelf. It is a journey, one where we gently peel back layer after layer to reach the source of love, joy, and peace within.

This journey is not magic, nor is it instantaneous. It is a process of meeting oneself. A process of deep cleansing. A process of shedding the ego. A process of surrendering.

Ego keeps whispering, “You’ve arrived.”But experience teaches us otherwise. This path is continuous. We must keep walking, keep clearing the layers, keep returning to awareness to reach that inner oasis.

Often, we search for something without truly knowing what it is, simply because we have heard that happiness exists somewhere, somehow. We wait for the perfect moment to begin living, imagining a life where everything falls neatly into place. We keep adding conditions to that imagined perfection.

But life is not meant to be perfect. Life is made of the good, the bad, and the ugly. Transformation does not mean these dualities disappear. Real happiness arises when we accept them all and embrace the present moment fully.

To reach that state of realization, we must go through the necessary churning, the inner storms that polish the soul. Then why do we hold so much stress about reaching a destination? Why do we forget to enjoy the journey itself?

Maybe the real call is to pause, to introspect, and to dig deep.Because happiness is not a destination. It is a state that naturally blossoms when we understand, accept, and allow life to be what it is.