Building Your Happiness

From mastery of the body to clarity of mind. An exploration of the law of cause and effect applied to health and existential choices. Here, reason replaces passion to build a fulfilled life, founded on the wisdom of the ancients and the demands of the present.

The blog Yoga Originel

Summary: This text defends a pragmatic and responsible vision of happiness, far from passive concepts or something taken for granted. It is built around four fundamental pillars:

• The Law of Cause and Effect: Happiness is not a right, but the concrete result of our actions. Every word and every gesture leads to inevitable consequences. Unhappiness is often the fruit of inaction or unsuitable choices.

• Health as the Foundation: The body is the basis of existence. A whole-food diet, good sleep, and the rejection of processed foods are essential. Neglecting your metabolism or your microbiote today means ensuring future suffering.

• Authentic Spirituality: Unlike complex and bookish knowledge, spirituality must be a simple and harmonious daily practice. It consists of taking right actions at the right time, with diligence.

• Reason over Craving: The secret to a successful life lies in the ability to listen to your reason rather than your passionate impulses. By leaning on the wisdom of the elders, one learns to distinguish simple desire from true need to preserve one's future.

The Core Idea: True happiness requires discipline and foresight. Being "aged without being old" is a project prepared from youth through respect for the body and mastery of the mind.

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I suppose you want to be happy... It is true that it is not easy to define what happiness is, so I will rephrase: "I suppose you do not want to be unhappy," or even, "I suppose you do not want to suffer." I am speaking of moral, mental suffering. It’s only natural—who likes to suffer?

But what are you doing about it? What are you doing to not suffer? What are you doing, in your life, to not be unhappy? What are you doing, in your life, to be happy? Do you want to be happy without doing anything for it? As if happiness were a right, something owed to you.

The Law of Cause and Effect

Happiness is not a right. Happiness is the result of a life led in such a way that it is happy. There are things to do to be happy, and others not to do. Every thought, every word, and every action brings a reaction—consequences. This overlaps with the spiritual notion of karma. Even if one does not adhere to the Indian theory of karma, it is a truth that every thought, every word, and every action brings a consequence. I am quite certain you know this.

Everything you do not do, or everything you do at the wrong time, brings a consequence: for example, if you do not brush your teeth, your teeth will have cavities and infections, and you will lose them; they will be pulled and you will chew less well, so you will digest less well—not to mention the aesthetics of your smile and the self-image you will have!

The Body, Foundation of Well-being

If you eat poorly, with processed foods, you will have chronic diseases and your health will be impaired, and therefore your life. Your metabolism will play tricks on you, and your capacity for action and your serenity will be impaired. Happiness will be more difficult.

You eat too much, your health declines; you do not eat enough, your health declines; you eat empty foods, processed by the food industry, your health declines. Health is important. "As you make your bed, so you must lie in it."

All acts, or the absence of acts, bring a reaction. If you want to be happy, make sure your acts are favorable to happiness. Do not say anything, do not do anything that could lead to negative consequences. Do not say anything, do not do anything that is harmful to you and, if you feel like doing it anyway, do not listen to your craving—listen to your reason. Craving is your worst enemy; reason is your best friend. If you want to be happy, do what is necessary to be so; be reasonable.

Authentic Spirituality

In spirituality, it is the same thing; some people who want to be happy think that through spirituality they will have a better chance of being so, and I agree with them. That said, the word "spirituality" covers so many things, so many concepts—some relevant, others counterproductive. Thus, I correct myself: I will speak of authentic spirituality.

What is an authentic spirituality? It simplifies you and allows you to "lay everything out flat." If a spirituality seems complicated or "out of touch," then it is not an authentic spirituality. Happiness always goes with what is simple and harmonious. These are criteria that are likely to help you choose.

Do you want to accumulate bookish knowledge? Do you want to learn the Sanskrit, Hebrew, Greek, Pali, French, English, or Aramaic words that describe spirituality? Authentic spirituality is not verbal or written; it is a practice, a daily practice. It is not a collection of words or concepts. There are things to do and things not to do to be happy.

Right Action

In life, you must eat well, drink water, and sleep: that is the base. It is not enough, but it is the base. You must also perform right actions. What is a right action? It is an action done because it needs to be done, and which is done when it should be done and how it should be done.

Doing an action when it should be done means at the desired moment. Procrastination, laziness, and forgetfulness are not favorable to right action. "Never put off until tomorrow what must be done today." Doing something as it should be done means doing things well, applying oneself.

Preparing for Your Later Years

Avoid eating processed foods; they are never good for your health. Read their ingredients: if they contain additives, do not buy them. Cook whole foods, avoid seed oils, prioritize real olive oil, coconut oil, and animal fats like butter, duck fat, and beef tallow. If you are vegan, then you will have trouble nourishing yourself properly, but that is a personal, ethical choice.

The health of your later years is built over the long term; what you eat while young will have effects on your health later. Certain harmful substances only show their negative effects much later. Many chronic inflammatory diseases are due to what you have eaten throughout your life. Even Alzheimer’s disease is linked to the microbiote, to the health of your intestines. Do not abuse alcohol and sugar; you will pay the price later, and it will be too late.

The Wisdom of the Elders

Avoid putting yourself in potentially dangerous situations, such as large crowds or risky activities that pump adrenaline to make you feel "more alive"; one day you will have an accident and you will be less alive—handicapped or dead. Be reasonable. Listening to one’s reason rather than one's passions is one of the secrets of true happiness. I know well that young people hate being reasonable and hate routine; they consider both to be characteristics of death.

Listening to the elders—in other words, "the old"—young people do not like that. However, the old are not devoid of wisdom: they have lived, they have made mistakes for which they paid, and are still paying, the price. In the past, young people listened to and respected the elders, thus avoiding many setbacks. Are you young? I advise you to listen to the advice of the old. I am old, so you may not want to listen to this advice. Before I was old, I was young, and I loved listening to the advice of the wise elders. But "in my day," that was a common thing.

Conclusion: Distinguishing Craving from Need

True happiness is certainly not listening without restraint to one's desires or whims. In life, there are things to do and things not to do; there are things we feel like doing and things we need to do. If you have a doubt, ask yourself: "Do I need to do it, or do I just feel like doing it?" This will be a good start toward wisdom.

Your body has needs and requirements, and these needs are not often the same as your cravings or your desires. Your body is the basis of your life: respect it, listen to it. Your body will not submit to the arrogance of your youth, to its impulses, or its passionate drives. Do not put yourself in the position of having to say, later: "If only I had known," because it will be too late. Know that you can be aged without being old, and that is prepared throughout one's life, youth included.

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