Happier

Yesterday I was at home having a discussion with some folks on the subject of Buddhism and individual happiness, and during this exchange, quietly playing in the background was Bjork's Hyper-Ballad. And as I tried to concentrate on the conversation at hand, I couldn't help but also focus on the chorus singing out, I go through all this, before you wake up, so I can feel happier. To be safe again with you. Those lyrics stayed with me throughout the day until that evening where I decided to share them with a friend. I asked him what was his take on the song. He thought for moment, then responded by saying "She describes a ritual. How every morning she purposely experiences all that she's afraid of, just to return at the end of the day to the one she loves, to remind herself of how happy and safe she feels with this person." And with his response, I explained that perhaps there is another way to look at it, an aspect that is very much so in alignment to the Buddhist philosophy.

I went on to say that perhaps she, or this particular character in the song, wakes up every morning to purposely live her life completely and fully, confronting all of her fears and obstacles, which are symbolized by the cliff. And during this journey or ritual of highs and lows, she self-manifests this internal happiness by her sense of freedom and ability to overcome her fears and navigate her way through these obstacles. At the end of this experience, this journey of self, she returns to him once he is 'awakened' to feel safe and happier with him. Although this happiness was already established before her arrival, the one she returns to simply enhances it.

My friend and I went back and forth for a moment over the interpretation of the song and the manifestation of internal happiness. I ended the exchange by adding that it didn’t appear to be outside the realm of Bjork's consciousness, this notion of individually obtained happiness, as seen during her live version of Possibly Maybe where she sings out Well it came about through happenstance that I happen to be happy. You're just a bonus to that. My friend and I thought for a moment and agreed that it wasn't outside her realm of consciousness.

SGI President and well respected mentor of the Nichiren Buddhist practice, Daisaku Ikeda, further explores the notion of happiness in an article by stating that it, “is not something that someone else, like a lover, can give to us. We have to achieve it for ourselves. And the only way to do so is by developing our character and capacity as human beings; by fully maximizing our potential. If we sacrifice our growth and talent for love, we absolutely will not find happiness. True happiness is obtained through fully realizing our potential." he continued to explain that, "if you genuinely love someone, then through your relationship with him or her, you can develop into a person whose love extends to all humanity. Such a relationship serves to strengthen, elevate and enrich your inner realm of life. The same is true for friendship. Only to the extent that you polish yourselves now can you hope to develop wonderful bonds of the heart in the future."

Shanna Nikole, another Buddhist and friend, mentioned that this journey of life, is really just a journey of the heart, well said Shanna. In this journey you never know where you may find these affirmations of truth or answers from within, it could be in a book, practiced in a philosophy, or even heard simply in a song.