Where is Joy? Not Where You Think!

Humankind has been taught a lie.

We have the mistaken belief that if we only find the activity, person, object of our desire we will find joy. Not so.

This is a myth, a creation of the ego, a completely false understanding of life.

It is destructive and actually impedes are joy.

We may find momentary pleasure in various activities, (be they healthy or not), and certainly we experience joy as we engage with loved ones or accomplish a goal, however, the object, person, or accomplishment is not what gives us joy; the joy is what we bring forth to the experience. The joy is inside, created in our self shared with the world.

For example, think of a flower bringing forth a beautiful scent for the gardener to experience. The flower creates the perfume. The perfume is not external to the flower but is an essence of it. And miraculously, the flower's scent is captured by the gardener, allowing the fullness of the flower to manifest.

So too with humankind. Our "scent" is our joy. What is within us comes forth, comes out of us. Our very essence is extended as we interact with the world. What is in us, what we are is that which materializes into being. Experiencing joy is not in something other than us, but is experienced as we bring that which is deep within us into reality.

Eckhart Tolle wrote,

"When you say, ’I enjoy doing this or that’, it is really a misperception. It makes it appear that the joy comes from what you do, but that is not the case. Joy does not come from what you do, it flows into what you do and thus into this world from deep within you."

If we are searching for joy in something "out there" we will be lost. We will not find it because it is not somewhere out there to be found. And joy will not awaken through an activity that gives us pleasure but will manifest as we bring joy to our world.

What if a life has no joy? What about those depressed, filled with sorrow, living in emotional pain?

Of course there are chemical imbalances and neurological disorders that get in the way of joy and can create serious illness, and there are those whose lives are filled with difficult challenges and heartbreaking sorrows.

But trying to overcome the sorrows of life by indulging in an activity, or getting more possessions, or finding the "right" partner, will be an effort in futility. Better to notice where one can bring their joy, their creativity, their purpose.

The more one finds a way to bring forth the beauty that is within, the more joy is experienced.

So where does that leave us? How do we find joy?

We find it by contributing our gifts, by sharing our uniqueness, with others, with the world.