According to the Bhagavad Gita, Happiness and Sorrow are the two sides of life. No one can change it. No one can predict it. They come and go. Whatever measures are taken to avoid sorrow, it can appear in life in many other forms. When compare happiness with sorrow, many times the sorrow takes up the lead. Sometimes it may be due to the over emphasis on the sorrow. In the totality of life the happiness felt in a life time, many people asses, is very little compared to sorrow. Everyone, naturally, searches ways to avoid sorrow in life. In this context let us think in detail about happiness and sorrow on the basis of teachings of the Bhagavad Gita.
On an earlier post, Body and Soul, the reality of body and soul has explained. According to the Bhagavad Gita, the soul or consciousness is eternal and the body is transitory. It is because of consciousness that we become aware of ourselves and of other things. Consciousness or soul is the living part and the transitory body is the dead matter. A body becomes alive because of consciousness or soul. When the soul leaves a body it becomes dead body. It is the soul gives us the feeling of existence and that is called the real personality or real "I".
The soul is free and it exists without any connection with matters in the universe. It is without any karma and without any emotion or feeling. But when it gets attached to a body (birth) it becomes jivathma or individual soul. This soul gets connected to the external world through the five senses. So it experiences the sensual subjects and gets emotions. As though the individual soul is free from all emotions, the activities of the senses gives different kinds of emotions.
Let us see the senses. Senses give contradictory and dual experiences like heat and cold, happiness and sorrow. Sometimes cold becomes comfortable (happy). But in some other circumstances cold becomes uncomfortable (sorrowful). Heat is also similar. The senses and sensual objects give happiness and sorrow without any permanency. They come and go. The dual characteristic of senses and sensual objects and their formation and decay is their own nature. No one can change it. When we depend on senses and sensual objects then we have to face the dual experiences of happiness and sorrow. If it is so, how it can be solved and won. For that one has to practice mental balance or equilibrium while experiencing the sensual pleasures. How it is possible? The only way to overcome the dual nature of senses and to practice mental equilibrium, is to tolerate the dual experiences of happiness and sorrow, without any anxiety or lamentation.
To achieve these things one has to understand clearly the truth of existence. Soul is the real truth behind the whole existence. So try to enhance the soul quality in life . Avoid sensual emotions by controlling senses. That is the only way to face happiness and sorrow with a mental equilibrium. In this way learn to tolerate both happiness and sorrow courageously. As we are leading worldly life by receiving different experiences through the senses, then we will have the dual experiences in life. Anyway life will be with happiness and sorrow as well. Why we unnecessarily give concerned emotions to the mind. Just face everything as they come and tolerate them. What is wrong to worry about sorrows? All our responding, either favorably or unfavorably, in life create vasana or impressions in the subtle body and that cause another birth. If we continue to create vasanas through likes and dislikes in life then we have to undergo many births. On the contrary, if we live life with tolerance that will finish off the existing vasana and will not create new vasanas. Anyhow a balanced mind and the capacity of tolerance make one eligible to experience ultimate happiness through continued atma sadhana (practicing self knowledge or athma jnana). Life cannot be improved by getting attached with happiness and sorrow. Practice non-attachment in life.
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