Dr. Deepak Chopra & Happiness!

October 11, 2006
BE HAPPY ZONE
By Lionel Ketchian

I want to make you aware of a new book written by Dr. Deepak Chopra, called: Power Freedom and Grace: Living from the Source of Lasting Happiness. This book was published by Amber-Allen Publishing, the same publishing company that published The Four Agreements by don Miguel Ruiz. Dr. Chopra is an illimitable author of over 45 books, more than 100 audio, video and CD-ROM titles which have been translated into 35 languages with over 20 million copies sold worldwide.

I am so pleased that Dr. Chopra's latest book deals with lasting happiness. Dr. Chopra begins this book by relating a question he asked a sick patient at the beginning of his career as a medical doctor. "Why do you want to get better?," he asked. The male patient said, "Doesn't everyone who is sick want to get better? Dr. Chopra told him that is true but wanted to know why he wanted to get better. The man replied, "to make money!" Dr. Chopra asked him, why do you want to make money? The man replied, "So I can pay for my son’s education, so he can have a successful carrier. After asking the patient this question repeatedly, the man finally said: "Because I want to be happy!" Dr. Chopra has asked the same question to many of his patients with the same answer.

Dr. Chopra writes: "Happiness seems to be the goal of all other goals, and yet most people seek happiness in a roundabout way. In 1999, I presented a class on Happiness at Sacred Heart University. I began the first session of each class by asking the students what was important to them. I would list everyone’s comment on the black board. The answers included, money, family, security, health, and many more, then, I would go back to the person who raised the comment and ask them why it was important to them and how it made them feel. Every single person I have done this with inevitably has arrived at happiness, as their reason for valuing what they thought was important to them.

Dr. Chopra states: "Why not make happiness our primary goal? Why seek happiness through all these secondhand means?" The very first class at Sacred Heart University recognized the value of being happy and the importance of practicing this newfound power. On January 13, 2000, our first Happiness Club meeting was held as a result of the first class wanting to continue leaning about happiness and making it their primary goal in life.

I am delighted that Dr. Chopra has enlightened us toward a more accurate understanding of real and lasting happiness. As Dr. Chopra affirms: "…happiness for a reason is just another form of misery because the reason can be taken away from us at any time. To be happy for no reason is the happiness we want to experience."

Dr. Chopra affirms: "When our life is an expression of the inner state of happiness, we discover an immense reservoir of power within us. This power gives us the freedom from fear and limitations, and allows us to realize all the abundance that we aspire to." I have continually said that happiness is an issue of power. We are not speaking of the power we seek to have over others or in the world, but the authentic power we experience within ourselves. After all, my definition of happiness is: happiness is an inner state of well being. Happiness serves us as well in addition to being favorable to others. Real power is the emotional control we develop as a result of being aware of lasting happiness. I have repeatedly said that the opposite of happiness is fear. It is by embracing the state of lasting happiness that we can move into and experience genuine freedom.

Thank you Dr. Deepak Chopra for writing this book that shows us how to embrace our true nature. I am grateful that you show us the way to lasting happiness. Dr. Chopra said: "To find happiness is to find your soul." Make sure you read this book so you can begin to understand the importance and the value of lasting happiness and how you can bring this effect into your life now.

Our next Happiness Club meeting will be a presentation called: "Using The Power of Happiness in Your Life," by Dr. Barry Cohen & Lionel Ketchian. We will address using happiness to help us all deal with life’s upsets and setbacks. We will also have a brief presentation called: "How to Stay Happy Despite World Events" by Alice Katz. Alice will offer practical, specific ways to deal with whatever goes on in the world and in our lives. Join us this Thursday, October 12, at 7:00 - 9:00 P.M. at the Fairfield Public Library, in the Memorial Room. Meet some wonderful people using happiness in their lives. Admission is free; everyone is welcome. For further information call Lionel Ketchian at 203 258-7777.