All of us want to be happy. The world makes us believe that fulfilling our material desires will make us happy.

However, this makes us not happy but frustrated. Why? Because material desires are insatiable and innumerable.

  1. Insatiable: The more we indulge in a desire, the more it blazes forth. Consequently, the brief satisfaction that comes from indulging in it becomes dwarfed by the prolonged dissatisfaction that comes from its increased magnitude.
  2. Innumerable: Our unfulfilled desires far outnumber our fulfilled desires. So the torment arising from our unfulfilled desires far outweighs the joy arising from our fulfilled desires.

To become happy, we need to get the happiness sequence right. The Bhagavad-gita (2.66) gives this sequence through rhetorical negation: if we are not connected with Krishna, our intelligence can’t be fixed; if our intelligence is not fixed, our mind can’t be steady; if our mind is not steady, we can’t be peaceful; if we aren’t peaceful, how can we be happy?

Let’s reverse this sequence to see how it leads to happiness:

  1. We connect ourselves with Krishna through devotional service. This Krishna-connection fixes our intelligence in firm understanding of the natures of material happiness and spiritual happiness.
  2. With this fixed intelligence, we steady our mind and don’t let unwarranted material desires control it.
  3. A steady mind helps us redirect our quest for happiness from the world to Krishna.
  4. This redirected quest deepens our Krishna-connection thereby enabling us to relish lasting happiness.

So, next time when we feel dissatisfied due to worldly desires, let’s get the happiness sequence right: start with enhancing our Krishna-connection, gradually experience spiritual happiness and finally get rid of both the dissatisfaction and the dissatisfaction-inducing desires.

Bhagavad Gita Chapter 02, Text 66

“One who is not connected with the Supreme [in Krishna consciousness] can have neither transcendental intelligence nor a steady mind, without which there is no possibility of peace. And how can there be any happiness without peace?”