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I fear, the inevitable conclusion we must all come to is, that in the world happiness is quite indefinable. We can no more grasp it than we can grasp the sun in the sky or the moon in the water. We can feel it interpenetrating our whole being with warmth and strength; we can see it in a pale reflection shining elsewhere; or in its total absence, we, walking in darkness, learn to appreciate what it is by what it is not. ~ Ch. 10

Dinah Maria Mulock#29

HappinessPhilosophyEmotionPerceptionContrastDefinitionMeaning

About this quote

What does it mean?
Happiness is hard to define but can be felt and understood through its absence.
In plain terms
Happiness is hard to catch but you know it when you feel it.
What can you take from it?
Happiness is felt more than defined.

Where it applies

  • reflecting on happiness
  • dealing with sadness
  • seeking meaning

Putting it to work

  • notice feelings of joy
  • learn from contrast
  • value presence

Questions to consider

  • How do you recognize happiness?
  • What does its absence teach you?

Another view

It may discourage active pursuit of happiness as something definable.

More from Dinah Maria Mulock

  1. Happiness! Can any human being undertake to define it for another? ~ Ch. 10

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