Desire is the only thing that creates suffering.
Because desire mandates that “Only if you get/do/attain/possess/experience xxxxx” will I release you from my grip/preoccupation.
Happiness is simply a state where there is no desire controlling my energies manifesting as freedom and release.
Happiness is a state where the present moment is good enough that I cease trying to move away from it.
Once desire comes back it controls energies in the direction of desire which are naturally in opposition to ‘What IS’.
From the outside you can never know if a person is aligned to the divine will or not.
Effort/Struggle/Resistance is a good indicator.
Another indicator is the person’s level of joy.
The extent of the above factors can determine how far away the person is from the divine will.
But again this effort/resistance/struggle factor is relative too.
For instance, during the dark night of the soul, a person can experience profound amounts of struggle and effort, but this comes from the illumination.
Ordinary person -> Effort.
God|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx unconscious xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx| +++++++ effort
Illuminated person -> Effort.
God|xxx unc| ++++++++++++++++ effort
The illuminated person here is putting double the effort and facing double the suffering and stress as the ordinary person.
Can you see even though the illuminated person appears to put much greater effort, he is still much closer to God’s will than the average person.
Because desire mandates that “Only if you get/do/attain/possess/experience xxxxx” will I release you from my grip/preoccupation.
Happiness is simply a state where there is no desire controlling my energies manifesting as freedom and release.
Happiness is a state where the present moment is good enough that I cease trying to move away from it.
Once desire comes back it controls energies in the direction of desire which are naturally in opposition to ‘What IS’.
From the outside you can never know if a person is aligned to the divine will or not.
Effort/Struggle/Resistance is a good indicator.
Another indicator is the person’s level of joy.
The extent of the above factors can determine how far away the person is from the divine will.
But again this effort/resistance/struggle factor is relative too.
For instance, during the dark night of the soul, a person can experience profound amounts of struggle and effort, but this comes from the illumination.
Ordinary person -> Effort.
God|xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx unconscious xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx| +++++++ effort
Illuminated person -> Effort.
God|xxx unc| ++++++++++++++++ effort
The illuminated person here is putting double the effort and facing double the suffering and stress as the ordinary person.
Can you see even though the illuminated person appears to put much greater effort, he is still much closer to God’s will than the average person.
Journey to the Abstract 