Dear Al:

“Is the Noble Eightfold Path the way to..?”- don’t remember the content of the book.

“I read that the path within myself to help me end the suffering, therefore is it the key to happiness?”- define happiness: is it joy, is it contentment? Joy is temporary at best, it is a neural excitement, the brain/ body can’t tolerate it for too long. Contentment has calm in it, something we can endure, so it’s something to aim at.

Regarding suffering, mental health and contentment: the more congruent your thoughts and beliefs are with reality, the less you suffer, the more mentally healthy and content you are.

It is not possible for a person to be content alone because we are social animals, we are born to socialize. And it is not possible for a person to like himself/ herself when no one else does because we are each others’ mirrors, seeing ourselves in others. Again, as a social beings we are born that way. Thing is,  we should be selective as to what mirror we are looking at

I will be away from the computer for about 12 hours. Post anytime and I will reply when I am back.

anita

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