What can we do to achieve happiness?

There are many problems affecting people around the world which make them unhappy, especially during times of financial hardship and other difficulties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. As life gets harder for many of us, Vientiane Times asked for opinions about ways in which we can be more positive.

Ms Keo Thammavong, a government official in Xekong province: There are many ways to achieve happiness but, first of all, we should channel our thoughts and try to stay calm and tolerant. We should create happiness in our minds and not harm others. I like to make merit, pray and meditate in temples and doing this always makes me happy. Happiness is everywhere, but it depends on us as to how we attain it. The most important thing is that we should have peace in our minds and harmony in our lives. Importantly, we should be happy with what we have and what we do. Unfortunately, drugs and other issues are causing unhappiness for families and society as a whole. Everyone, especially parents, should be aware of this and protect their children from this kind of lifestyle. This will help to reduce problems and create happiness.
 
Ms Viengsavanh, an employee in Borikhamxay province: I think that every community and country should enjoy peace and harmony and it’s sad that many parts of the world don’t enjoy peace. Many countries and groups of people are engaged in conflicts, which can lead to fighting or war. If people want happiness, they should help each other to make their community and the world peaceful. Every group and country should try to resolve conflicts or problems in peaceful ways. In addition, everyone should enjoy equal rights, comply with the law, and respect the culture and traditions of other countries. If we want to be happy, we should help each other to achieve it together. 

Ms Chuaxong, a student at the National University of Laos: Of course, everyone wants to be happy and no one wants suffering. People around the world are trying to achieve happiness in many ways, and while many are successful a lot of others fail.  Many people are poor and suffer while many others are rich and have good jobs. But despite this, some say they aren’t happy with their work or their life. This may be because they aren’t satisfied with what they have or do. I think we should try to achieve happiness by being satisfied with our life and work. We should live in peace and solidarity. At present, our society is quite chaotic because of problems that cause unhappiness. So, if we want to achieve happiness we should try to minimise or avoid these problems and we should start with ourselves and our families.
 
Ms Khanthavong, a resident of Savannakhet province: Happiness is very important for our lives. If we’re not happy, it means that we are suffering in some way. If we want to be happy, we should create happiness in the right way. We should be healthy and build friendship and love among our families, in the organisations we associate with, and our communities. Everyone should show respect and love for each other. Everyone should realise the importance of relationships, kindness and helping each other. We should help each other to solve problems or conflicts and strive to prevent them. It isn’t good that some people aren’t aware of this and always create problems for others, which causes unhappiness for both themselves and other people. So they should somehow change their behaviour.

By Lamphone Pasanthong
(Latest Update March 30, 2022)