I Ching

A joy that is shared suggests a group of friends playing, or a carefree young girl singing to herself while engaged in her work.  Happiness is rising within, and spreading out into the world!Joy comes into the world through gentle means, but springs from a solid inner base.  The power of pure joy should not be underestimated.  The enjoyment of learning and discovery, for example, has been the source of much material progress.  Accordingly, that which brings joy into the world is a source of considerable power.

If happiness is supported by personal stability, it will in time wear down the stiffest barrier and win over the hardest heart.  True joy is a beacon in the world, and though it is indeed rare, its presence is an indication of great good fortune, both now and in the future.  How could it be otherwise?

1. Living a life of quiet, self-contained joy is the height of good fortune.  Eat when you are hungry, sleep when you are sleepy, take your pleasures as you will – what could be better?
2. True joy is incompatible with any pleasure which cannot also be fully appreciated and relished the morning after.  Take this lesson to heart.
3. When the water of dismal self-centeredness has been emptied, what may be used to re-fill the bucket? Exuberance, in all its forms! Those who control their desires often do so not because of strong control, but because of weak desires.  Knowing your deepest wishes, and acting on them, is the path to exuberance and energy.
4. When a variety of pleasures abound, it furthers one to be decisive.  Failure to act in face of pleasing options is as self-defeating as failure to act in the face of danger.  Inner peace is fostered more through a willingness to live life fully, on its own terms, than from an over-developed sense of propriety.
5. When a period of joyousness begins to degenerate, problems always arise.  However sincere you are, it is possible to become involved with unworthy circumstances or people.  Only by recognizing this tendency, and guarding against it, can you avoid pitfalls.
6. Pleasant circumstances do not always indicate success.  Having lost touch with one’s deeper self and true purpose in life, it is possible to be swept along by fate and circumstance, and be carried from the sources of true joy.