Finding Your Happy Place
The 9 Factors That Influence Happiness
Although the new twenty-year cycle doesn't officially begin until February of 2024, many people are already feeling the shift in energy from the very physically focused Mountain Earth element to the more spiritually conscious divine spark of the Fire element. And with the swift Soft Wood energy of next year, 2023 will quickly fly by and the "Future Prosperity" cycle will begin before we know it.
In addition to future prosperity, the Fire element is associated with happiness. This is because Fire represents the many celebrations of life that bring people together and put smiles on their faces. The holiday festivities like Merry Christmas with glad tidings of great joy. Happy days like graduation and wedding ceremonies. Happy birthdays parties and happy anniversaries dinners. Happy family gatherings like Thanksgiving and Happy New Years with friends. The Pursuit of Happiness
The Declaration of Independence asserts that all men have a right to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness". Americans pursue happiness like it's going out of style. But are they happy? Do they ever get happy or choose to be happy? Or, is happiness something that cannot be achieved if you're always in pursuit of it? We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.United States Declaration of Independence
During the last two decades, people have been conditioned to look outside of themselves to the material world for their happiness. When your happiness is dependent on having an abundance of money and owning a mountain of possessions, you either have to work hard to maintain that level of affluence or risk being an unhappy person. As a result, we have people who are either completely exhausted by their pursuit of happiness or people who have given up on ever being happy. Inner Happiness
What Fire elements know is that their happiness is an inside job. They do the things that make their heart happy. And they are very enthusiastic about taking whatever inspired actions will guarantee and increase their inner happiness. The Fire element is also associated with the Life Center known as Fame & Fortune. A less Chinese and more conscious expression of this energy is highlighted by receiving recognition and blessings. But many people do feel like their happiness is determined by and even dependent on the elusive fame and fortune, the fate in our stars. What's interesting is that, in addition to the primary meaning of "feeling pleasure or contentment", the word happy is associated with being fortunate, even lucky. Happy comes from the early English word, happenstance, meaning happy accident or fortunate coincidence. Later, in the Middle Ages, the phrase "good hap", meaning good luck, was commonly used to communicate good fortunate, luck or even destiny or fate. Because happiness is so important to Fire elements, they don't leave being happy up to chance. They refuse to have their happiness predetermined by destiny. They make their own happiness by creating a series of fortunate events in their lives. The 9 Happiness Factors
In the Psychology of Happiness, author Peter Warr, shares the nine principles features of happiness from the world around you. His aim, he said, was to "explore the causes, characteristics and consequences of happiness and unhappiness". In world surveys, it's happiness that's considered the most important aspect of life. Happiness is not one of the most important, it's THE most important element to a well-lived life. According to Warr, this notion of happiness being a positive feeling provided by pleasant experiences and dependent upon achieving a state contentment, has only been around for a hundred years. With that definition in mind, the word happy, is both overused and misused in the modern era. Happiness has been reduced to a fleeting feeling that comes and goes and therefore a state that cannot ever be truly attained or maintained. It's as fickle as your changing interest and desires. For the Eastern people of China and Japan, happiness is associated with social harmony and the welfare of the collective. This correlates with the completion number of the Fire element, 9, the largest number of The 8 Elements, which is represented by large families, congregations of spiritual seekers, social groups, local communities, crowds of fans and huge populations of people. The socialist/communist "greater good" mentality that requires people to sacrifice their individual rights and personal freedom for the benefit of others has become a conventional expectation. Westerners, especially Americans, connect their access to happiness with being able to have whatever they want and achieve their personal goals. They cannot be happy now because they can only be "happy when" somebody or something makes them happy. And they objectify their happiness by measuring themselves or evaluating the things in their life with summarizing statements claiming they're "happy with" someone or "happy about" something. Being happy with your partner because they do something you need or want them to is not true happiness. And being "happy" about finding an item you want on sale certainly doesn't contribute to inner happiness. The happiness factor can be based on weirdly specific things that contribute to general overall feelings of personal wellbeing. Feature-specific happiness factors include personal preferences, likes and dislikes and positive or negative feelings about a particular person, place or thing. Domain-specific happiness factors are related to how you feel about certain aspects of your life, like your career or relationships, or certain sets of ideas, like politics or religion. When someone says they are generally a happy person, it's safe to say they've found inner happiness. They've checked the boxes of many of their feature-specific and domain-specific happiness factors. They've prioritize their happiness by making choices or practicing daily rituals that bring both pleasure and contentment to their life experience. They've found a worthwhile vocation that is personally fulfilling and contributes to having a meaningful life. They're living the good life! It's common for people to say that something "brings them happiness", as if it's gift being brought and given, bestowing upon them the happy feelings associated with being recognized and celebrated. Gifts are the Fire elements love language. They're often given to people at the most memorable and celebratory moments of life, like birthdays and graduations, weddings and baby showers. Inner happiness is something we can bring to our life. We can create it for ourselves or gain access to it from within. But first, we need to have our needs met. It's a challenge to be happy if you're cold and hungry, lack resources and funds, feel alone and unloved, have nothing to show for your lived experience to date and don't know how to actually be the person you know you are on the inside. Maslow's hierarchy of needs begins with physiological needs, including clothing, food, water, shelter, sleep and sex. Once these basic needs are met, people seek out safety and security. Once they feel physically safe and have more financial security, people crave love and a sense of belonging. Once they've made friends, have an intimate relationship and have established a family, they aspire to achieve a higher self-esteem through social interactions and personal accomplishments. In the process, a rare few will go on to become self-actualized by embodying their best qualities and fulfilling their full potential. According to thousands of academic studies, the following are the nine factors influencing happiness. 1) Personal Influence is the ability to change your life. You may not have the ability to change the world, but you do have what it takes to create change in your own life. It's having the confidence and personal agency to improve your conditions, being able to remove yourself from harmful situations and making choices that bring pleasure and contentment to your life experience. 2 ) Application of Skills is the ability to use the natural talents and spiritual gifts you're born with and the areas of expertise you've acquired and become known for. You may not be able to solve the world's problems, but by applying your skills in your own life, you can solve your own problems. When engaging in the application of these skills to achieve goals, it creates a feeling of being in your element. And that can make you feel happy! 3) Demands & Goals are the requirements to improve and excel, achieve your dreams and fulfill your desires. You may not be able to meet the demands the world places on you, but you can meet the goals you set for yourself. Without goals and the demands such ambitions require of you, you will cease to have a reason to get out of the bed in the morning. Humans need a life purpose, or at least, have an intention for being here. 4) Variety is the spice of life! It's one of the Fire element's essential needs. And it's one of the many factors that contribute to our happiness. You may have to eat everyday to live, but one of the best things about nourishing our bodies is that there's so many cuisines to try and so many flavorful foods to create delicious dishes. 5) Clear Requirements & Outlook are both grounding and aspiring. If you have clarity about what's ahead and know what you need to do to get there, you can make a plan for your life. 6) Human Interaction is the most important factor to happiness. The Fire element requires the most people to complete its number. You can have all the things, but it's only when you have people to share them with that they make you happy. Without people, it's just stuff to want and buy, manage and organize, store and insure. 7) Money is the cover fee to enter society and the currency to participate in it. Money can't buy you happiness, but it can buy things that will contribute to your happiness. You can throw money at problems and hope they go away, but not all problems can be solved with more money. There are people who are cash poor and yet rich in happiness. There are also very wealthy people who are miserable and may never have been truly happy a day in their lives. 8) Physical Setting is essential to happiness and personal wellbeing. People need a home that protects them form the elements, makes them feel safe and is filled with people who love them. Better still is if your home is set in a place that makes you happy. 9) Valued Role is another important happiness factor that can sometimes be overlooked. You may not always be able to do what you want when you want, but you can be a valued member of your family, competent member of society and contributing member to your community. Like the message from the holiday classic, It's a Wonderful Life, knowing that your presence is having an effect on people's lives for the better, contributes in turn to your own happiness. Your Happy Place
People often talk about what they call their "happy place". Sometimes it's a physical place on the Earth. Sometimes it's an energetic place in your subconscious. Psychologists, meditation guides and energy healers might ask you to visualize your happy place and go there in your mind's eye. And astrogeographists can tell you where in the world are your happiest places on Earth. Once you know where your personal happy line is in the world, you can plan a trip or vacation and travel to that destination. And if you feel like being your happiest self, you can make the decision to move there permanently. If not, you can take a picture of yourself smiling while you are there, to keep with you or frame for a wall in your house. You can fill a small bottle with sand or earth from that place, pick up a shell or pebble or buy something made by a local artisan from that area, to take home and display. Or, you can eat food or drink coffee or wine or wear clothes made in that part of the world. To discover your happiest place on earth, contact me to request your Life Path AstroMap. Or, read more about AstroMaps. As you set intentions for yourself, think about what makes you happy. Write down the people, the places and the things that make you happy. Plan a trip to your happiest place on Earth. Do the things that spark and fuel your inner happiness. Smile every day. And choose to be happy! ☯
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