The Better Part of Happiness Exploring the


Four Purposes of Life By Dan Millman


The Prologue of Dan Millman’s newest book,


THE FOUR PURPOSES OF LIFE:


Finding Meaning and Direction in a Changing World


A Personal Note from the Author:


You are about to read an introduc- tion and invitation to my newest book. At the same time, it is a heartfelt message about the bigger picture of message about the big- ger picture of your life, and some practical reminders and perspec- tives to help you steer a course through the sometimes stormy seas of change.


With the pace of life accelerating, in a world of change, it’s not easy to maintain our balance and sense of direction. Yet we strive to do so, because a sense of direction, toward a meaningful goal, may be the better part of happiness. In this pursuit, the journey may indeed


18


matter more than the destination — but without a destination to aim for there is no journey; we can only wander.


We humans are goal seekers from infancy, drawn by the objects of our desire. But somewhere along the way, most often in the dilem- mas and angst of adolescence, a sense of confusion obscures the simple desires of childhood. What we want is muddied by expecta- tions about what we (or others) think we should do. We begin to doubt our desires, mistrust our motives, and wonder where we’re going and why.


In my first book, Way of the Peaceful Warrior, the old service station mechanic I called Socrates suggested that all seeking — for knowledge or achievement, for power or pleasure, for love or wealth or even spiritual experience — is driven by the promise of happi- ness. But the search only reinforces


Aug/Sept 2011


the sense of dilemma that sent us seeking in the first place. So he advised me to replace the search for future happiness with the practice of “unreasonable happiness” in each arising moment.


When my seeking ended and the practice began, I came to understand that what we all need, even more than a happy feeling, is a clear purpose — a meaning- ful goal or mission that connects us with other human beings.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99