The belief that youth is the happiest time of life is founded on fallacy. The happiest person is the person who thinks the most interesting thoughts, and we grow happier as we grow older.
Interpretation
Happiness is not determined by age but by the quality of our thoughts.
This quote suggests that the common belief that youth is the peak of happiness is misguided. Instead, true happiness comes from engaging with interesting ideas and experiences, which can increase as we age and gain more wisdom and perspective on life.
In practice
During a graduation speech emphasizing lifelong learning and happiness.
Real happiness is not dependent on external things. The pond is fed from within. The kind of happiness that stays with you is the happiness that springs from inward thoughts and emotions. You must cultivate your mind if you wish to achieve enduring happiness.
Life, with all it's sorrows, cares, perplexities and heart-breaks, is more interesting than bovine placidity, hence more desirable. The more interesting it is, the happier it is.
I divide all readers into two classes: those who read to remember and those who read to forget.
The final test of a gentleman is his respect for those who can be of no possible service to him.
Whenever it is possible, a boy should choose some occupation which he should do even if he did not need the money.
You can be deprived of your money, your job and your home by someone else, but remember that no one can ever take away your honor.
For those who are always courteous and respectful of elders, four things increase: life, beauty, happiness and strength.
When you realize where you come from, you naturally become tolerant, amused, kindhearted as a grandmother, and dignified as a king. Immersed in wonder, you can deal with whatever life brings you, and when death comes, you are ready.
I'm trying to learn the lessons of the past, but not to make speeches about the past.
Whilst we deliberate how to begin a thing, it grows too late to begin it.
The absence of alternatives clears the mind marvelously.
When each day is the same as the next, it’s because people fail to recognize the good things that happen in their lives every day that the sun rises.
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