The American Constitution says that we have the right to happiness. What is happiness? Can the pursuit of happiness be a right, an experience, a state of mind, or an aspiration?

The term happy is used only once in the Torah itself.  “Be Happy Israel who is like you, a people saved by God” (Deuteronomy  33.29). But it does recur throughout the Book of Psalms, most popularly as in 144:15 “Happy are the people who dwell in your house.”

The Mishnah (Avot 4) says, “Who is a rich man? Someone who is satisfied with his lot.” This implies that happiness is a state of mind.

Some Indian traditions identify happiness with sexual fulfillment. Greek philosophers thought of happiness as a state that can be reached, and that one can remain in that state. Some identified it with Hedonism, the pursuit of pleasure. Others with wisdom, knowledge, and self-control. Various words in Greek and Latin are used for happiness.

This is why I find happiness a problematic word. Instead, the Torah much more frequently uses the word Simcha, best translated as joy — the emotion we should focus on to achieve a state of blessedness rather than just happiness. This is the foundation of our relationship with God, religion, and humanity. To do good is what we call a blessing, even if sometimes it is a burden. In the words of Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav, “It is a positive command to be joyful all day long.”

It is not happiness or pleasure that I feel when I go to a hospital or a funeral. But I know it is the right thing to do, and I feel joy in that I am helping another person even though I may not be happy at that moment. Happiness seems to belong to the realm of pleasure, but does not necessarily have anything to do with being a good or spiritual person. One can be fortunate without being happy, and certainly be happy without being rich. A hippopotamus may be happy wallowing in the mud, as much as a person may be happy in a drug-induced euphoria. But I would not want to change places with them.

I would like to say there are two kinds of happiness. Physical happiness is universal. But spiritual happiness is when one adds that extra dimension that comes with the Hebrew word Simcha. Happiness involves a sense of gratitude. A blessing.

This was the experience and the message my parents bequeathed to me, epitomized by sitting around my parents’ table on a Friday and Festival night. The candles lighting up the Shabbat table. The joy on my parent’s faces and the songs we sang together, serious, contemplative, rhythmical, and lively, interspersed with words of wisdom and tradition. That is what has inspired me. Those were happy moments that repeatedly bring me joy, pleasure, and satisfaction. I have had many moments of pleasure in my life.

We start every day with blessings expressing gratitude for everything we have in life. When we say “Baruch Ata” it is translated “Blessed Are You,” which is so easily misunderstood as if God requires our blessing. It is rather a way of saying “thank you.” In return, when we are blessed by another person or God, it is an expression of love, sympathy, concern, and connection.

Happiness can be pleasure and enjoyment. But doing good brings true joy, which is a thing apart and beyond.

The author is a writer and rabbi, currently based in New York.

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