“Happiness happens only when you are grounded in this attitude, that the world is just a play.
So try this, and do everything in a very festive way, celebrating, doing an ‘act’ – not a real thing. If you are a husband, play, be a play husband; if you are a wife, be a play wife.
Make it just a game. And there are rules, of course; any game to be played needs rules. Marriage is a rule and divorce is a rule, but don’t be serious about them. They are rules, and one rule begets another. Divorce is bad; because marriage is bad: one rule begets another! But don’t take them seriously, and then look how the quality of your life immediately changes.
Behave with your wife or husband or your children as if you are doing a part in a drama, and see the beauty of it. If you are playing a part you will try to be efficient, but you will not get disturbed. There is no need. You will do the part and go to sleep. But remember, it is a part, and for seven days continuously follow this attitude.
Then happiness can happen to you, and once you know what happiness is you need not move into unhappiness, because it is your choice. You are unhappy because you have chosen a wrong attitude towards life. You can be happy if you choose a right attitude.
To me this is the criterion: the attitude that makes you happy is the right attitude, and there is no objective criterion. The attitude that makes you unhappy and miserable is the wrong attitude. The criterion is subjective; your happiness is the criterion.”
