I think in some theoretically technical and abstract way happiness is always a choice. And you are correct that nothing is really external and that it is just an illusion.
But realistically, I think there are simply going to be conditions and times where the odds are severely against it due to our lack of spiritual discipline.
Sometimes there is just too much momentum of thought in the direction of unwanted experiences.
I think in those circumstances you just have to do the best you can with what you have. Meaning, make an attempt to at least casually lean in the direction of better feeling thoughts/emotions. Even if one doesn't have the choice in this given moment of being happy because of harsh life circumstances for example, there is still the choice of: [slighty worse interpretation of events] and [slightly better interpretation of events]. And that choice, though it may seem small and insignificant, is the stepping stone or gateway to the next better thought, and the next better thought, and the next better thought. It is a continuum of experience ranging from: [miserable<--------------->awesome].
But much like traveling anywhere, you don't get to your destination if you don't start putting one foot in front of the other. Small progress is *STILL* progress.
I also think it helps occasionally to just give yourself permission to be 'where you are', even if its emotionally terrible. Sometimes to transcend the depression you have to let go of the pressure to get out of it. If the feeling of 'pressure' was the source of the depression, letting go of that would be the gateway thought to the next more positive mental/emotive space. Personally, I try not to over analyze it, I generally just make a modest attempt to reach for a feeling of "relief", and let that emotion guide my actions rather than attempt to 'figure it out', which usually just fails.
But realistically, I think there are simply going to be conditions and times where the odds are severely against it due to our lack of spiritual discipline.
Sometimes there is just too much momentum of thought in the direction of unwanted experiences.
I think in those circumstances you just have to do the best you can with what you have. Meaning, make an attempt to at least casually lean in the direction of better feeling thoughts/emotions. Even if one doesn't have the choice in this given moment of being happy because of harsh life circumstances for example, there is still the choice of: [slighty worse interpretation of events] and [slightly better interpretation of events]. And that choice, though it may seem small and insignificant, is the stepping stone or gateway to the next better thought, and the next better thought, and the next better thought. It is a continuum of experience ranging from: [miserable<--------------->awesome].
But much like traveling anywhere, you don't get to your destination if you don't start putting one foot in front of the other. Small progress is *STILL* progress.
I also think it helps occasionally to just give yourself permission to be 'where you are', even if its emotionally terrible. Sometimes to transcend the depression you have to let go of the pressure to get out of it. If the feeling of 'pressure' was the source of the depression, letting go of that would be the gateway thought to the next more positive mental/emotive space. Personally, I try not to over analyze it, I generally just make a modest attempt to reach for a feeling of "relief", and let that emotion guide my actions rather than attempt to 'figure it out', which usually just fails.
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