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title: The absence of desire is true happiness
created: 2024-11-18T09:18:12
modified: 2026-02-06T16:17:05
---

> 「有求皆苦，無求即樂」— 達摩祖師《二入四行觀》

> “Don’t want anything. Then you get everything.” — Seungsahn

> “Having the fewest wants, I am nearest to the gods.” — Socrates

> [“Not wanting something is as good as having it.” — Naval Ravikant](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyfUysrNaco&t=33s)

> “Wanting always interrupts being.” — Yung Pueblo

> “Desire is a contract that you make with yourself to be unhappy until you get what you want.” — Naval Ravikant

> “Desire makes slaves out of kings, while patience makes kings out of slaves.” — Imam Al-Ghazali

> “Freedom is secured not by the fulfilling of one’s desires, but by the removal of desire.” — Epictetus

> “The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.” — Dan Millman

[@mansonSubtleArtNot2016]

> [“The desire for more positive experience is itself a negative experience. And, paradoxically, the acceptance of one’s negative experience is itself a positive experience. — Mark Manson, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F\*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life](https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/48297245-the-subtle-art-of-not-giving-a-f-ck-a-counterintuitive-approach-to-livi)

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Wishful Thinking = False Hope

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Materialism

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無欲則剛

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天高不算高，人心比天高

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Keep your mind aware and desire asleep.

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> “Anything you cannot relinquish when it has outlived its usefulness possesses you.” — Peace Pilgrim

> “You can’t lose what you never had, you cant keep what’s not yours, and you can’t hold on to something that doesn’t want to stay.” — Damon Suede, [Bad Idea](https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/26163619)

You only lose what you cling to.

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# Low Expectations

> 「生而不有，為而不恃，功成而不居。」— 老子《道德經》

> “The first rule of a happy life is low expectations. If you have unrealistic expectations you’re going to be miserable your whole life.” — Charlie Munger

It didn’t matter so much whether things were going well. It mattered whether they were going better than expected.

## [Modified Model by Sahil Bloom](https://www.sahilbloom.com/newsletter/are-low-expectations-the-key-to-life)

> The first rule of a happy life is low expectations for things outside your control and high expectations for things within it. If you have high expectations for the world and no expectations for yourself, you’re going to be miserable your whole life.

* Low expectations for things outside your control.
* High expectations for things within your control.

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[Miswanting](miswanting.md)

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[Emotional Freedom](emotional-freedom.md)

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[The Art of Quitting](the-art-of-quitting.md)