If ignorance is bliss, why aren’t more people happy?

Answer 1

They do not think they are ignorant..... this is unfailing prescription for utter unhappiness, that is where there is no knowledge but abundant ego.

Answer 2

The innocents are blissfully happy, the ignorant, a term usually applied to they infused with anger or rancour evoked by a lack of understanding, are usually prisoners of their own negative thinking.

A scientist produced a theory some years ago stating happy pople were in actuality mad, insane. The media sensationalised the whole matter as the rantings of the proverbial mad scientist. He is right but he had failed to elaborate upon the topic.
Innocents, those good and purely souls tend to be happy because they refuse to see the harsh rigours of everyday life. They have an emotional immunity that filters out aspects of life and the world that would cause emotional trauma. Unceasingly smiling faces with a cheer for all they meet.
Self awarness then brings about iether an empathic love of the world in all its forms, or a loathing of the stark vilness and the helpness of the inhabitants thereof.

The Death of innocence notable only when it gives birth to Wisdom. I na ll other cases produces hardened festering hatemongers who rest not until all around them are as cantankerous and unsociable as they have become.

Be Loved.

Answer 3

Let us consider the terms "bliss","ignorance" and "happy".

Ignorance is "blissful" only if one has no understanding of that of which one is ignorant. For instance, if ones neighbors are starving to death, but one is ignorant of this fact, then one can blissfully enjoy ones second helping of dinner.

We must also question whether or not "bliss" is the same as "happy". Bliss is the absence of agitation, turmoil, conflict, or worry. Bliss is also an internal experiencing of "being at peace"... The term "internal" is a subtle one here in that it does not require an external object, but actually requires the absence of an external focus that would prevent one from focusing "within" oneself to be at peace.

Any external, or cerebral excitation that would cause one to "think" [that is to fix ones Attn Aspect of Apapsyche - that which allows one to "think"] with the Left-Hemisphere of ones brain.... automatically prevents one from being at peace... which is an internal experiencing of Self.

So, to experience being "happy" the chances are good that being happy depends upon ones reaction to an external event entirely that is identified by ones brain and physical senses as pleasurable. This sense of being "happy" then can be had even when one is not, in fact, at peace within oneself.

As the question is phrased, I believe that which is "causing" people to not be "happy" is actually to be found in the fact that people are ignorant of who they are, why they are, and the reason they are on the physical plane of existence. That is, rather than the ignorance of people providing them bliss, their ignorance is causing them conflict, turmoil, agitation and fear.... and this lack of bliss is becoming so overwhelming within them that they can no longer find external activities sufficiently diverting of their conscious awareness to pretend that these "things" are making them happy.

Peace

Answer 4

Yes- because they are blissfully unaware of reality. They are covered by Gods material energy called Maya (Illusion) and they think they are happy. Actually there is no real happiness in the material world (unless one knows the art of being in this world, but not of it.) Then life can be ecstatic. Really it is only those who are in comple ignorance and those who are self realized who are not suffering. The first category are in an illusory so called happiness and are suffering but not aware of it (unconcious) and the Self realized soul is in actually bliss. Those who think they are happy in this world are the most ignorant. Hogs think they are enjoying as they slop in the mud and eat their own stool. To a human being that is disgusting. Happiness in this world is a mental concoction and not real. lt is all based on the modes of material nature. Phantasmagoria. Get real bliss. Get self realized. The Science of Self Realization. By Bhaktivedanta Prabhupada tells how.

Answer 5

What you don't know can't hurt you? Is that your premise?

How about Iran with a Nuke and you're a Jew who lives
next door!

Look at the Islamic world of the terrorist they don't look happy about anything except when they're shooting off their AK 47s and creating mayhem, pain and death ... are they ignorant?

Answer 6

Because they are weighed down with loads and loads of facts and information, the ignorance of which is bliss, not of the knowledge they mistake all that for.

Answer 7

People don't like to live in ignorance. That's why there are so many News programmes on the TV and Radio and so many magazines and news papers. Why are people so interested in what's going on around? it only gets them down so why listen? Live in Ignorance, dont watch or listen or read the News. Result, Bliss. Take it from me!

Answer 8

It is more like selective bliss if you have a deadly imperceptible disease ,that will inevitably kill you would be considerably happier being oblivious of this seemingly innocuous (and non existent threat).

Answer 9

Well maybe people have found their bliss in ignorance...but then they don't know because...ignorance I guess...

Answer 10

To quote more from Thomas Gray -

"Alas regardless of their doom, the little victims play!
No sense have they of ills to come, nor care beyond today....
Since sorrow never comes too late, and happiness too swiftly flies.
Thought, would destroy their paradise."

Answer 11

People rarely admit to being ignorant. So they don't know that they should be happy.