Theme 4: Happiness is Everlasting and Unchanging “Happiness is continuous and constant.” — Bhoomananda Swami (personal communication, March 2, 2018) Theme answered the first research question—What is the meaning of happiness from the perspective of sadhus? Thirteen out of 20 sadhus talked about the permanent or enduring nature of happiness See Table for a summary of Theme Table Theme Summary Happiness is Everlasting and Unchanging Research Question 1: What is the meaning of happiness from the perspective of sadhus? Theme Number of Participants Number of References N=20 Happiness is everlasting 13 (65%) 33 and unchanging Quote: Happiness is continuous and constant — Bhoomananda Swami (personal communication, March 2, 2018) Definition The sadhus spoke about the permanent or enduring nature of happiness They mentioned that while most people experience discontinuous happiness, their happiness was perpetual and did not depend on external worldly objects The sadhus reported that while most people experience discontinuous happiness, their happiness was perpetual and did not depend on external worldly objects Swamini Nirmalananda attributed the ordinary experience of discontinuous happiness to human desires During her interview, she explained the concept of fluctuating human happiness To explain the concept of fluctuating happiness, she drew a diagram on a piece of paper (see Figure 2) to describe how human desires prevent people from experiencing continuous happiness In her words: 121