--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The gratification of desire is not…" description: "\"The gratification of desire is not happiness.\" — Daisaku Ikeda" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78e/daisaku-ikeda-1472_desire_the-gratification-of-desire-is-not-happi_1522285.png" --- # The gratification of desire is not happiness. ![“The gratification of desire is not happiness.” quote by Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78e/daisaku-ikeda-1472_desire_the-gratification-of-desire-is-not-happi_1522285.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78e/daisaku-ikeda-1472_desire_the-gratification-of-desire-is-not-happi_1522285.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78e/daisaku-ikeda-1472_desire_the-gratification-of-desire-is-not-happi_1522285.png) > “The gratification of desire is not happiness.” [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Fulfilling desires brings temporary pleasure, not lasting happiness; true contentment comes from deeper values and purpose. **In simple terms:** Desire gives pleasure, not lasting happiness. Key Takeaway Seek purpose beyond desire. Themes desire happiness contentment spirituality Mood thoughtful hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - personal fulfillment - consumerism - mental health - relationships Key Concepts psychology philosophy ethics Questions to Reflect On - What deeper purpose can replace fleeting desires? - How can you cultivate lasting contentment? A Different Perspective Pursuing desire alone can lead to emptiness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Gratification](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gratification/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) ## Related quotes > [Because gratification of a desire leads to the temporary stilling of the mind and the experience of the peaceful, joyful Self, it's no wonder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-z-borysenko/because-gratification-of-a-desire-leads-to-the-temporary-stilling-of/) [Joan Z. Borysenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-z-borysenko/) > [“They say that life is an accident, driven by sexual desire, that the universe has no moral order, no truth, no God. Driven by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ved-vyasa/they-say-that-life-is-an-accident-driven-by-sexual-desire-that-the/) [Ved Vyasa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ved-vyasa/) > [Desire is happiness: satisfaction as happiness is merely the ultimate moment of desire. To be wish and wish alone is happiness, and a new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/desire-is-happiness-satisfaction-as-happiness-is-merely-the-ultimate/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Each thing tends to move towards its own nature. I always desire happiness which is my true nature. My nature is never a burden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adi-shankara/each-thing-tends-to-move-towards-its-own-nature-i-always-desire/) [Adi Shankara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adi-shankara/) > [“Not all who demand your attention desire your happiness, many merely seeking a conveyance to their own. It is entirely easy when wrapped up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-althouse/not-all-who-demand-your-attention-desire-your-happiness-many-merely/) [Tom Althouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-althouse/) > [But the reason we have this built-in desire for happiness is because we're created in God's image. He wired us to want to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-alcorn/but-the-reason-we-have-this-built-in-desire-for-happiness-is-because/) [Randy Alcorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-alcorn/) > [What unites all beings is their desire for happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/what-unites-all-beings-is-their-desire-for-happiness/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [Every human being was wired with the desire for happiness. And we will try different things all in the pursuit of that feeling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-franklin/every-human-being-was-wired-with-the-desire-for-happiness-and-we-will/) [Kirk Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-franklin/) > [I don't desire happiness. I think it's a myth, and I don't think it's... and it makes you complacent. I feel very satisfyingly uncomfortable.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beau-willimon/i-don-t-desire-happiness-i-think-it-s-a-myth-and-i-don-t-think-it-s/) [Beau Willimon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beau-willimon/) > [“I feel both sexes desire happiness and companionship above all. Not everybody feels this way, but a great majority of people do. Some will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camie-l-vincent/i-feel-both-sexes-desire-happiness-and-companionship-above-all-not/) Camie L. Vincent > [Could it be that to truly love a thing is not to desire it, but to desire happiness for it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/could-it-be-that-to-truly-love-a-thing-is-not-to-desire-it-but-to/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [Desire and happiness cannot live together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/desire-and-happiness-cannot-live-together/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [Experiment with this a little. During these days that you are here with me, don't nourish any desire for happiness, and then see how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/experiment-with-this-a-little-during-these-days-that-you-are-here/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [Every man hath a general desire of his own happiness; and likewise a variety of particular affections, passions, and appetites to particular external objects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-butler/every-man-hath-a-general-desire-of-his-own-happiness-and-likewise-a/) [Joseph Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-butler/) > [If you truly desire happiness, seek and learn how to serve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/if-you-truly-desire-happiness-seek-and-learn-how-to-serve/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) ## More by Daisaku Ikeda > [Dialogue and education for peace can help free our hearts from the impulse toward intolerance and the rejection of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/dialogue-and-education-for-peace-can-help-free-our-hearts-from-the/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [I firmly believe that the mission of religion in the 21st century must be to contribute concretely to the peaceful coexistence of humankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/i-firmly-believe-that-the-mission-of-religion-in-the-21st-century/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [Prayer is the way to destroy all fear. It is the way to banish sorrow, the way to light a torch of hope. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/prayer-is-the-way-to-destroy-all-fear-it-is-the-way-to-banish-sorrow/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [The differences between people need not act as barriers that wound, harm and drive us apart. Rather, these very differences among cultures and civilizations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/the-differences-between-people-need-not-act-as-barriers-that-wound/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [A sense of being part of the great all-inclusive life prompts us to reflect on our own place and on how we ought to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/a-sense-of-being-part-of-the-great-all-inclusive-life-prompts-us-to/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [I believe that a culture of peace must be the essential foundation of our efforts for peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/i-believe-that-a-culture-of-peace-must-be-the-essential-foundation-of/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [Come on obstacles! I've been expecting you! This is the chance that I've been waiting for!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/come-on-obstacles-i-ve-been-expecting-you-this-is-the-chance-that-i/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [Like the ocean that remains calm in its depths even when waves rage over its surface, and like the sun that continues shining on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/like-the-ocean-that-remains-calm-in-its-depths-even-when-waves-rage/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [Never be shaken, no matter what happens or what others may say. Never be flustered; never lose confidence. This is the way we should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/never-be-shaken-no-matter-what-happens-or-what-others-may-say-never/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [What our world most requires now is the kind of education that foster love for humankind, that develops character-that provides an intellectual basis for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/what-our-world-most-requires-now-is-the-kind-of-education-that-foster/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [“Human wisdom has advanced to the point where man can construct satellites. And yet man in his wisdom cannot find a way to rescue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/human-wisdom-has-advanced-to-the-point-where-man-can-construct/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [Men and women who know the brutal reality of war, who know that war strips people of their very humanity, must unite in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/men-and-women-who-know-the-brutal-reality-of-war-who-know-that-war/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [But I think we need to remember that democracy everywhere is by its nature incomplete, a work in progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/but-i-think-we-need-to-remember-that-democracy-everywhere-is-by-its/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [Life can unfold unlimitedly as long as we have a heart of appreciation and an undefeated mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/life-can-unfold-unlimitedly-as-long-as-we-have-a-heart-of/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) > [Humanity's collective mission in the cosmos lies in the practice of compassion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/humanity-s-collective-mission-in-the-cosmos-lies-in-the-practice-of/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) [Explore all 237 Daisaku Ikeda quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) ## More Desire quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) Ted Martinez > [Passion is what you need to be good, an unforgiving passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-easton/passion-is-what-you-need-to-be-good-an-unforgiving-passion/) [David Easton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-easton/) > [I want the municipality to be a helping hand to the man with a desire of sympathy, to help the fallen when it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burns/i-want-the-municipality-to-be-a-helping-hand-to-the-man-with-a-desire/) [John Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burns/) > [Ye youths and virgins, when your generous blood Has drunk the warmth of fifteen summers, now The loves invite; now to new rapture wakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/ye-youths-and-virgins-when-your-generous-blood-has-drunk-the-warmth/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [“THE ESSENCE OF YOUR DESIRE IS A FEELING”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danielle-laporte/the-essence-of-your-desire-is-a-feeling/) [Danielle LaPorte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danielle-laporte/) > [On the brink of being satiated, desire still appears infinite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-rostand/on-the-brink-of-being-satiated-desire-still-appears-infinite/) [Jean Rostand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-rostand/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [He caught her, she fell, he caught her in his arms, he held her tightly unconscious of what he was doing. He held her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/he-caught-her-she-fell-he-caught-her-in-his-arms-he-held-her-tightly/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“The deepest urge in human nature is the desire to be important.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/the-deepest-urge-in-human-nature-is-the-desire-to-be-important/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [In discovering books, you became free to explore the full range of human motives, desires, secrets, and lies. All my life, people have scolded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/betsy-lerner/in-discovering-books-you-became-free-to-explore-the-full-range-of/) [Betsy Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/betsy-lerner/) > [I have never been in, nor have I had any strong particular desire to be in, what is termed a costume drama, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-freeman/i-have-never-been-in-nor-have-i-had-any-strong-particular-desire-to/) [Martin Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-freeman/) > [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“from THE DEVIL YOU KNOW : She wanted him too. He could see it in the rapid rise of her breasts. He could smell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emery-lee/from-the-devil-you-know-she-wanted-him-too-he-could-see-it-in-the/) [Emery Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emery-lee/) [Browse all 15,155 Desire quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The gratification of desire is not happiness.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Daisaku Ikeda" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/the-gratification-of-desire-is-not-happiness/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Desire" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/the-gratification-of-desire-is-not-happiness/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78e/daisaku-ikeda-1472_desire_the-gratification-of-desire-is-not-happi_1522285.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78e/daisaku-ikeda-1472_desire_the-gratification-of-desire-is-not-happi_1522285.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/78e/daisaku-ikeda-1472_desire_the-gratification-of-desire-is-not-happi_1522285.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The gratification of desire is not happiness.” — Daisaku Ikeda", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Daisaku Ikeda", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The gratification of desire is not...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/the-gratification-of-desire-is-not-happiness/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/the-gratification-of-desire-is-not-happiness/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```