--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I would not be happy if I had not become…" description: "\"I would not be happy if I had not become a monk.\" — Nhat Hanh" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d7/nhat-hanh-515_happy_i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-had-not-become_1740801.png" --- # I would not be happy if I had not become a monk. ![“I would not be happy if I had not become a monk.” quote by Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d7/nhat-hanh-515_happy_i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-had-not-become_1740801.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d7/nhat-hanh-515_happy_i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-had-not-become_1740801.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d7/nhat-hanh-515_happy_i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-had-not-become_1740801.png) > “I would not be happy if I had not become a monk.” [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Becoming a monk brings profound contentment, suggesting that spiritual dedication yields true happiness. **In simple terms:** Monastic life brings deep joy. Key Takeaway Seek purpose through spiritual practice. Themes spirituality contentment purpose Mood serene hopeful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - meditation retreats - daily mindfulness - volunteering Key Concepts mindfulness renunciation inner peace Questions to Reflect On - Is spiritual dedication necessary for happiness? - What secular paths bring similar peace? A Different Perspective Monastic life isn’t for everyone. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Happy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy/) [Happy Monk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy-monk-1518698/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Monk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monk/) ## Related quotes > [I would not be happy if I could not become a monk. They call it the beginner's mind - the deep intention, the deepest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-could-not-become-a-monk-they-call-it-the/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [One day I saw a picture of the Buddha on a Buddhist magazine and he was sitting on the grass, and he was sitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/one-day-i-saw-a-picture-of-the-buddha-on-a-buddhist-magazine-and-he/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [Smile, breathe and go slowly." - Thich Nhat Hanh, Vietnamese Zen monk, author and peace activist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/smile-breathe-and-go-slowly-thich-nhat-hanh-vietnamese-zen-monk/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [The Buddha also counseled the monks and nuns to avoid wasting any precious time by engaging in idle conversation, oversleeping, pursuing fame and recognition,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/the-buddha-also-counseled-the-monks-and-nuns-to-avoid-wasting-any/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [Firstly, as a Buddhist monk, I hold that violence is not good. Secondly, I am a firm believer in the Gandian ethic of passive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/firstly-as-a-buddhist-monk-i-hold-that-violence-is-not-good-secondly/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [Where we've been wise is that, while 'Monk' may have been a risk at the beginning, we've built its success and built on its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-hammer/where-we-ve-been-wise-is-that-while-monk-may-have-been-a-risk-at-the/) [Bonnie Hammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-hammer/) > [I turned into a monk when my mother went to learn Buddhism in Burma. While she learnt at the monastery, I used to roam…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kabir-bedi/i-turned-into-a-monk-when-my-mother-went-to-learn-buddhism-in-burma/) [Kabir Bedi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kabir-bedi/) > [“I have my own way to walk and for some reason or other Zen is right in the middle of it wherever I go.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/i-have-my-own-way-to-walk-and-for-some-reason-or-other-zen-is-right/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [Believe nothing, O monks, just because you have been told it, or it is commonly believed, or because it is traditional or because you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/believe-nothing-o-monks-just-because-you-have-been-told-it-or-it-is/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [Indeed, said the monk, a mass, a matins, and vespers well rung are half-said.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-rabelais/indeed-said-the-monk-a-mass-a-matins-and-vespers-well-rung-are-half/) [Francois Rabelais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-rabelais/) > [A solitary American monk named Thomas Berry writes that in our relationship to nature, we have been autistic for centuries. Wrapped tightly in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janine-benyus/a-solitary-american-monk-named-thomas-berry-writes-that-in-our/) [Janine Benyus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janine-benyus/) > [If your spirit still looks around at the time of prayer, then it does not yet pray as a monk. You are no better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evagrius-ponticus/if-your-spirit-still-looks-around-at-the-time-of-prayer-then-it-does/) [Evagrius Ponticus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evagrius-ponticus/) > [I listened to King Oliver and I listened to Louis Armstrong, Jelly Roll Morton, Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, John Coltrane, Archie Shepp... I listened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-clapton/i-listened-to-king-oliver-and-i-listened-to-louis-armstrong-jelly/) [Eric Clapton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-clapton/) > [So too, monks, I saw the ancient path, the ancient road traveled by the Perfectly Enlightened Ones of the past. And what is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/so-too-monks-i-saw-the-ancient-path-the-ancient-road-traveled-by-the/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [I always thought if I was born 2000 years earlier, I would be a monk, probably carving a monastery or some giant pantheon buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenova-chen/i-always-thought-if-i-was-born-2000-years-earlier-i-would-be-a-monk/) [Jenova Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenova-chen/) ## More by Nhat Hanh > [Happiness is the cessation of suffering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/happiness-is-the-cessation-of-suffering/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [We need enlightenment, not just individually but collectively, to save the planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/we-need-enlightenment-not-just-individually-but-collectively-to-save/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [If you really know how to live, what better way to start the day than with a smile?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/if-you-really-know-how-to-live-what-better-way-to-start-the-day-than/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [Contemplating the bowl, it is possible to see the interdependent elements which give rise to the bowl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/contemplating-the-bowl-it-is-possible-to-see-the-interdependent/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [Our joy, peace and happiness depend very much on our practice of recognizing and transforming habit energies. There are positive habit energies that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/our-joy-peace-and-happiness-depend-very-much-on-our-practice-of/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [I vow to live fully in each moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/i-vow-to-live-fully-in-each-moment/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [Silence is something that comes from your heart, not from outside. Silence doesn't mean not talking and not doing things; it means that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/silence-is-something-that-comes-from-your-heart-not-from-outside/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [Freedom is the real foundation of happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/freedom-is-the-real-foundation-of-happiness/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [Wisdom is a living stream, not an icon to be preserved in a museum. Only when a practitioner finds the spring of wisdom in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/wisdom-is-a-living-stream-not-an-icon-to-be-preserved-in-a-museum/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [We may think of peace as the absence of war, that if the great powers would reduce their weapons arsenals, we could have peace.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/we-may-think-of-peace-as-the-absence-of-war-that-if-the-great-powers/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [If you are capable of brushing your teeth in mindfulness, then you will be able to enjoy the time when you take a shower,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/if-you-are-capable-of-brushing-your-teeth-in-mindfulness-then-you/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [If I am incapable of washing dishes joyfully, if I want to finish them quickly so I can go and have dessert, I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/if-i-am-incapable-of-washing-dishes-joyfully-if-i-want-to-finish-them/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [When we have anger in us, we suffer. When we have discrimination in us, we suffer. When we have the complex of superiority, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/when-we-have-anger-in-us-we-suffer-when-we-have-discrimination-in-us/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [Every morning, when we wake up, we have twenty-four brand-new hours to live. What a precious gift! We have the capacity to live in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/every-morning-when-we-wake-up-we-have-twenty-four-brand-new-hours-to/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [It is best if we do not listen to or look at the person whom we consider to be the cause of our anger.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/it-is-best-if-we-do-not-listen-to-or-look-at-the-person-whom-we/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) [Explore all 507 Nhat Hanh quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) ## More Happy quotes > [I love going to Columbia, Missouri. That is a really underrated campus. It shocked me when I went there because I really didn't know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirk-herbstreit/i-love-going-to-columbia-missouri-that-is-a-really-underrated-campus/) [Kirk Herbstreit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirk-herbstreit/) > [The happy have whole days,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colley-cibber/the-happy-have-whole-days/) [Colley Cibber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colley-cibber/) > [Dating someone on the opposite end of the happy spectrum teaches you an incredible amount of patience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pine/dating-someone-on-the-opposite-end-of-the-happy-spectrum-teaches-you/) [Chris Pine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pine/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) [Pancho Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pancho-barnes/) > [Yes, I am happy that my work is recognised, and it is wonderful to be acknowledged.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parvathy/yes-i-am-happy-that-my-work-is-recognised-and-it-is-wonderful-to-be/) [Parvathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parvathy/) > [I want to make my music and be a happy woman, a good wife, a good mom and one day hopefully have a child…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leann-rimes/i-want-to-make-my-music-and-be-a-happy-woman-a-good-wife-a-good-mom/) [LeAnn Rimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leann-rimes/) > [Im really happy that I met you I hope you know that](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/im-nothing/im-really-happy-that-i-met-you-i-hope-you-know-that/) [Im Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/im-nothing/) > [I want to make myself and the crowd happy by way of something different, and that makes things difficult. I'm never playing something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiesto/i-want-to-make-myself-and-the-crowd-happy-by-way-of-something/) [Tiesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiesto/) > [“So if we’re both so happy, why are we sad?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leah-raeder/so-if-we-re-both-so-happy-why-are-we-sad/) [Leah Raeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leah-raeder/) > [I know George Burns was a very happy man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlo-thomas/i-know-george-burns-was-a-very-happy-man/) [Marlo Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlo-thomas/) > [I'm happy. I'm always with a smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gael-monfils/i-m-happy-i-m-always-with-a-smile/) [Gael Monfils](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gael-monfils/) > [“Second Splendid Truth One of the best ways to make yourself happy is to make other people happy. 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I love it!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sarandon/i-m-happy-to-be-considered-desirable-i-love-it/) [Susan Sarandon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sarandon/) [Browse all 12,897 Happy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I would not be happy if I had not become a monk.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nhat Hanh" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-had-not-become-a-monk/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Happy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-had-not-become-a-monk/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d7/nhat-hanh-515_happy_i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-had-not-become_1740801.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d7/nhat-hanh-515_happy_i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-had-not-become_1740801.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6d7/nhat-hanh-515_happy_i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-had-not-become_1740801.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I would not be happy if I had not become a monk.” — Nhat Hanh", "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": "Nhat Hanh", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I would not be happy if...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-had-not-become-a-monk/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-had-not-become-a-monk/#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 } } ] } ```