--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is not a sin to be happy, it is not a…" description: "\"It is not a sin to be happy, it is not a virtue to be miserable.\" — Paulo Coelho" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dd/paulo-coelho-10_character_it-is-not-a-sin-to-be-happy-it-is-not-a_3156054.jpg" --- # It is not a sin to be happy, it is not a virtue to be… ![“It is not a sin to be happy, it is not a virtue to be miserable.” quote by Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dd/paulo-coelho-10_character_it-is-not-a-sin-to-be-happy-it-is-not-a_3156054.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dd/paulo-coelho-10_character_it-is-not-a-sin-to-be-happy-it-is-not-a_3156054.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dd/paulo-coelho-10_character_it-is-not-a-sin-to-be-happy-it-is-not-a_3156054.jpg) > “It is not a sin to be happy, it is not a virtue to be miserable.” [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Happiness is a natural state, not a moral failing; misery is not a virtue to be admired. **In simple terms:** Being happy isn’t wrong; being miserable isn’t noble. Key Takeaway Embrace joy without guilt. Themes happiness morality selfacceptance Mood reflective balanced Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - daily life - mental health - relationships Key Concepts ethical philosophy emotional health Questions to Reflect On - Do you judge joy as indulgence? - How can you value well‑being over guilt? A Different Perspective Happiness can be misinterpreted as selfishness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Miserable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miserable/) [Sin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sin/) [Virtue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virtue/) ## Related quotes > [Tantra says be real, be authentic to yourself. Your happiness is not bad; it is good. It is not sin! Only sadness is sin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/tantra-says-be-real-be-authentic-to-yourself-your-happiness-is-not/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [If you can be well without health, you may be happy without virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/if-you-can-be-well-without-health-you-may-be-happy-without-virtue/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [“TO BE HAPPY, BE VIRTUOUS. THERE ARE ONLY TWO REASONS TO EVER DO ANYTHING; TO BE HAPPY, AND TO HELP OTHER PEOPLE BE HAPPY.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-keys-moran/to-be-happy-be-virtuous-there-are-only-two-reasons-to-ever-do/) [Daniel Keys Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-keys-moran/) > [“Ah, yes. That. The sin of being happy or excited. According to my father, we must guard carefully against such things. According to my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-ryan-hyde/ah-yes-that-the-sin-of-being-happy-or-excited-according-to-my-father/) [Catherine Ryan Hyde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-ryan-hyde/) > [It is not possible to sin enough to be happy. It isn't possible to buy enough to be happy, or to entertain or indulge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheri-l-dew/it-is-not-possible-to-sin-enough-to-be-happy-it-isn-t-possible-to-buy/) [Sheri L. Dew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheri-l-dew/) > [Our virtues are made by love, and our sins are caused by the lack of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hazrat-inayat-khan/our-virtues-are-made-by-love-and-our-sins-are-caused-by-the-lack-of-it/) [Hazrat Inayat Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hazrat-inayat-khan/) > [Untouchability of foreign cloth is as much a virtue with all of us as untouchability of the suppressed classes must be a sin with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/untouchability-of-foreign-cloth-is-as-much-a-virtue-with-all-of-us-as/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [ \[On Las Vegas:\] ... The City That Never Sleeps. The City That Sins and Smiles and Lives On the Edge. The city where vices… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-kijewski/on-las-vegas-the-city-that-never-sleeps-the-city-that-sins-and-smiles/) [Karen Kijewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-kijewski/) > [Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/some-rise-by-sin-and-some-by-virtue-fall/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Another step had her backed up against the wall, and he braced his arms on both sides of her. "I'm beginning to look forward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johanna-lindsey/another-step-had-her-backed-up-against-the-wall-and-he-braced-his/) [Johanna Lindsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johanna-lindsey/) > [Nobody ever wins by the cavalry coming to rescue you. It isn't a question of you're happy if you get married, or you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maeve-binchy/nobody-ever-wins-by-the-cavalry-coming-to-rescue-you-it-isn-t-a/) [Maeve Binchy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maeve-binchy/) > [Life is such unutterable hell, solely because it is sometimes beautiful. If we could only be miserable all the time, if there could be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-such-unutterable-hell-solely-because-it-is-sometimes/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Buddhism advises you not to implant feelings that you don’t really have or avoid feelings that you do have. If you are miserable you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/buddhism-advises-you-not-to-implant-feelings-that-you-don-t-really/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The more I read about feeding times, sleep times and waking-up times, the more inadequate and miserable I felt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-porter/the-more-i-read-about-feeding-times-sleep-times-and-waking-up-times/) [Gail Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-porter/) > [If it was making me miserable, I'd get out, but it doesn't! It fuels me! That's why I'm taking on more things, because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-morrissey/if-it-was-making-me-miserable-i-d-get-out-but-it-doesn-t-it-fuels-me/) [David Morrissey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-morrissey/) ## More by Paulo Coelho > [I have inside me the winds, the deserts, the oceans, the stars, and everything created in the universe. We were all made by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-have-inside-me-the-winds-the-deserts-the-oceans-the-stars-and/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Love will never separate a man from his personal legend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/love-will-never-separate-a-man-from-his-personal-legend/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [The world has a soul and whoever understands that soul can also understand the language of many things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-world-has-a-soul-and-whoever-understands-that-soul-can-also/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [To love is to be in communion with the other and to discover in that other the spark of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/to-love-is-to-be-in-communion-with-the-other-and-to-discover-in-that/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [It is not enough to dream of the Impossible Love - it is necessary to conquer it too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-is-not-enough-to-dream-of-the-impossible-love-it-is-necessary-to/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Eat when it is time to eat. And walk when it is time to walk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/eat-when-it-is-time-to-eat-and-walk-when-it-is-time-to-walk/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [People are reading more and writing more because of the internet. So the virtual world is a way for me to listen to my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/people-are-reading-more-and-writing-more-because-of-the-internet-so/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“Joy is like sex – it begins and ends. I want pleasure. I want to be contended, but happiness? I no longer fall into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/joy-is-like-sex-it-begins-and-ends-i-want-pleasure-i-want-to-be/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“Trudi se da zivis, sjecanja su za starije ljude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/trudi-se-da-zivis-sjecanja-su-za-starije-ljude/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [I've always been a very restless person. I work hard, spend too much time looking after my son, I dance like a mad thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-ve-always-been-a-very-restless-person-i-work-hard-spend-too-much/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [When someone leaves, it's because someone else is about to arrive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/when-someone-leaves-it-s-because-someone-else-is-about-to-arrive/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [The past and the future become unimportant. There is only that moment, and the incredible certainty that everything under the sun has been written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-past-and-the-future-become-unimportant-there-is-only-that-moment/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [She didn't need to understand the meaning of life; it was enough to find someone who did, and then fall asleep in his arms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/she-didn-t-need-to-understand-the-meaning-of-life-it-was-enough-to/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“The simpler the pose, the better; the more sober, the more beautiful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-simpler-the-pose-the-better-the-more-sober-the-more-beautiful/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) [Explore all 3,665 Paulo Coelho quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) ## More Character quotes > [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I'm often moved by the circumstances around some of my characters, but I don't think I've actually cried watching myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-winslet/i-m-often-moved-by-the-circumstances-around-some-of-my-characters-but/) [Kate Winslet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-winslet/) > [When you're on a daytime drama you get one page, you better damn well know your character. You better know what she would do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hudgins/when-you-re-on-a-daytime-drama-you-get-one-page-you-better-damn-well/) David Hudgins > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [If you are well-mannered towards those whose views are similar to yours, you may be said to exhibit a fairly good character. But, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-are-well-mannered-towards-those-whose-views-are-similar-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [In the fight between biology and morality, biology has commonly won in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/semir-zeki/in-the-fight-between-biology-and-morality-biology-has-commonly-won-in/) [Semir Zeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/semir-zeki/) > [Your looks don't make you pretty, it's the person inside who makes you pretty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-chan/your-looks-don-t-make-you-pretty-it-s-the-person-inside-who-makes-you/) [Aaron Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-chan/) > [I'm not a huge social media kind of guy, so I don't really know, I don't really ever get... at least in real life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-stroma/i-m-not-a-huge-social-media-kind-of-guy-so-i-don-t-really-know-i-don/) [Freddie Stroma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-stroma/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [Courage: the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can't practice any other virtue consistently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/courage-the-most-important-of-all-the-virtues-because-without-courage/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) [Browse all 32,707 Character quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is not a sin to be happy, it is not a virtue to be miserable.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Paulo Coelho" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-is-not-a-sin-to-be-happy-it-is-not-a-virtue-to-be-miserable/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Character" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-is-not-a-sin-to-be-happy-it-is-not-a-virtue-to-be-miserable/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dd/paulo-coelho-10_character_it-is-not-a-sin-to-be-happy-it-is-not-a_3156054.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dd/paulo-coelho-10_character_it-is-not-a-sin-to-be-happy-it-is-not-a_3156054.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0dd/paulo-coelho-10_character_it-is-not-a-sin-to-be-happy-it-is-not-a_3156054.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It is not a sin to be happy, it is not a virtue to be miserable.” — Paulo Coelho", "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": "Paulo Coelho", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It is not a sin to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-is-not-a-sin-to-be-happy-it-is-not-a-virtue-to-be-miserable/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-is-not-a-sin-to-be-happy-it-is-not-a-virtue-to-be-miserable/#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 } } ] } ```