Essays In Asia: Spirited Away In Tibet

"I believe the very purpose of life is to be happy. From the core of our being, we desire contentment. In my own limited experience, I have found that the more we care for the happiness of others, the greater is our sense of well-being. Cultivating a close, warmhearted feeling of others, automatically puts the mind at ease. It helps to remove whatever fears or insecurities we may have, and give us the strength to cope with any obstacles we encoutner. It is the principal source of success in life. Since we are not solely material creatures, it is a mistake to place all of our hopes for happinesss on external development alone. The key is to develop inner peace." 

Dalai Lama