The Saddest Truth

Question: What is the saddest truth in life?

Answer: I have been meaning to write you my answer for a few days now, but I was caught up with some silly exam papers. Nevertheless, and here we go...
On the surface, your question seems like a sad question but it is not. In fact, it is a question that can open the doors of happiness for us. Only when we become aware of the sources of our grief can we begin to avoid them. So, what is the saddest truth in life? The saddest truth in life is that we hope where there is no hope. We want what is not achievable. We are after what cannot be chased. We want and go on wanting. 
Buddha spent years meditating and when it all ended, he postulated his teachings and concluded the sum of it all, which was that desire is the source of all suffering. And the conclusion was relevant then and it is relevant now. That is the beauty of the Buddha. The things he taught are still as applicable as they were when he walked this earth. A lot of other teachings by other thought leaders have become obsolete and the tragedy is that those obsolete teachings continue to be followed by their blind followers even now causing in the process a lot of mess in the world. 
But just think about this, why do you want something? Perhaps, the biggest reason is always because it makes you happy. And that happiness is but an illusion for though it may last a while, it disappears soon and goes in search of another pursuit to become 'happy'. But happiness cannot be achieved this way. That is why Thomas Jefferson used the phrase, "the pursuit of Happiness" in the constitution of the USA, when he wrote about every individual's rights. He understood this phenomenon, that people are always after happiness, they are never one with it, till their very last breath.
Tolstoy said, "If you want to be happy, be." And he was right. Happiness does not come from anything outside us. It is already inside us. We only have to stop and look. But stop we must. For, the moment we start running, we will miss it. You just have to stop and be. And suddenly, it is there. It was always there.
Whatever you may achieve, it is guaranteed that it cannot ensure permanent happiness. Which is why a lot of people start to experience a sense of emptiness in their lives. They spend their whole life after something and when they finally reach it, that is, if they reach it after all the struggles and all the battle-scars, they realize that it was not such a big deal after all. They still are the same person. They still breathe the same air. 
You will always be who you are. Your core being does not change no matter what possessions, titles or victories you may gather in your life. Which is why only the so-called successful people can tell you how their 'success' doesn't much in their lives in the larger scheme of things. But if we develop an intimacy with this sense of self, with ourselves, if we can only grow close, nay, merged with this spirit inside us, we will be centred. And we will stop. For it is this centre from where all other happiness is derived. You cannot ever attain anything except this self of yours, and if you attain this then you don't need to attain anything else. As the Buddha said, "It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or demons, heaven or hell."