WHAT IS CONTENTMENT?
HOW CAN I HAVE MORE OF IT?
[We are attempting to, on this site, clear up "vague" concepts and vague thinking, so that we can be clear about how to operate in life and about what we actually want in life. That is called "clarity", which is an essential component of an effective, happy life.]
WHAT IT IS AND ISN'T
Defined: the state of being contented; satisfaction; ease of mind.
Content: Pleased and satisfied: not needing more (having "enough")
"Contentment is simply a way of accepting one's life state and being grateful or happy with it." Contentment, Wikipedia
Contentment appears to be an actively created thing, as opposed to a passive, have-it-done-to-me thing. In other words, it is not a dropping of standards down to sloth or lack of active engagement, such as "I'm content with watching tv and drinking beer and eating crappola snacks..." That is a misunderstanding of what contentment is about.
It is also not about those brief periods where we have shut off or occupied our minds so that we have relief from a constant stream of critical and dissatisfied thoughts. It is not the empty space. It is, instead, the "filling of the space".
If one is true to one's values, including honoring oneself and living according to an internal locus of control, and developing one's skills and competencies to live life well, then one will tend to feel content if one is not stuck in the thought "but I haven't achieved 'enough' yet!" (One must understand the idea of "enough" if one is to be content in life and happy: How Much Is Enough? Define It Carefully Or....)
If one lives a life of "never enough", "I'm not good enough", "I must please others and they determine what I do", "I'm not doing good enough", or "I don't have sufficient things or good enough traits", one cannot, in that dissatisfaction, be content! Indeed, the alternate definition (or perhaps a component) of contentment is "satisfaction."
THE CONTENTMENT "TANK"
Contentment is a matter of degree... our "contentment tank" can be filled to different levels, but if we keep saying our contentment levels are not high enough, then we are saying we are discontent with the levels... When we make it a target to fill up our contentment and do what is necessary, then we will achieve a full state of "tankfullnes", which, as we've seen is a major source of happiness. So, to be happy, we need to be thankful and to proactively fill our tanks.
Of course, we're taught to always be discontent, as if the negative would drive positive action so that we achieve greater and greater things (but then we run across the problem of never achieving "enough" and never getting "good enough"). Having the sense of never arriving may be a driver of action and discontent, but it is a destroyer, obviously, of a sense of contentment.
STAYING ON THE PATH OF DISCONTENT
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INTERPRETING WISDOM FROM RELIGIOUS SOURCES
If you are not religious, then take this as metaphorical and symbolic of some basic principles and relate it to reality. There is nothing to resist here, as we are only seeking the truth that will benefit us philosophically and psychologically.
"Godliness with contentment is great gain." 1 Timothy 6:6
"Unlike the covetous of the world, Christians are to be content with their lot in life..."
"Seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His Righteousness; and all these things [food, clothing, shelter] shall be added unto you." (Matthew 6:33) "Then it becomes immediately possible to be truly content."
"Let your conversation be without covetousness: and be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. (Hebrews 13:5)
Greed and not being satisfied with your lot is part of what The Buddha identifies as being a source of suffering - and, of course, those are the opposite of contentment, for they say "to be happy I must have more". Also, the opposite of bemoaning "what isn't" or "what is missing", is identifying "what is" or noting "what actually exists", in this case for feeling good about.
Hmmm, this sounds suspiciously like gratitude (vs. ingratitude), where we note what is of value in the world and in so noting we add to our happiness tank. This is often identified as the #1 source of happiness (with the opposite being the #1 source of suffering/unhappiness). It certainly would add to our "contentment tank".
Although the quotes above do not exactly tell us the mechanism (causal chain) of how food, clothing and shelter will be added to us, we could reasonably assume that it is ourselves, rather than a mysterious force/entity, that does the adding.
If you seek good things (the ideals of what might exist in a figurative heaven where people are good and operate from noble motives and with wisdom), then you are thinking toward at least a figurative "ascension" to a higher level of living and thinking (figuratively equal to "being in heaven").
If "righteousness" means that we are doing what is right (meaning effective in producing good results) to produce good results, then we are exercising our abilities to produce good results. And, as a consequence, we would obtain good results (sufficient food, shelter, and clothing plus a few other things). [Duh!]
[It may be unhealthy if someone misinterprets these scriptures to mean "it will be delivered unto you if you just worship well and think good stuff" as in The Secret - The Movie. But elsewhere in the Bible it does caution us that God helps those who help themselves - meaning, perhaps, that we must do something to get something and that it won't just show up on our holy doorstep.]
Plato and Aristotle talk of "the virtues", which are not religious artifacts but are simply "doings of that which works to get good results in life."
So, the bottom line here could be that you would feel content if you had "enough" to be able to handle safety, shelter, and basic sustenance, were doing the right thing in life (in general, not perfectly), and you recognized all that you had (and appreciated it).
