To seek happiness as a permanent state derives from two primitive evolutionary impulses: avoiding pain (which we associate with danger and the risk of death) and seeking gratification (which helps ensure that our genes get passed on).
But it also turns out that pain and discomfort are critical to growth, and that achieving excellence depends on the capacity to delay gratification.
My thoughts: You can still be happy when in pain,(for example childbirth) also happiness is not a permanent state, there is a base level of happiness and sometimes we are above that base and sometimes below. Happiness is also in the moment so perhaps happiness is made up of moments all together.. I do not believe that is over rated but it is a difficult one because once you start seeking it it becomes evasive, the harder you try the harder it becomes. Meditation helps you to let go and let happiness come to you which is the best way with most things.
I just finished reading the book silence your mind, and I still don’t know what is mind silence? or how is it look like? Is it the conscious mind is silenced or the unconscious, but how can we silence the unconscious mind, its unconscious! I still think that the mind is only silenced when its dead, only when there is no more oxygen running throw it, oxygen is the key, its the fuel of our mind our thoughts, our fears our habits, it goes to each cell of our brain, including the conscious and unconscious mind, but in the book I didnt read much about oxygen and how it works in the brain.
No pain no gain!