Pleasure is always derived from something outside you, whereas joy arises from within.

The saying draws a sharp distinction between two kinds of positive experience. “Pleasure” is framed as contingent: it depends on external conditions—objects, events, sensations, or other people—and therefore tends to be temporary and vulnerable to loss. “Joy,” by contrast, is presented as an inward state that can arise independently of circumstances, rooted in one’s inner awareness rather than in acquisition or stimulation. In Tolle’s spiritual vocabulary, this aligns with the idea that lasting well-being comes from presence and non-identification with the mind’s cravings, while pleasure belongs to the shifting realm of desire and satisfaction. The quote functions as a practical ethical nudge: seek inner steadiness over external highs.