By Dr AK Srivastava
“The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer someone else up.” – Mark Twain.
The UNO General Assembly declared 20th March as International Day of Happiness in its resolution 66/281 of 12 July 2012. The goal of this declaration is to spread happiness all over the world. The proposal or initiative in this matter came from the King of Bhutan; the nation that believes the happiness of humanity is more significant than materialistic and economic progress. In 1972, the King of Bhutan, Jigme Singye Wangchuck remarked that the progress of a country should be measured by the happiness of its citizens and not by its economic growth. The concept of celebrating International Happiness Day was inspired by two great revolutionaries and thinkers, Luis Gallardo and Jayme lllien who believed that the fundamental goal of human life is to be happy and make others happy. Luis Gallardo was the President of the World Happiness Foundation and Jayme Lllien developed the theory of “happytalism”. Both of them persuaded the UNO to fix a day for this cause and it took them six years in this mission. Finally, the UNO agreed to declare 20th March as International Day of Happiness in 2012 and the world celebrated it in 2013 for the first time.
UNO declared 20th March as International Day of Happiness because equality among all human beings is the hallmark of this day. It is on 20th March every year that the centre of the Sun is directly above the Earth’s equator, which is called equinox, day and night are of equal duration on this day. The day of happiness is celebrated in almost 200 countries all over the world.
The aim or mission of International Day of Happiness is to work on the social, economic and environmental well-being of humanity. Let every human being enjoy social security, equal status and economic equality as these are fundamental goals and aspirations in the lives of all human beings.
We need a new economic paradigm that recognises the parity between the three pillars of sustainable development. Social, economic, and environmental well-being are indivisible. Together they define “GROSS GLOBAL HAPPINESS”. — Former UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, High Level Meeting on Happiness and Well-being: Defining a New Economic Paradigm.
Later in 2012, at the closing session of the 66th General Assembly, then Secretary Ban Ki Moon said, “Mr President, during your tenure, the General Assembly also instituted a new observance on the UN calendar: the International Day of Happiness. Let us hope that through our work, including in the new session that begins tomorrow, we can turn that aspiration into reality.”
Every year UNO decides on a theme to celebrate this day. This year the theme declared by UNO is “Caring and Sharing”. There are very few things in life that increase as we share them with others. Happiness is one such emotion that always increases if we share it with others or we are happy about others’ achievements.
The world should work on attaining peace, equality, access to health care and education for all human beings. These are the prerequisites for happiness in the masses. Happiness is the fundamental right and aspiration of everyone all over the world.
Now we should think about how we can make others happy. The golden rule is that we should behave with others as we expect others to behave with us. Greet others with smiles. Be polite in day-to-day conversation. A simple smile makes the others’ day and establishes a relationship with strangers also. It breeds confidence and good will. Everyone appreciates politeness and humility. Always be polite with elders and friendly with youngsters. Such behaviour spreads happiness and makes you also feel good. According to the Dalai Lama, the purpose of human life is to stay happy. One who is happy will also make others happy.
“Happiness is when your thoughts, your words, and your actions are in harmony.” – MK Gandhi
In human life most of the things are reciprocal. If we are polite and good mannered, others will also try to be friendly and happy with us. Be a good listener and let others think that you value their point of view. Always keep a positive attitude. If things don’t turn out as you wish, God is planning something better for you. It is very important to appreciate others’ contributions. Leave no opportunity to make others feel happy. Stay relaxed and keep others relaxed.
Happiness cannot be achieved through material wealth. It is the manifestation of a combination of phenomena. One has to choose the right action at the right time in order to get success. It is success in a variety of ventures that makes people happy. People of different inclinations will be happy to find things of their interest. A musician will be glad to listen to melodious music. But a hungry man will be pleased to eat a hot dinner. Most of the times, happiness is the result of hard work in the right direction and with appropriate planning. The intensity of happiness depends on the amount of hard work done in order to achieve the target.
‘Happiness is not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort’ – Franklin D Roosevelt
‘Happiness cannot be travelled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude’ – Denis Waitley.
