Gross National Happiness
The term Gross National Happiness was first expressed by the King of Bhutan His Majesty Jigme Singye Wangchuck. It is rooted in the Buddhist notion that the ultimate purpose of life is inner happiness. Bhutan being a Buddhist country, Bhutan’s King felt the responsibility to define development in terms of happiness of its people, rather than in terms of an abstract economic measurement such as Gross National Product (GNP).
I first discovered this term in a book titled "The Geography Of Happiness". It was a new way of looking at human success in life. My initial reaction was amusement; I thought it was a joke. But on further thought, it made sense. According to some great thinkers, man's greatest need is Happiness. In fact, it is the ultimate goal of every human being whether they are aware of it or not. It influences their every decision and every action.
So far, Bhutan has succeeded in limiting exposure to global trade, foreign capital investment, modern mass media and tourism. Bhutan believes that its indigenous culture is generally self-sufficient and has little to gain from conventional western development. The country has for centuries followed a traditional model of development which is based on improving the quality of life, while respecting natural and cultural constraints, rather than the quantity of material production and consumption. As such it forms a reminder for conventional western development planners that development can also be based on non-material values, such as cultural, social and environmental values.
Did you know that, according to the World Database of Happiness (WDH), money to a certain extent contributes to a person's happiness.
In the WDH database, which lists 95 countries, the Happiness Scale is headed by Denmark with a rating of 8.2, followed by Switzerland, Austria, Iceland and Finland, all countries with high per capita income. At the other end of the scale are much poorer countries: Tanzania rated 3.2, behind Zimbabwe, Moldova, Ukraine and Armenia.
This is so because money provides a person with a wide range of choices --- what everyone wants.
Wealth counts, but most studies of individuals show income disparities count more. Surprisingly, however, citizens are no happier in welfare states, which strive to mitigate the distortions of capitalism than in purer free-market economies.
There is also an emphasis on personal freedom as a root of happiness, citing a study on women in the southern Indian state of Kerala, which showed that poor women who make their own choices score highly, compared with women with strict fathers or husbands.
Bhutan, where less than half the people can read or write and 90 per cent are subsistence farmers, ranks No. 8 in his list of happy nations. Its notion of happiness is based on equitable development, environmental conservation, cultural heritage and good governance.
Other researches found other underlying factors: marriage is better for men than for women; having children does not raise happiness levels; education and IQ seem to have little impact; attractive people are only slightly happier than the unattractive; the elderly -- over 65 -- are more satisfied with their lives than the young; friendships are crucial; so are social involvement and acceptance.
"But the research also shows that many people are simply disposed to being either happy or disgruntled, and as much as 50 per cent of the happiness factor is genetic. Like body weight, moods can swing only so much from their natural "set point.''
So can you do anything about it? Some educators say you can.
People "can be taught emotional resilience, self control, the habits of optimism, handling negative thoughts and much else,'' Anthony Seldon, Tony Blair's biographer and the headmaster of Wellington College in Britain, wrote recently in the Financial Times.
With the right combination of individual choices and government policy, nations can raise their happiness quotient by as much as five per cent.
"Although economic output has risen steeply over the past decades, there has been no rise in life satisfaction during this period, and there has been a substantial increase in depression and distrust.''
"It's time we admitted that there's more to life than money, and it's time we focused not just on GDP, but on GWB -- general well-being (or GNH -- Gross National Happiness)." We need to learn to weigh not only personal feelings ("I'm always optimistic about my future''), but how people function ("I feel I am free to decide for myself how to live my life'') and their relationships with others ("To what extent do you feel that people in your local area help one another?'').
You want to change society and increase the well-being of everyone? Here is one simple advise from experts: BY IMPROVING YOURSELF, YOU IMPROVE SOCIETY.
