What is Happiness?
Guest Post By: Neha Shivhare, Ph.D
Happiness is a virtue and an attribute of nature and all living beings I Photo Unsplash
Happiness Consciousness
The Awareness-Attention-Acceptance-Appreciation-Action Model
What is happiness?
This seemingly straightforward question has bewildered the human race forever. We all seem to have our own perception and definition of happiness, but surprisingly the determinants of our happiness transition with time, place and surrounding.
Happiness is a virtue and an attribute of nature and all the living beings.
It is unconditional and internal. Does this mean that we should disregard all our emotions of anger, fear, sadness, anxiety, and so forth? No, we do not need to disregard those feelings because ignoring an issue is never a good solution.
Disregarding our emotions and feelings and their underlying causes and effects is nothing less than self-violence.
What we need more is the practice of self-compassion by being mindful, kind, loving, and respectful to ourselves.
For this, a non-linear model of Awareness-Attention-Acceptance-Appreciation-Action can be hypothesized. The five suggested stages in this model may or may not proceed in any fixed sequence, but it is generally experienced that awareness is the first stage which then guides us to the other stages.
Being aware and directing attention to our physical, mental and emotional perplexities enable us to accept them non-judgmentally and unconditionally. When we can appreciate and enjoy the variety in nature in the form of seasons, flora and fauna, then we can adopt the same approach of acceptance and appreciation to our positive and negative emotions as well.
Appreciating the negative emotions might appear contradictory and derogatory unless we understand the nature and purpose of appreciation. Etymologically, the word ‘Appreciate’ has originated from the Latin word ‘Appretiare’ meaning to ‘set a price’ of something, which gradually started being used for ‘fully understanding a situation’. Thus, a non-judgmental appreciation of any emotion – positive or negative brings us closer to knowing its causes and effects, and also guides to find a way to deal with it by selecting the optimum course of action with detachment.
This approach to dealing with our emotions can be termed as happiness consciousness.
It is different from being happy, as it is not just consciousness or awareness to be happy. It is a way to be aware of our negative emotions as well and to accept and heal them with love. It is founded on self-compassion and a positive mindset.
Mindfulness practice is an important requirement for happiness consciousness because it facilitates silencing the mental-chatter and enabling contemplative perception of happiness creating an Us-centered universe rather than a Me-centered universe.
Neha Shivhare is a Visiting Assistant Professor of education at the Simon Fraser University. She holds an experience of more than a decade in university-level teaching and her research focusses on promoting learners’ well-being and happiness through the incorporation of inner-work and technology in teaching, learning and living. She believes happy classrooms can lead to a more virtuous and happier world. Born and brought up in in the city of Taj Mahal, Agra in India, in a community which upholds the principles of meditation, community service and non-violence, she is herself an ardent learner, researcher and a practitioner of the same.
Photo by Unsplash
What is happiness to you?
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