Let life be without unhappiness

There has never been as much unhappiness in human life as today. The fear of having less and desire of having more has contributed as much. To fret about something over which you have no control brings unnecessary distress upon yourself. Peering at the world today, it seems that there is turbulence ahead, because of tectonic shifts in economy and society which is leading to excesses of exploitation and indulgence. Wading through this maze may seem a way out, but unhappiness lingers all across and all along.      

Happiness in itself is nothing but is an emotive feeling that is attributable. Yet, one would like to get such a feeling. It generates a sense of self-esteem, which in itself is an important source of human happiness. To see that others hold us in high esteem can be a source of contentment. No surprise, therefore, most human beings like to display their better selves to the world to seek happiness and contentment. Much of our life is spent in finding such an elusive process. But former World Bank Chief Economist Kaushik Basu thinks that reason, and logic, can guide humans to achieve happiness.       

It seems that reasoning can only take us closer to finding out what makes us happy, but that too on the surface. The capacity to reason, says Basu, is not only the most underrated but valued too. That’s why a lot of human woes, social and economic, stems from the absence of reasoning. But reasoning seems to have its limits, as happiness is beyond the purview of reason and logic. The human ability to reason falters when humans have to apply logic to human emotions. In this interconnected world, more than reasoning it is the influence of togetherness that need to be factored in. Even if interconnection causes happiness, it will last till interconnection lasts.

One would expect us to reason out of the root cause of unhappiness. In theory, it might seem possible but not in practice. It is beyond redemption when there is more than one reason for it or the reason itself is beyond repair. And we are not making any serious efforts as more than 50 percent of our time is spent in repeating our habit(s) Come to think about it, a remarkable number of habits get repeated every day and we are often proud of it. Ironically, most of us believe our habits lead us to take right and happy decisions. 

Drawing on her expertise as a clinical psychologist with a masters in neuroscience, Dr Sophie Mort concludes that in nine out of ten cases our habits do us good only in few cases. Who wants to follow sheep, but the system is so programmed that each one ends up following the flock? Around 2.8 billion people on Facebook, 2.3 billion on You Tube, and an estimated 1.8 billion on Instagram, whether qualified or not, share their views on living a happy life. Whether or not they are happy remains an open question!

Happiness has turned out to be a big industry. Not only have there been the Ministries opened to address the crucial issue of happiness, but happiness clinics have also opened up and happiness therapies too are doing a good business. Yet, happiness remains as elusive. ‘Get married; the research says it will make you happier’; ‘Ignore marriage, it’s likely to end in divorce’; ‘Buy a house and get on the housing ladder;’ ‘Live in a van, don’t do what society wants you to do;’ ‘You are enough as you are.’ Messages like this help avoid having regrets, the idea is to live life true to oneself. The oral therapies of the kind ease one out of status quo, though temporarily. 

A huge part our lives flows through our habit selves, says Prof. Wendy Wood. This is that part of us, which is powerful, which is reliable, and which is always there. We are stuck to our habits, quite often there is hardly any time to reason out of it. We all live habitually already, without being seriously aware of it. And because of that, a big part of who are you and why we do what we do is often ignored or is taken for granted. The many ways things could be done better get missed out. Samuel Johnson had rightly remarked: ‘The diminutive chain of habits are seldom enough to be felt, till they are too strong to be broken’.

The challenge is to avoid search for happiness, but to get rid of unhappiness. Let life be without unhappiness, remarked the Buddha.                                       

Reason to be Happy
by Kaushik Basu
Penguin RandomHouse, London
Extent: 214, Price: Rs. 500.

(Un)Stuck
by Sophie Mort
Simon&Schuster, New Delhi
Extent: 274, Price: Rs. 699.

Good Habits, Bad Habits
by Wendy Wood
Macmillan, London
Extent: 308; Price: Rs. 425. 

First published as Bibliography in The Hindu on March 20, 2025.

Be the change you want to be

During such times when cultivation has become bedrock of farmers’ suicide, the story of getting back to the roots may seem outwardly romantic and far-fetched. 

It may seem a contradiction in terms but change, in itself formless, is the stuff that brings change to all animate and inanimate forms. Be it materials, products, systems, institutions, processes, thoughts, relationships or emotions, change manifests itself as a state of affairs at different points in time. From Heraclitus to Einstein, an enquiry into change has revealed diverse perspectives with each insight reaffirming the inevitability of change, as much a reality as a point of view. In modern times, however, change as a point of view has helped trigger possibilities of restructuring one’s life so as ‘to be the change that one may want to be’. 

For techie Venkat Iyer, change has meant a planned shift from a self-imposed fast-paced stressful urban existence to a more relaxed rural setting where time remains at your beck and call to usher in a nuanced meaning to life. The resolve for seeking peace in a space that he could call his own has grown in the last fourteen years, since he moved to another world just hundred kilometers from the dream city called Mumbai. Convinced that a transition alone can help throw the city out of him, the young software engineer set out on an arduous journey to nestle himself in the lap of nature. Since farming nowhere generated equivalent of the monthly pay cheque he was used to, transformation to a non-consumptive lifestyle became his compelling daily reality. 

The story is insightful and reflective; shedding light on how personal resolve can answer the question of responsibility that comes tagged along with change. The responsibility towards self, society and surroundings can be as intense as it can get, generating as much empathy towards the two legged species as for the slithering reptiles. It soon became clear that the organic way of life was bringing back a lot of creatures to the farm. Even the colorful rooster did not need an official invite to join the flock of hens. Nature was in awe of itself, celebrating each new arrival. 

One might wonder if such romanticism can last long, and whether ascetic living could be the new normal. With no dearth of courage and an unending conviction, Venkat relocated himself with ease despite the daily ordeal of battling people, and their prejudices. Once he got the better of it, he became part of the social milieu – taking support and extending cooperation to local people. The transition from managing microchips to cultivating moong was promising; harvesting 300 kgs of the common lentil as the first crop was a major morale booster.

Moong Over Microchips is full of incidents and encounters, each adding a new dimension to learning human behaviour amidst challenging adversities. Curiously, the spectre of an economic imperialism that phrases everything in economic terms is yet to hit the countryside, where goodwill can still be the mode of intangible transaction. The old lady in the tribal hamlet of Boripada bartered the near-extinct Kasbai rice seeds for a pittance, unaware of the immense contribution she is making towards preserving country’s biodiversity. Unspoilt by progress, such humble contributions will eventually count in the progress of the country. 

Such experiences notwithstanding, it was clear from the beginning that farm harvest alone cannot make Venkat laugh all the way to the bank. But what made him smile was the joy of seeing the seed he planted push out of the soil, and that he could grow most of his daily needs on the farm was a satisfying experience. This may sound abstract for those who take the gloom and doom in the city for granted, and pay a heavy price for it. That there is value in living under the open sky, amidst undisturbed nature, with friendly pets, and consuming homegrown vegetables is unlikely to touch a chord with many of them. This is because we have lost out on love and sensitivity in favor of anger and anxiety.

During such times when cultivation has become bedrock of farmers’ suicide, the story of getting back to the roots may seem outwardly romantic and far-fetched. Nowhere does the author make such a suggestion however, his story is more about the quest for transforming stressful lifestyle and the grit required to make it work. That he found in farming a way to salvation is only an indicative possibility. The core message the author delivers through his lived-in experience is that one could easily live without several of those things that are considered ‘essential’ under the influence of the market. A life stuffed with avoidable materials and products can provide value-added return, devoid of any depreciation.       

For all those having a hard look at where they are headed, Moong Over Microchips offers a list of pre-requisites before taking the plunge. That another world and another location waiting to be explored for self amelioration are without doubt out there. Much will depend on what happiness means to a person, and what price one is willing to pay for attaining it. 

Moong Over MicroChips
by Venkat Iyer
Penguin Viking, New Delhi
Extent: 237, Price: Rs 499

First published in The Hindustan Times dated April 14, 2018.