Anand yatra
means a happiness tour. All of us want to be happy in life and that, too,
forever. But let’s not forget that one doesn’t really need any reason to be
happy. On the other hand, one needs a reason to be unhappy!
Laughter and smiles manifest
happiness, while tears signify unhappiness. A wide, genuine smile reflects
happiness. Anandashru (tears of joy) are the tears that flow on happy
occasions. At any marriage there are tears in the eyes of the bride and her
family. These could be partly anandashru on the new beginning in her
life and partly sadness due to her vidai from the family. We have also
read that ‘A curve of a smile can straighten many issues’.
Happiness arises through
possession of tangible things such as money, property, jewellery and so on.
Happy moments are felt and experienced out of sound health and good
relationships. Sadly, tangible objects provide happiness for a short and
limited time. It could, perhaps, be worthwhile spending resources on
experiences. A bank of fantastic experiences brings happiness and joy when
those cherished memories unfold. One can re-live, refresh and share such
memories, time and again, bringing joy to ourselves and the people around us.
Health and happiness are also
closely related. Short-term diseases can affect happiness temporarily. Chronic
ailments can bring long-term misery. To be healthy and happy one can embrace
regular meditation, have adequate sleep, adopt an exercise pattern and change
to healthy food habits. However, one has to accept the fact that one can take
all precautions to be healthy, but hereditary family health parameters are
beyond one’s control and one may have to learn to happily accept them and live
with them. Generally, happiness brings along health.
Happiness is an attitude, a
habit. It is more inner than outer. A person with all physical comforts and
facilities may still be unhappy. On the other hand, a person with just the
basic comforts may be happier. In this anand yatra, contentment and
control play a crucial role in achieving happiness. A person caught in the
vicious cycle of craving more and more may never be happy with his / her
achievements.
Many times we feel we should
search for happiness and joy in small things. The best example of this could be
a little child finding happiness in playing with all kinds of pots, pans and
cutlery in the kitchen, leaving aside costly toys. In religious and
philosophical parlance, Namasmaran (chanting of God’s name) gives
peace of mind with ultimate happiness of an enduring nature.
Happiness makes a person more
creative, productive and efficient. A positive state of mind can bring success
with ease and comfort. While we may think success will bring us happiness, the
lab-validated truth is that happiness brings us more success. Change could
result in happiness or misery. A person who adapts to change is happy, and vice
versa.
Nowadays, among the elderly
and the middle-aged people laughter clubs have become quite popular. They
generate intentional laughter to bring happiness among the participants. In
this commercial world there are also workshops conducted to teach happiness and
the joys of life. The well-known Marathi writer, the late P.L. Deshpande, had
an amazing and unique talent to generate ‘Hasuaniaasu’, meaning laughter
and tears, at the same time.
In sum, instead of the
pursuit of happiness, let us live life as an expression of happiness. Happiness
without doubt multiplies with sharing and the journey of life is an opportunity
to share happiness. Let’s undertake the anand yatra of life as a true yatrekaru
(pilgrim).
