Just about everyone seems to be feverishly pursuing happiness these days and eagerly displaying it on social media. Happiness is then often individually interpreted as something that we can 'acquire' ourselves by finding the right partner, our dream house-with-swimming pool or ideal job. Meanwhile, a counter-movement by psychiatrists such as Dirk de Wachter points out that this is a deadly path, as the Flemish De Wachter argues in his recently published book 'The art of being unhappy'.
Which way is more beneficial? The Buddha and also a thinker like Aristotle pointed out that it is more about living a good life. In which there is attention for justice, generosity and solidarity. Joost and Eveline agree, and together they map out which 'lucky conditions' we can cultivate in our lives, with attention and patience. There is no guarantee that the seeds we plant in this way will actually lead to happiness. So forget about happiness as the outcome, rather focus on practicing meditation, gratitude, generosity and service – who knows what good things will happen next.
