What Bothers The Happiest Man In The World?
Matthieu Ricard is a Tibetan Buddhist monk involved in research on the effects of mental training on our brains done at the universities of Wisconsin-Madison, Princeton and Berkeley. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin have claimed that Matthieu is the happiest man in the world (or at least the happiest of all those who participated in the study), after analyzing his brain activity during a 12-year study. The study focused on important factors such as meditation and compassion.
They studied his brain function with various techniques and tools, one of which was functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). They noticed a lot of activity in his left cerebral cortex, which we associate with positive emotions.
These results, published in 2004 by the National Academy of Sciences , have had such an impact that they are the fifth most consulted scientific reference of all time.
Making comparisons is what kills happiness
According to the happiest man in the world, our habit of comparing ourselves is what always kills happiness. The monk also said that he does not agree with the “title” they have given him, the happiest man in the world. He called it “absurd”.
So neuroscientists have revealed what makes the happiest man in the world unhappy: comparisons. They believe that when we compare ourselves with other people, we see only a small part of their lives. In general, when we compare ourselves with other people, we focus only on the good or the obvious. We ignore the iceberg underwater.
When you see someone who has succeeded, you usually think the person was lucky. Like they happened to be in the right place at the right time. But you rarely see the whole process and all the sacrifices they had to make.
You only see the outcome; you do not see the difficult parts. In fact, you do not really see any of it. And that’s why you end up feeling worse and dissatisfied when you compare yourself.
Happiness comes with age
Research conducted by Andrew Oswald at the University of Warwick evaluated over 500,000 people across Europe and America. They found that happiness comes with age. Initially, the study developed research from the University of Wisconsin that found the happiest man in the world.
The beginning of adulthood can bring optimism and joy. But things gradually become more complicated until there is a crisis in the 40s. In fact, studies conducted by institutes such as the America’s General Social Survey have something to say about it. The unhappiest people are usually between 40 and 50 and the happiest are in their 70s.
And it does not have much to do with income or health. Layard showed that when you reach an annual income of $15,000 dollars per person (or equivalent purchasing power), an increase in the country’s GDP will have no effect on the level of well-being. Americans, he says, are richer than Danes (on average), but they are not happier.
On top of the age variable , daily meditation also contributes to happiness. Or at least that’s what science says. The meditation and compassion study showed that 20 daily minutes of meditation is enough to increase your feeling of well-being.
While people meditated, the images showed high activity in the left cerebral cortex, more than the right. This meant that it helped people to be happier.
