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Extended family cohesiveness and frequent contact is a notable feature of Indian families. Researchers have noted that people who do not belong to cohesive families have fewer coping resources and increased levels of social and psychological stress. Psychological stress is associated with heart disease, various cancers and increased mortality risk. Indians shed emotional stress exceptionally well. Their stress-shedding personalities and the familial support which they receive and contribute to are important stress-reducing mechanisms. According to a BBC survey of over 50 significant nations, India is the second happiest nation in the world! The survey asked people if they were satisfied with various aspects of their lives such as money, work, sex and leisure. It also questioned respondents about relationships with their families and the role of religion in their lives. Family and friends ranked as the biggest source of happiness in peoples' lives. European nations; China and Russia were the saddest of all nations! Why Indians are generally happy people? In addition to being satisfied with oneself, personal control (self-knowledge) has been one of the best predictors of well-being. Volumes of research show clearly that the path to happiness and health is more easily pursued together than alone. Extreme positive moods were followed by lows which washed out happiness whereas steady, moderate pleasures sustained well- being over time. People who were socially involved and drew solace from religious faith had a 10 times greater chance of being happy. Indians live in the best possible environment as mentioned above. University of Chicago researchers, Kobassa and Maddi tried to find out why some stay well and others succumb to illness under the same difficult life conditions. They identified three personality traits of healthy persons--challenge, committment and control. The hardy individuals viewed change as a challenge rather than a catastrophe, were deeply committed to other individuals, causes and groups, and had a sense of personal control over their life destiny. People who control their life from within rather than merely responding to forces from without tend to achieve more in school, cope better with stress, and report more happiness. But a reality that cannot be denied is that the pursuit of happiness is furthered by an optimistic state of mind. Philosophy Ancient Indian thought, which is also philosophic in a broader sense, originated as early as 2000 BC and appears in scriptures called Veda. Ancient Indian philosophy also includes the mystical treatises known as Upanishads (700 to 100 BC), early Buddhist writings (300 BC to AD 500), and the Sanskrit poem Bhagavad-Gita. Classical Indian philosophy is less concerned with spirituality than ancient thought; rather, it concentrates on questions of how people can know and communicate about everyday affairs.Indian philosophy is extensive, rich, and complex. Scholars analyze not only its significance and its insights, but also its classical teachings about knowledge and language. Meanwhile, the majority of Western students of Indian thought have been drawn to its religious and mystical teachings. Some scholars have argued that Platonism (the philosophy of ancient Greek thinker Plato) and neo-Platonism (a 3rd-century movement based on Platonism) were greatly influenced by Indian thought. Nevertheless, the traditions of Indian and Western philosophy developed largely in ignorance of one another, and, until modern times, showed few signs of influencing one another.A famous Jain argument is that since animals are capable of pain, humans have an obligation not to harm them. Unlike in the West, the Indian classical philosophers often think about ethics in connection with Indian views about actions, or habits (karma), and rebirth (the belief in reincarnation; see Transmigration). Indian philosophy is characterized by a highly refined ethical sensibility (common among Jainism, Buddhism, and Hinduism), along with standards of character and conduct that are common to many other cultures. The Indian intellectual environment extends beyond the universities, where continuation of India's spiritual philosophy is influenced by religious and mystical practices, such as yoga, atman and Dharma (Sanskrit for "duty" or "the right way to live"), that are distinct or much more prominent in Indian culture.
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Facts: - India is the second happiest nation in the world! - Plato, the ancient Greek thinker was greatly influenced by Indian thought. - Ancient concepts like karma, dharma, atman (re-birth) and yoga still govern daily lives of Indians. |
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