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Happiness is a social construct || Acharya Prashant, with youth (2012)
Acharya Prashant
450 views
8 years ago
Happiness
Social Conduct
Society
Joy
Boredom
Conditioning
Freedom
Description

Acharya Prashant questions whether individuals truly understand what makes them happy, noting that for most people, happiness is merely a social conduct rather than a personal experience. He points out that happiness has been organized and predetermined by society, with specific days like festivals, birthdays, and weekends designated for joy. This structured happiness is often just an attempt to escape the accumulated boredom of a routine life, such as spending time in an office or waiting for predictable milestones like buying a house or a car. He argues that because people's happiness is dictated by social norms, they remain afraid of society's judgment. Acharya Prashant emphasizes that true joy should arise spontaneously from within for no reason at all, rather than being a reaction to external events or social expectations. He suggests that if one finds authentic happiness, it will essentially be good for everyone else, even if it appears superficially harmful to others' sentiments. He challenges the audience to look beyond the grinning faces of successful professionals or standard life events to see if they have any moments of joy that are truly their own. Ultimately, he explains that the fear of society exists because we have allowed society to define the parameters of our happiness and unhappiness.