The Pursuit of Happiness: Reflections on Life, Quality, and Well-Being

This week’s piece is, in a way, a continuation of last week’s theme, namely life, and the best way to lead it. The difference, between living and non-living things, is that the former grow, move, reproduce and have senses, whereas the latter do not.

Among living beings, the Homo sapiens species has large brains, more advanced cognitive skills that enable it to thrive, and adapt to varied environments.

Easily the most important ability of human beings is to create and comply with imperatives that facilitate an orderly and secure life, in the absence of which, as the great political philosopher, Jack Hobbes, observed, people would be condemned to lead lives which are “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short.” A dog’s life, in other words.

Unfortunately, few people make full use of the faculties they are endowed with. Content merely to exist, almost as if they were non-living things, such people, however, are few and far between. Many of the rest, regrettably, are not much better, either. While being active and engaging in activities that facilitate a decent standard of living, they merely live, not leading a life in the true sense.

Quality of life (QoL) is a concept which captures the well-being of a person’s existence at a point in time. While many factors play a role in it, they often include financial security, job satisfaction, family life, health, and safety. An assessment, in other words, of a person’s well-being, or lack thereof, the concept applies not only to individuals and organisations, but also to countries.

The Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI) is a related idea which measures the QoL of a country. The UN Human Development Index (HDI), developed by American economist Morris Davis Morris, is largely an index of the progress made by a country in areas such as education, life expectancy, and infant mortality, and is a more widely used measure.

The resolution of the UN General Assembly 2011, called “Happiness Towards a Holistic Definition of Development”, invited member-countries to measure the happiness of their people, and to help guide public policy. The World Happiness Report, prepared following that decision, measures national happiness. Data supporting that exercise comes from the Gallup World Poll, using a questionnaire measuring 14 areas, including business, economy, education, environment, food and shelter. Gallup Inc. is an American multinational analytics and advisory company.

Following that concept, an index of a Gross National Happiness (GNH) was developed by the kingdom of Bhutan.

Indices in respect of several countries, for the year 2023, show that Finland is the country with the highest rating. India, regrettably, stands at 126, one reason being the growing mental health crisis, worsened by the Covid-19 pandemic. And, largely on account of low life expectancy rate, and low GDP per capita, Afghanistan stands at the end.

It would be idle to attempt a precise definition of a good life. The advice my father once gave me, however, comes pretty close. As I was leaving home, married, and about to enter service, I asked him what he thought I should aim for. His simple advice was, “Be happy”. Following that counsel certainly contributed to my leading a happy life ever since, though what precisely happiness is continues to elude me. My father also instilled in me the ability to sustain the zest for life or, as the French have it, la joie de vivre

Life, after all, is a precious gift and one should spend it happily. The Hobbesian description of life is, no doubt, something to be avoided. What one really ought to regard oneself as being entitled to has, however, been defined most pithily by Thomas Jefferson, the Founding Father and third President of the USA. While drafting the United States Declaration of Independence, the expression he used was, “Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. Committee of Five, of which Jefferson was a member, regarded those rights as inalienable rights, endowed upon men by the Creator, and a truth they believed to be self-evident.

People have, from time to time, entertained many perceptions about the value and quality of life. Perhaps, the most poetic and profound among them being by Lewis Caroll, in ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’, followed by ‘Through the Looking Glass’. The colourful description comes in a poem called ‘Life is but a Dream’ in that book. Utilising a juxtaposition and unique structure, it conveys, in an unforgettable manner, the meaning that life in the ultimate analysis is fleeting, inconsequential, and hardly real. Nothing, really but a dream.

Time was, when it was said, that life began at 40. ‘Life Begins at 40’ was, in fact, the title of a book, authored by Walter Pitkin in the 1930s, a period which saw a rapid rise in life expectancy. Over time, however, the definition got revised, with 40 becoming 60; nowadays, it’s beginning to look more like 80!

Having said that, the fact remains that, after all, as one gets older, it is necessary to remain physically fit, mentally active and emotionally stable. The pause one experiences can be unnerving, used as one is to a life of hustle and bustle, and ceaseless activity. Mother Nature is telling one, “My child, you have bestirred yourself excessively; pause a while and reflect”.

Of the essence, at that stage, is to be mature, in selecting of activities and lifestyle factors. They should contribute to a good quality of life. A healthy and balanced diet, plenty of water, regular exercise, adequate sleep, and refraining from artificial stimulants one to begin with, a must.

While it is, no doubt, best not to fall ill, should one, God forbid, fall sick, medical treatment should be resorted to without delay, but always only as a last resort. While natural home-made remedies should be preferred, in the case of serious illnesses, one should not hesitate to consult a doctor. In extreme situations, even drugs known to have some adverse side-effects may become unavoidable.

That is also when one has the time and leisure to visit places not seen before, meet people one always wanted to, and take up hobbies for which one had no time earlier. I, for example, always wanted to meet Jayant Vishnu Narlikar, the Astrophysicist, and hero of my days as a postgraduate student of the Theory of Relativity in Osmania University. I had also always wanted to watch the launching of a rocket. I fulfilled both these ambitions, recently, years after my retirement.

Before we end this piece, here is a snippet.

Though not by inclination or choice, my father was a teetotaler, save the occasional glass of wine in select company, mostly his colleagues on the bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court. When, on another occasion, the same question was put to him, he quipped, “Depends on the liver!”

(The writer was formerly Chief Secretary, Government of Andhra Pradesh)