Happiness Hypothesis: Putting Ancient Wisdom to the Test of Modern Science

Description

After I read this book, I was so impressed that I passed it around the house, and pestered everyone in the family until they read it, which they were all very happy about in the end. Everyone agrees it is incredibly well-written, in a very clear and engaging style. It presents enough specifics and examples to support the larger points being made, and builds logically and seamlessly as it progresses. It illuminates so many interesting insights into how the mind really works and what really motivates us. The "rider on the elephant" metaphor for the relationship between the conscious mind and the automatic, largely subconscious mind is really so useful and powerful in so many contexts. I have only one minor quibble, and this is because I was particularly interested in how the book deals with meditation practice. Haidt suggests that the Buddha was teaching people how to be "happy" by being "indifferent" to one's experiences. Actually, the Buddha encouraged people to be *liberated from suffereing*, not happy, by cultivating *equanimity*, which is not at all the same as indifference. This misunderstanding may be widespread in our society, and presenting Buddhism in this light worked in terms of the overall message, but it is still a misunderstanding. However, it's still a fantastic book.