Some say happiness is but a feeling, and nothing could be truer. In a bygone agricultural society, favorable weather and bumper harvests would bring happiness to a whole community, and a feeling of being doubly blessed would prevail if there was also a baby boom accompanied by thriving livestock populations. For a clan that valued farming and letters, all its members would be feeling on top of the world if one of them was successful in an imperial exam. However, in today’ s materialistic world where everyone seems to be in a hot pursuit of fame and wealth, people would be at a loss if asked “Are you happy?” Indeed, too much stress has eroded our sense of happiness. No wonder when some migrant workers were asked if they were happy in a CCTV happiness survey, their answer was “I don’ t know” , just like that of Mo Yan, a famed writer. After all, migrant works and folks like Mo Yan are all experiencing stress, albeit in different ways.

To prevent stress from eroding our sense of happiness, the government for its part has to make constant efforts to build a fair and just social framework and a viable safety net for all, so as to enhance the ability of individuals to withstand risks and shocks, and take effective measures to narrow the gap between rich and poor, so as to prevent the emergence of collective anxiety among the general public. On the other hand, we as individuals should try to look at things from a different perspective, with fewer attitudes and more gratitude. It pays to free ourselves from the grips of grievances, and harness the power of positive thinking, always aiming for a right balance between expectations and reality, a departure from blind materialistic pursuit towards a more fulfilling self-reinvention, and a return to reason. Only by embracing more equanimity, can we be blessed with happiness, and truly feel blissful.