Through Eyes Like Yours

     On Youtube, there is a channel called Big Think. It’s basically a stage for public intellectuals, many of whom are noted academics as well, to come and share what they have learnt. I watch it regularly. A few days ago, I watched a video featuring Tal Ben-Shahar titled, “Don’t Chase Happiness, Become Antifragile.” In the video, Ben-Shahar, the man who designed the most popular class at Harvard, breaks happiness down to five components: spiritual, physical, intellectual, relational, and emotional (acronymed the SPIRE model for happiness). You can watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-or_D-qNqM . Ben-Shahar is a white (albeit Jewish) man who has integrated himself into the Western tradition of understanding and knowledge production. That’s why most of you will probably roll your eyes when I tell you that what Ben-Shahar is talking about is basically a Harvard-version of the yogic concept of ‘pancha-kosha’ originally developed by yogis in the Indian subcontinent. (