It happened a few years ago that I read in one of the newspapers that for some time now, some people annually examine which of the countries on Earth is the happiest.
They also announced the result that this country was then Bhutan. I guess not many Hungarians have visited this distant country, which, by the way, has won the title of the happiest several times. I was a little ashamed before I rounded up a short article from the news, because at that time I knew almost nothing about Bhutan except that it existed. Then I started researching - it wasn't difficult - various geographical publications and encyclopedias provide plenty of information.
Well, relying on the world press, I can publish the following:
"The country is one of the most closed states in the world. Which means they strictly check all arrivals. They are not rich, but they have something to eat. The last purely Buddhist country in the Himalayas and geographically not easily accessible, blessed with wonderful natural treasures and covered with untouched forests, according to eyewitnesses, is fearfully guarding its independence and trying to develop in such a way that it does not have to give up its ancient traditions."
Progress is slow. There are no highways, for example. They are the ones in the world who coined the term gross national happiness. Because they do not measure GDP, but gross national happiness, which has four pillars: sustainable development, environmental protection, cultural preservation and responsible governance. After some searching, I also came across the decision-making custom in Bhutan, according to which if the aforementioned four pillars are seen to be falling, for example because they threaten religious values, then they modify the idea. They also recognized that wealth can have a limiting effect on the human soul.
It is said that, almost unbelievably, nobody complains in Bhutan. Because they don't look at what they have, but at what they can be happy with.
In the meantime, TV and the Internet are now available in every village, and this is by no means incidental. Moreover, violent shows are supposedly on the blacklist. What else can I write? I was shocked to read that there is no university in the country, but many young people receive state scholarships to study in Western institutions, but they all return home at the end of their studies.
Well, I read about all of this maybe four years ago. I don't know what life has been like in Bhutan since then, in this daily-changing and daily-deteriorating, war-torn world, which loses its moral value every minute, not every day. In any case, I became a Bhutanist, adding that nowadays all news should be taken with a grain of salt, so news about real happiness could obviously be verified on the spot, in Bhutan.
For example, the provision described above, according to which all incoming travelers are strictly checked. Bring it to you, European Union!
The infinitely proud Europe that breaks all moral laws. Where are we from Bhutan? Where they keep order, they keep what is theirs. We live where the newspapers are full of the growing threat of terrorism in Europe. Where we have to support wars we have nothing to do with. Where it could happen that the ambassador of the United States to Hungary, DP, could accept money from a Russian oligarch. Where traitors to the country and Europe sit in the European Parliament. Where member countries are blackmailed daily. Where murders by illegal immigrants are commonplace. Where member countries are no longer able to protect their own borders from invaders. Where bomb alarms are a daily occurrence at airports, and where an international multi-billionaire speculator can "share the mind" for years, in order to make the whole world "international".
Well, all of the listed phenomena are "thanks" to conceited, incompetent and immoral leaders, whom the totally deranged Europe is unable to deal with. So it would be quite bold to say that in the middle of the general chaos, is there a happy place in Europe right now?
There are certainly happy people, but I don't know of a happy, safe, happy country faithful to the laws of creation in Europe.
Buthan's secret should be revealed. Although I'm afraid that in today's world, where money rules everything, be it the economy, our thinking, our values, what's more, our relationships with each other, it won't work. We probably speak a different language and wouldn't understand each other. They are our questions, we are their answers. The end result: they remain the happiest. Come on, Buthan!
Hungarian Newspaper
Featured image: MTI Photo: Imre Földi
