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| Hunza Valley, Pakistan. |
Who are the happiest people on Earth?
The gazillionaires?
Nope.
Those that have the shiniest, fastest cars, latest cell phone, and the biggest houses?
Nope.
The endless traveller?
Nope.
The ones with the highest paying jobs?
Nope.
The isolated, simple living Hanza people of the Himalayan highlands in Pakistan are reported to be among the healthiest, happiest, and longest living people on Earth.
This is a group of people with a much better life outcome than the populations of richer, more "advanced" areas that have been sold the story of "progress".
And they do it without the billions and trillions of dollars sloshing around in rich nations.
Some Hunza live to be 145, and at least one researcher that lived with the Hunza for several years, said he had never heard of one of these traditional simple living people to get sick with any diseases that are common in capitalist consumer countries.
Like cancer.
No cancer, unlike in, say, an advanced country like my own.
"Researchers estimated that there would be 225,800 new cancer cases and 83,300 cancer deaths in Canada in 2020. (The number of estimated new cases does not include non-melanoma skin cancer cases.)"
It gives one the feeling that everything we have been told is a lie.
Perhaps working and shopping ourselves to death is not the way to go?
I'm with the Hunza. I must admit, though, that it is hard for this consumer-raised westerner to think that at almost 60, if I were a Hunza, I might not be even half way through my lifespan yet.
Capitalist consumerism kills. I think we can say that with total certainty.
All of the working, shopping, endless weary travelling, and general material excess is for naught if all it does is create unhappiness and hasten an early death.
What if we all lived as simply and happily as the Hunza?
Could we, in a more natural, simple state, also live extra long happy lives?
I'm have been trying, and it has been working out for me so far. We will see how it all works out over the next 60 or 70 years.
My goal is to be as happy as the Hunza, regardless of how long I am around.
They sound like wonderful people and what a beautiful place they life in. The last sentence in your post says it all..."My goal is to be as happy as the Hunza, regardless of how long I am around." This is my life goal too, and slowly but surely I am getting there. Thanks for all you do. - Mary
ReplyDeleteHm, yes, I am apparently poor. I have never felt more rich in my life. That most precious commodity - my time - is now my own and I plan to use it to sing and to write poetry and stories and to play with my grandson. I have to admit that with good health I wouldn't mind living to 145; it would be nice to get up tomorrow knowing that at seventy-mumblemumble I still have half a lifetime ahead of me.
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