The Art of Happiness

of the book. Those who have read the book willknow that it was the result of many hours ofdiscussion, with Howard representing the currentscientific perspective and me representing theBuddhist understanding of the issues pertaining tomental health and human well-being. So when thebook was received well by the general public, Ifelt a deep sense of satisfaction since thisindicated that our labor had made somecontribution towards others’ happiness and wellbeing.Though each of us, the two authors, camefrom different perspectives, we alwaysendeavored to bring our discussion to the basichuman level, the level where distinctions betweenpeople—gender, race, religion, culture, andlanguage—break down. At this fundamentallevel, we are all the same ; each one of us aspiresto happiness and each one of us does not wish to