Psychology of Happiness
The psychological views on happiness began with Gautama Buddha.
He discussed the role of the mind in the pursuit of happiness. According to Buddha, the mind is the forerunner of states of existence, no matter what those states are. In Buddhism, the third of the Four Noble Truths states “to eliminate suffering, eliminate craving” this achieving happiness as being beyond material and emotional possession.
In Positive Psychology, happiness is described as being both a positive emotion and positive activities. The positive activities are absorption and engagement and the three categories of positive emotion are past, present and future. The positive emotions relating to the past include contentment, pride, satisfaction and serenity. The positive emotions relating to the future are optimism, trust and hope. The positive emotions of the present include aspects of pleasure and gratification.