Laughter is the Best Medicine

Laughter is the Best Medicine, Sources of Humor and How Humor and Laughter Remove the Dark Side of Life

                        When the melancholy fit shall fall
                        Sudden from heaven like a weeping cloud
                        Then glut thy sorrow on a morning rose
                       Or on the rainbow of the salt sand-wave     (John Keats)

In life, there is no room for sorrow and misery as the life of man in this world is transient. During this short sojourn on this earth, man has to undergo a variety of experiences and the major part of his life is preoccupied with struggle, striving, sorrow, and suffering. He enjoys happiness certainly, but only for a limited period. People always perceive a multitude of sorrows on the horizon and do not live life at all. It is here that Laughter can be the best medicine and it comes to our aid. Humor is certainly the elixir of life. Laugh once a day, and keep the doctor away because laughter is the best medicine of human life.

1- Who said Laughter is the Best Medicine

The name of the writer who first coins this quote is unknown. However, this quote finds its origin from the quote of Henry Ward Beecher “Mirth is God’s best medicine.”

2- Laughter is a Strong Activity for Mind and Body

“Laughter activates the body’s natural relaxation response. It’s like internal jogging, providing a good massage to all internal organs while also toning abdominal muscles,” says DR. Gulshan Sethi. Chuckling is an important tool to keep away stress, anxiety and tension by refreshing the mind. A fresh and relaxed mind is the birth land of humongous and zealous ideas and sans healthy cackling; you cannot make your mind and body calm and relax. Guffawing lightens your unhealthy burdens, make you fit in the society and connect other peoples to your active persona.

3- Immediate Benefits of Laughter

• A healthy laugh can relieve physical tension and stress, leaving your muscles relaxed for up to 45 minutes after.
•  Laughter triggers the release of endorphins, the body’s natural feel-good chemicals. Endorphins promote an overall sense of well-being and can even temporarily relieve pain.
•  Laughter improves the function of blood vessels and increases blood flow, which can help protect you against a heart attack and other cardiovascular problems.
•  You can’t feel anxious, angry, or sad when you’re laughing.
•  It reduces stress and increases energy, enabling you to stay focused and accomplish more.
• Humor gets you out of your head and away from your troubles.
• Laughter helps you forget judgments, criticisms, and doubts.

4- Real Benefits of Laughter

“A smile starts on the lips; a grin spreads to the eyes, a chuckle comes from the belly; but a good laugh bursts forth from the soul, Overflows, and bubbles all around.” Carolyn Birmingham

• Laughter makes life as beautiful as Paradise

Our sojourn on this planet is very short. Let us make the best of it and the most of it. The golden rule must be: live and let live. This can be possible only when we possess an adequate sense of humor then laughter is the best medicine. A truly wise man laughs his sorrows away. He makes others also laugh and thereby contributes in driving out their miseries also. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said; “Earth laughs in flowers.”

• Humor Enhances Immunity Power

Humor also has a physiological aspect which makes a man healthy and vigorous. A man in humor has his thyroid and parathyroid glands in an active state. The secretions of these glands exercise make a salutary effect on the health, both physical and mental. The therapeutic value of humor is a natural corollary. Many diseases can be cured by putting the patient on a healthy dose of humor.

“A day without laughter is a day wasted.”  Charlie Chaplin

• Laughter Connects an Individual to Humanity

Humor is positive emotion and thus makes for progress and understanding. A single loving and practicing giggling consciously or unconsciously sees the whole life as one and therefore, in his schemes of things there is no room for hatred, ill-will and enmity. To such an individual, no man is an island entirely of him but is a part of the main. As John Donne said;

“Every man’s death diminishes me for I am involved in mankind.”

• Humor Creates Social Equality

Humor has also served and still the primary purpose of social equality. Jokes can be cut with the equals and thus where there is humor the difference of high and low disappears.

“He deserves Paradise, who makes his companions laugh.” — Koran

• Humor Establishes Peace

Humor is a special gift of God to humanity; the animal world is deprived of. It makes us generous and human, sociable and acceptable. Where there is humor, there is peace. Peace is the healthy and natural quality of human being, so all humor. Violence begins where humor ends.

• Laughter Boosts Love

Love and Laughter are nectar, drink deep at them. One who hasn’t proper humor cannot be a real lover. So, if you love someone, ensure that you have humor in appropriate measure; otherwise, your beloved wouldn’t return the love you expect.  As John Keats said;

 “If thy mistress some rich anger shows, Emprison her soft hand, and let her rave,
  And feed deep, deep upon her peerless eyes.”

5- Bottlenecks in the way of Laughter

•   A negative attitude towards everything makes an individual restrict and narrow mind. This thing poses an end to his sense of humor and the quality of cackling.
•  Fear creates insecurity and hesitation in human mind hence, is responsible for keeping people away from most of the enjoyments.
•  Personality complex of an individual is the one which stands directly in the way of laughter.
•  Seriousness, especially too much seriousness is dangerous not only to pleasure seeking quality of man but also to the progress.
•  The world is full of unfavorable incidents and man’s laughter has lost somewhere in those incidents.

6- Sources of Humor and Laughter

All you need in the world is love and laughter. That's all anybody needs. Have love in one hand and laughter in the other.  August Wilson

• Positive Attitude for Laughter

Permanent sources of Humor, there is nothing right or wrong but thinking makes it so. If only we could adapt a positive attitude to life, see the beauty and the grace of the Maker in it, perceive the drama so ingeniously woven in the Matrix, life would all become a blessing, a supreme gift to be fully lived and enjoyed.

• Past Laughter Memories

A collection of sweet memories is a priceless treasure. To recall them in leisure time one can enjoy a good time of laughter.

• Laughter from Nature

Nature always stands as your good friend and passionate lover. Nature never did betray a heart that loved her. Nature provides laughter to man as a whole. As William Wordsworth rightly said;

“The world is too much with us; late and soon, getting and spending, we lay waste our powers: Little we see in Nature that is ours.”    

• Literature is the Best Source of Laughter

Literature and the in the particular literature that contains content of humor is a good source of healthy laughter.

• Movies and TV Laughter Shows

Fun, rich movies and comedy shows can make your additional time beautiful by making your body and mind refresh and tension less.

• Fun and Laughter Activities

Playing with a pet, going to a ‘laughter yoga’ class and doing something silly are helpful to enjoy laughter.

The world would indeed be a beautiful place to live in if every one of us acquired the ability to create humor  & laughter and the propensity of being the subject of humor. In short, we should always remember the transient nature of life and hence should strive to laugh and make others cackle. Here just keep in mind Laughter is the Best Medicine by utilizing all the Permanent sources of Humor in this material era so drive away all despondency and chortle. Remember: laugh and the whole world laughs with you, weep, and you weep alone.