Laughter the Best Medicine

By Fr.  Francis Gonsalves –

“If laughter cannot solve your problems, it’ll definitely dissolve your problems; so that you can think clearly what to do about them,” says Dr. Madan Kataria, founder of ‘Laughter Yoga’ in 1995, which led to the first Sunday of May being celebrated as World Laughter Day in 1998. Thereafter, this annual global celebration reminds us that laughter is the best medicine to forget fears, forgive foes and foster friendships.

Ask yourself: Am I the smiling, friendly type of person? Sunday, May 6, spend awhile looking into the mirror—not to makeup your face, but to breakdown your grumpiness—to reflect on laughter’s role in your life. Today, when many people amble along with sad faces, spreading bad news, why don’t we choose to be joyful bearers of the Good News which Jesus came to give?

It’s said, “A sad Christian is a bad Christian.” Many Christians mistakenly take Christ’s cross as the whole and sole reality of his life. While the cross is, indeed, very central to Jesus’ life, it is only a steppingstone to the ultimate truth, namely, that the crucified Jesus rises from the dead, thereby conquering sin, evil, darkness and death. Isn’t that wonderful ‘Good News’?

I love pictures of Jesus smiling. He was master of wordplay, irony and satire, mixed with a dash of humour. He criticizes hypocrites since “they clean the outside of a cup but not the inside before drinking from it.” Moreover, Pharisees “strain out a gnat but swallow a camel” and “try to remove a speck from their brother’s eye while there is a log in their own eye.” When his adversaries threaten to stone him, he asks: “I’ve done many good things; for which of these do you stone me?”

Religions have conceptions and quotations of laughter and rejoicing.  The Quran speaks of Allah as “The One who grants laughter” and a line of the Hadith apparently reads: “They deserve paradise who make their companions laugh.” The Laughing Buddha is very popular as a symbol of prosperity, peace and happiness. Lord Krishna smiles at Arjuna—hesitant to wage war against his brethren—for, he wants Arjuna to do nishkama karma, leaving the consequences to him alone.

Laughter has great potential to boost one’s energy. Laughter makes one optimistic, sending positive vibes to connect with others. It reduces stress, relieves mild pains, wards off woes and worries. Laughter helps one to live longer, protects one’s heart and helps one to lose weight. Says a Biblical proverb: “Those with merry hearts have a continual feast.”

I laughed when a Parsi friend sent me this obituary via WhatsApp: “Have your favourite drink and food and share a laugh today if you knew Sohrab Rustomjee because that’s exactly how he loved to live his life.”

It’s said, “One who laughs, lasts!” May we live—and die—laughing. Didn’t our God have the last laugh when his Crucified Son rose on Easter Sunday?

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Fr. Francis Gonsalves is a Gujarat Jesuit, former Principal of Vidyajyoti College, Delhi, and currently Dean of Theology at Jnana-Deepa Vidyapeeth, Pune. He is also the Executive Secretary of the CCBI Commission for Theology and Doctrine. He has authored many books and articles and is a columnist with The Asian Age and The Deccan Chronicle national dailies. ​​