Older people are more happier

The results, published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, were good news for old people, and for those who are getting old. On the global measure, people start out at age 18 feeling pretty good about themselves, and then, apparently, life begins to throw curve balls. They feel worse and worse until they hit 50. At that point, there is a sharp reversal, and people keep getting happier as they age. By the time they are 85, they are even more satisfied with themselves than they were at 18.

And it's not being driven predominantly by things that happen in life. It is something very deep and quite human that seems to be driving this. Other researchers of psychology wonder why at age 50 does something seem to start to change?

The eastern wisdom has answered this question. The ancient sages have divided life in four stages based on the physical and psychological state of  human mind. They call it four ashramas or stages of life. They have looked at life vertically, not horizontally. They have known that the body is merely a vehicle that inhabits the consciousness.

Osho has talked about a seven-year cycle of change. If we say, life moves in a cycle of seven years, the age 42 is the turning point when a person changes from being materialistic, his need for meditation becomes stronger and if he finds the right doorway he starts growing up instead of growing old.  Osho explains the enigma of the western psychologists, why the old age seems to be happier than youth. "Youth cannot have depth, and youth cannot have calm understanding. Youth is feverish, it is a tumultuous time. I'm not saying it is wrong: it creates the possibility to grow. You have to pass through many experiences, sweet and bitter. Those experiences prepare you. An old man is wise. He has lived his life, he has become ripe. He knows what life is: he knows its joys, its sorrows, its ups and downs, he knows its hells and its heavens. He has seen all. Seeing all, a great understanding has arisen in him, and a compassion and a love."