2004 TED Talk, Monterey, CA / transcript*
see also: results of search for images, no year specified*
at 05:29 – a copy-paste from the transcript:
Now, what, then, will be happiness? And happiness, of course, is such a vague word, so let's say well-being. And so, I think the best definition, according to the Buddhist view, is that well-being is not just a mere pleasurable sensation. It is a deep sense of serenity and fulfillment. A state that actually pervades and underlies all emotional states, and all the joys and sorrows that can come one's way. For you, that might be surprising. Can we have this kind of well-being while being sad? In a way, why not? Because we are speaking of a different level.
2020-06-05 … from an FT interview, done while Ricard is in France, visiting his 97-year-old mother:
The notion that we can control external conditions is mistaken, he explains, … “We have this very arrogant idea that we have extracted ourselves from nature. We are masters of the universe, we can send people to the moon, we can manipulate genes. It seems that we are invincible.”He is horrified, too, by the idea of transhumanism, and its adherents’ quest to prolong dramatically the human lifespan. “Imagine Donald Trump being elected for the 50th time or Lionel Messi scoring his 50,000th goal. How boring!” I laugh in agreement. He goes on: “I mean, I love my hermitage, but a thousand years? As my mother likes to say, eternity is awfully long, especially near the end.”source archived*