by Kate | Nov 19, 2025 | Chronic healing, joy
Mudita is a Pali word that doesn’t have a direct English translation. It is taking joy in other people’s good fortune. Phrases used to describe it include “sympathetic joy,” “appreciative joy,” and “altruistic joy.” You have probably practiced mudita in your life....
by Kate | Nov 12, 2025 | joy
“Sympathetic joy”, psychologist Jeremy Adam Smith explains, “is sometimes called appreciative joy, empathic joy, vicarious reward, or (more broadly) positive empathy.” It’s the goodness we feel when we are happy about someone else’s good fortune. If someone we...
by Kate | Nov 5, 2025 | joy, kind promises
I listened to the Joy Lab Podcast Episode 103. Sympathetic Joy & Emotional Contagion before writing this post. What it is The phrase “sympathetic joy” comes from a word used in Buddhism: mudita. It’s a Pali word that means “taking delight in someone else’s good...
