Emotions are at the core of interpersonal communication. Being able to gracefully and effectively express the way you feel and ask what you need will get you far in any relationship. Asserting your boundaries, asking for support, showing empathy, being present and connecting with people is a secret sauce for success. And what more expressive than a smile starting from the mouth and moving to the eyes and fully involving the heart?
A smile signals openness, warmth, friendliness, attraction and much more. If you had to draw a symbol representing positive emotions, what better than a Smiley face?
This meaningful emblem has a whole beautiful story behind. Archetypal in essence, it is almost holy or divine. Wikipedia provides the details but doesn’t tell the mutability, malleability of the Sun as a symbol. Archetypes are universal forms and ideas that take on meaning within a certain culture. Shakuru, the Sun, is the first of the visible powers in Indian mythology and it gives man health, vitality, and strength.
A representation of the father in traditional cultures, it shines its light of protection and it’s an essential source of energy for life on Earth. The Sun is a Star indeed, physically and metaphysically! It keeps us warm during the day and hides away at night, when Mother Moon rises. This makes for a very remarkable change in radiation and resonance, a very different influence on our nervous systems. Even on a bad day, life seems a little less dreary when the sun is shining. Or when someone gives you the gift of a smile.
I was still living in London when I started Smiley Yoga. I wanted to teach in local studios and gym chains and, as a new teacher, I also wanted to set up as a freelancer and run my very own yoga classes. I thought I’d have more of a chance to attract students and land job opportunities if people could see I had a positive, creative personality and Smiley Yoga was a success! Fast forward to now, Smiley Retreat and Smiley Nutrition showcase what I want to do in life: help people eat better food and transform, at least a little bit, through Fasting, Yoga and holistic therapies. And in Thailand, the land of smiles! How fitting is it!?
The Smiley is a blank canvas and like a clean sheet, you can use it to draw the story of your emotional day, in essence. Feeling great? Big Smiley face. A little down, sad or disappointed, worried or angry, the Smiley will depict your state of mind better than 20 lengthy words. Is the subject of your text a little too serious or do you have a tendency to dramatise and exaggerate? Add a Smiley at the end to soften the meaning of the language, bring some light to the conversation.
And in fact, this simple icon is used by billions of people. Billions! Individuals who want to communicate with each other and, given the rigidity of the written language, decide to express their feelings in a more visually compelling form. It doesn’t matter if you are Chinese, Indian or Peruvian, the language of Smiley is international and understood by everyone.
Aside from social media, the Smiley has been featured in nearly all areas of Western culture including music, movies, and art. The first Smiley was drawn in 1700 BC, according to remains found in Turkey. I suppose, if you have to start drawing something, anything, a happy stylised face might come sooner than a house, possibly on par with a basic human figure. A simple circle, humanised with eyes and mouth, aaah, the beauty of simplicity and minimalism.
For something as remarkable as this iconic symbol, controversies had to spring up. The first known modern application of the Smiley is credited to the State Mutual Life Assurance Company in America that wanted to boost employees morale after a merger. 50 million Smiley buttons including the simple wish “Have a Nice (or Happy) Day” were famously sold during the Vietnam war. The Smiley featured in Forrest Gump’s movie, and many more times, from a commercialised logo, to an ironic fashion statement, to a scary version in comic books to a symbol of rave culture imprinted on ecstasy pills. Ecstasy pills? Yep, that too.
Can it get any worse than illegal drugs for the Smiley? The Smiley Company is a brand licensing company that holds the rights to smiley face symbols in over 100 countries. It originates from a certain Mr. Loufrani in France who had the idea of selfishly copyrighting the Smiley face. They have no rights in the USA though, where a long fought legal dispute with WallMart resulted in this iconic symbol to be declared free of trademark.
When I decided to call my yoga classes in London Smiley Yoga, I didn’t know the story of Smiley. Can the Smiley be a symbol of wellness? I think so. Yes, it can, absolutely! Exclusively for everyone, here you have the Smiley Retreat!
