Why do we feel sadness?

Here I am talking about the feeling of sadness that can be experienced when someone we like or love is unkind to us, when we see or experience ... to them, then you can uncover what you feel by keeping asking the same question “What does it mean for me when (fill in whatever they said or did)?. read more

It's an easy answer - because we have brains. The brain is the latest product of gene mutation in evolution. And emotion is the function of our brain in addition to reasoning, i.e., philosophizing. So let's use our reasoning function a bit to explain what's the use of emotion of sadness. We can write a poetry out of it. read more

We may hear or read a tragic news story and feel sadness for the family involved. We may hear of the death of a friend, extended family member, or even the death of someone belonging to a co-worker and experience sadness. These are events that evoke feelings of empathy within us and cause us to feel sadness. read more

Whatever your own experience of sadness, remember it is part of being human and allows us to recognize and value the contrast between feeling happy and sad. We need these contrasts in order to recognize our own vulnerabilities and those of others and to be able to appreciate our gains and losses. read more