No emotion is in itself good or bad, only how we react to them can be. In itself, no emotion is painful or pleasurable, and the painful and pleasurable forms in which we experience it are the same emotion.
All emotions are combinations of four primary emotions: these are formed by the opposition between inwards and outwards, which on a large scale is that between introverted and extraverted, and on a small scale is that between positive and negative. Happiness is the balance between these opposites, so that it can never be found in just one of these emotions, but only in all of them put together.
Negative introverted emotion ("melancholy") is relaxation, sadness if painful, calm if pleasant.
Negative extraverted emotion ("choler") is motivation: anger if painful, desire if pleasant.
Negative extraverted emotion ("choler") is motivation: anger if painful, desire if pleasant.
Positive introverted emotion ("phlegm") is surprise, wonder if pleasant, fear if painful.
Positive extraverted emotion ("sanguinity") is excitement, joy if pleasant, anxiety if painful.
These form a cycle in which each causes the next, as melancholy focuses on feeling, choler on wanting, phlegm on thinking, sanguinity on doing.
Extraverted emotions are associated with the inner brain areas 3 and the limbs 4 and introverted emotions with the outer brain areas and the torso 4. Positive emotions 1 and parasympathetic activity 2 (slowing heartrate) are associated with the left brain half 1, and negative emotions 1 and orthosympathetic activity 2 (speeding up heartrate) with the right brain half 1 . The left brain half is connected to the right body half and the right brain half to the left body half, which is why the aorta is on the left side of the body and the vena cava is on the right side of the body 5: this connects the vena cava to the left brain half and to positive emotions, and connects the aorta to the right brain half and to negative emotions. Therefore positive emotions cause contraction of the vena cava, which is why they cause less blood return from the lower body half 4, while negative emotions will cause contraction of the aorta, which is why they cause more blood to stay in the upper body half 4. In happiness, blood flow is balanced in all parts of the body. 4
Extraverted emotions are associated with the inner brain areas 3 and the limbs 4 and introverted emotions with the outer brain areas and the torso 4. Positive emotions 1 and parasympathetic activity 2 (slowing heartrate) are associated with the left brain half 1, and negative emotions 1 and orthosympathetic activity 2 (speeding up heartrate) with the right brain half 1 . The left brain half is connected to the right body half and the right brain half to the left body half, which is why the aorta is on the left side of the body and the vena cava is on the right side of the body 5: this connects the vena cava to the left brain half and to positive emotions, and connects the aorta to the right brain half and to negative emotions. Therefore positive emotions cause contraction of the vena cava, which is why they cause less blood return from the lower body half 4, while negative emotions will cause contraction of the aorta, which is why they cause more blood to stay in the upper body half 4. In happiness, blood flow is balanced in all parts of the body. 4
1 Guide Gainotti et al.: Left/right and cortical/subcortical dichotomies in the neuropsychological study of human emotions
2 Wittling W et al.: Hemisphere asymmetry in parasympathetic control of the heart.
3 Chris D Frith: The social brain?
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