Nikhedonia is a great old word I found while thumbing through one of Jick's word books.
Nikhedonia is the joy or pleasure derived from anticipating and imagining good fortune or future success.
Nikhedonia is from Nike, the Greek goddess of victory plus the Greek word, hedone, which means pleasure
I am familiar with the words anhedonia (experiencing no pleasure) and hyphedonia (decreased pleasure) as symptoms of depression but I didn't know of nikhedonia.
Nikhedonia is not the same as Hedonism. The basic idea behind hedonistic thought is that pleasure is the ONLY thing that is good for a person. Nikhedonia is simply allowing oneself to anticipate or imagine something with joy, pleasure or cheerfulness.
Nikhedonia seems to be a word that fits right in with creativity. By using our imagination to anticipate a positive outcome, we can find pleasure and joy in the process of creating.
Planning a trip is an experience I can immediately relate to with the sense of nikhedonia. I start planning travel by thinking of where we could go, what we might do while there, what we will eat and where we might stay. I get on the computer to research and lose all track of time by exploring lots and lots of ideas and itineraries. It is as if I imagine taking a dozen or so trips before we even start to decide on the final details of travel. I just love it when that happens. NIKHEDONIA!
I spoke with Ed, a friend who travels quite a lot, about this pre-travel experience. He completely agreed with the connection between nikehonia and travel. He added an extra dimension he experiences about traveling. He enjoys anticipating not only what will go as planned but also the adventure of what might come up that is unexpected while he travels. It sounds like a good idea to include that in the pre-travel perspective. That would encourage us to see travel as an adventure rather than a rigid plan about how things are supposed to be. Allowing nikhedonia anticipation of what might not go quite like originally planned sounds like an important part of travel and of the creative process.
As I have been exploring this new found friendly word, I began wondering if the mindfulness idea of living in the moment might somehow conflict with nikhedonia. Is it possible to stay focused on the moment but not miss out on the experience of nikhedonia?
I asked Jick at lunch yesterday if he thought the two concepts were in conflict. His response was, "No, not at all. It is important to just not get too caught up in one or the other." It was that clear to him and I think he is right. We don't have to sacrifice one for the other. We could sit and enjoy the beautiful New Mexico day as we shared lunch and at the same time talk about our plans for traveling to Scotland in October.
I planned to post this today but that is going to wait. It is Indian Market weekend in Santa Fe. I am having a nikhedonian experience as I anticipate what that means. "Indian Market in Santa Fe is the largest Native art market in North America, maybe the largest on the planet. This year is the 93rd annual market. It started with a few dozen artists as a local indoor Indian fair in 1922. This year, the event will include about 1,000 artists from more that 220 tribes of North America. It draws more than 175,000 visitors from across the globe who come to buy and experience the best of Indiginous North American art and culture."
The thought of walking around the plaza looking from booth to booth at the amazing creations of the invited artists fills me with nikhedonia. I am tickled that I now have a word for anticipating with such joy and excitement this fabulous experience. We will see artists who have become friends through the years. We look forward to seeing them here and appreciating their work (and usually purchasing a piece from them). We will see works by new artists and internationally recognized artists. The energy in the open space of the plaza is spectacular. The experience is so strong, I think we will take both days of the market this year to absorb and appreciate it. That way it will remain fun rather than feel overwhelming.
The organizers have also started to include Native dancers in the festivities to share in the cultural celebrations. I would love to share a few photos of both our purchases and the dancers.