"If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap. If you want happiness for a day, go fishing. If you want happiness for a year, inherit a fortune. If you want happiness for a lifetime, help somebody." So says a famous Chinese proverb.

Philosophers and priests have spent millenniaThousands of years. searching for the key principles of a good and satisfying life.

The London-based School of Life, founded by the philosopher Alain de Botton, is a global organisation helping people to findn perspectiveAn opinion, point of view or thought process of a person. Also, seeing things in their proper scale. Being able to tell what is big and what is small. and resilienceThe quality of toughness and flexibility that enables you to bounce back after setbacks. in the face of life's challenges. It claims: "We've developed a range of tools to help you keep your mind occupied, stay connected with those you love, and secure the calm you deserve."

Now, it has launched an ambitious project - to sum up all five million words of wisdom that is has ever published into eight short and simple rules. It recommends that we learn these rules by heart and think about them every day.

What are they?

For a comprehensive explanation in under 10 minutes, watch the short film in the first of our Expert Links. You will find that the rules remind us (among other things) that "no one is normal" and that "people do not end up with the lives they deserve".

Though theirn realismThe attitude or practice of accepting a situation as it is; pragmatic. is at times dark - "we don't count one bit in the grander schemeThe bigger picture. So that, when you put things in perspective, taking everything into account, sometimes what has previously been seen significant isn't quite significant." - these are balanced with the idea of empowerment: that thought "should be a liberation".

Most optimistic of all is their pronouncement that: "CompatibilityWhen two people get on together without problems or conflict. isn't a prerequisite for love, it is the achievement of love."

The School of Life's rules offer a modern, mindful, and progressive way of addressing issues that have plagued thinkers forn aeonsAn aeon is an indefinite and extremely long period of time..

In the Old TestamentThe first part of the Christian Bible, and is mainly based on the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh). - and, therefore, at the heart of Jewish and Christian belief systems - are the Ten Commandments.

These range from "Thou shalt not steal" to warnings againstn idolatryThe worship of idols or false gods..

In the 18th Century, Immanuel KantA German Enlightenment philosopher who is regarded as one of the most important thinkers of the modern era. He fundamentally changed the way we think about a variety of subjects, from aesthetics to cognition to morality. laid out one fundamental moral law of relationships: never treat other people simply as a means to an end.

More recently, psychologists have focused on evidence that happiness is chiefly created by giving. Throughn MRIMagnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a medical imaging technique used in healthcare to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body. technology, we now know that giving activates the same parts of the brain that are stimulated by food and sex.

Experiments show that altruismA devotion to or selfless care for others. is hardwired in the brain. Helping others may be the secret to living a life that is not only happier, but also healthier, wealthier, more productive, and meaningful.

No. Firstly, we never keep them. Secondly, as we learn and grow, rules risk limiting our development, encouraging us to believe in other people's thoughts. Each individual is unique. No one yet knows what the best life looks like.

Yes. The human psycheThe soul, mind, or spirit. craves rules for a good reason. They sum up the tried and tested experience of past lives. More importantly, good rules do not demand obedience. They simply offer themselves for trial. If they work for you, you can make them your own.