How funny that most of us, more often than not, laugh only in front of the idiot box or, lately, over Internet jokes, making it an induced kind of laughter. But spontaneous laughter? That is becoming dearer by the day. How many times have you felt that agonising squeeze in your stomach or tears rolling down your cheeks -- all because you just couldn't stop laughing about something. Most probably your answer would be: very rarely.

Okay, forget laughing only when it tickles your ribs. What about laughing at yourself or laughing through tricky situations? No, people around you will not allow you to do that. They will keep reminding you, ``Why can't you be serious?'' or ``Can't youtake things seriously?''

Particularly, the female gender in India has been socially conditioned to become sedate and sober soon after attaining puberty. A young woman must behave like a ``mature'' person so that the house that she goes to, after marriage, does not get the impression that they have a frivolous bahu on their hands. So, when she wants to laugh, she better do it with her hands over her mouth or, better still, by holding her breath and turning red.

And of course, ego plays a pivotal role in our long-faced attitude, since anything funny, many a time truthful comments addressed to us, are taken with a streak of affront which may, though not necessarily, give birth to revenge later. And thus, the vicious cycle begins. Suppression of feelings leads to dejection which in turn curtails the light-heartedness associated with laughter. Thus we are invariably burdened with gravity.

Notice it for yourself -- a smile, a chuckle or a rip-roaring laugh bring along with it a tingling zing that isever so refreshing. It refurbishes the mind with renewed energy. It veils, if not erases, the tensions and tautness synonymous with our day-to-day life.

And yet, we do not laugh in the course of our life's journey which can snap any moment. And when we do laugh, it is only at the cost of others. We love to poke fun at others, but then this laughter is tainted with malice and rancour. For, where's the purity which can come only when you begin laughing at yourself, make humour and wit an integral part of your life or find joy in trivial aspects of your routine life?

In my home, needless to say, I love to laugh but I must admit my children have turned out to be serious beings -- at least with me. I know that they love to laugh but somewhere along the line, spontaneity has suffered, at least at home. Probably, seeing the world around them, they cannot imagine that a wife/mother can actually refuse to be sober and solemn. So, I have pasted Osho's laughing meditation message on my son's cupboard, hoping thatlight-heartedness prevails in abundance in our house. Let's hope it works some day.

Little things. I am not a stickler for cleanliness. But yesterday, when I saw a clothes hanger on the handle of a cupboard, I promptly, albeit uncharacteristically, put it back on the clothes rack. In fact, my husband had deliberately kept it out, so that he could put back his track suit. For my part, I cheekily told him: ``You know, I'm very particular about keeping things in order.'' My husband actually laughed instead of getting irritated.

And this is what laughter is all about. Pepper your life with wit, humour and light-heartedness. Dump your ego in the garbage. And see for yourself what you get. A life filled with childlike joy, with malice toward none.