Buddha is a weighty word. For some it is tied to imagery from films about flying monks, or to tales of Indian ascetics with a thousand powers who resemble Marvel superheroes. Many associate it with an idea of happiness, of wellbeing, or with a Nirvana attainable only by a chosen few. But in reality, all of us can be happy as a Buddha. Right here, and right now. This is what "Happy as a Buddha, the book written by Stefano Bettera, out just these days, is about.

"Today we link the idea of happiness to that of fulfilment," Stefano Bettera explains: "we are happy if we obtain what we desire, when and how we desire it — but if something goes wrong we call into question the very possibility of being truly happy. This practice tells us instead that all of us can live fully in whatever condition we find ourselves. Because life, just as it is, is all we have and all that matters."

So where can we begin this journey towards serenity?
We all ask ourselves: how can I face fears and setbacks, or fully savour my joys? How can I live a life that is truly authentic and be happy? Let's start here. Let's set out on the path of awareness and, step by step, day by day, rediscover with kindness what can make our lives more authentic and serene.

In your book you present us with a very human Buddha…
Certainly! If we were to meet Gotama on the street today, on a plane or on a train, what would he be like? If he were walking right beside me on the pavement, in my city, would I even notice? In all likelihood he would be busy doing the shopping, sweeping the garden, reading a book or humming a song. Perhaps he would have a smartphone and a Facebook profile. He would be just like us. That is precisely why each of us can follow the path that is the subject of his method of practice, still valid today.

So is that the "secret" of Happy as a Buddha?
I don't think there is anything superhuman about Buddhist practice. Indeed, I speak of a journey that is my own but in which many people who wonder how to practise in today's world might recognise themselves. I conceived Happy as a Buddha not as a treatise but as the account of a good friend who shows the reader the eight steps that are at the heart of this ancient practice, offering suggestions, tips, practical starting points and meditations for those who wish to approach this path. With the lightness and the irony one uses between good friends, too.

In the book you also offer very useful practical starting points.
Practice — meditation — is fundamental in the Buddhist path, and this journey encompasses eight steps, eight proposals for inquiry and work, which are logically connected like the links of a chain. Happy as a Buddha shows us how to meditate even in the thick of daily stress, at the workplace or while doing the shopping at the supermarket, and how to look with irony at the successes and failures we all encounter, turning them into an opportunity for growth. Every journey begins with a single step. That step belongs to us alone.

Happy as a Buddha is on Facebook: www.facebook.com/felicecomeunbuddha