Many English speakers know the German word schadenfreude which is the pleasure we take in someone else’s misfortune. It is the quiet satisfaction we feel when a rival stumbles, a competitor fails, or another project misses a deadline.
There is, however, a Yiddish word that deserves far more attention, especially in open source communities like Joomla: fargun.
What Is Fargun?
Fargun (פֿאַרגונ) means genuine, unselfish joy in someone else’s success. Not polite approval. Not performative praise. Real happiness that another person, team, or project has done well.
There is no exact English equivalent. We have phrases like “I’m happy for you”, but fargun carries a depth and sincerity those words often lack. It is the feeling that someone else’s success does not diminish your own.
Where schadenfreude says, “That served you right”, fargun says, “You deserve this.”
If Joomla is to thrive in 2026 and beyond, fargun is a value we should consciously practise.
Why Fargun Matters in Open Source
Joomla is not built by a single company or a small inner circle. It exists because of:
- Volunteer developers
- Extension creators
- Designers, translators, testers, and documentation writers
- Users who support and teach others
And yet, even in open source, comparison creeps in:
- My extension versus yours
- My pull request versus yours
- My talk accepted, yours rejected
- Another CMS announcement that makes us uneasy
Quiet competition is easy to slip into, even when we are all meant to be rowing in the same direction.
Fargun challenges that instinct.
Fargun Is Not About Lowering Standards
Being happy for someone else’s success does not mean:
- Accepting poor code
- Avoiding constructive criticism
- Pretending everything is perfect
Joomla has always valued quality, review, and debate. Fargun does not remove those things. It changes the intent behind them.
Code reviews guided by fargun ask:
How do we help this contributor succeed?
Community discussions guided by fargun ask:
How do we make this better together?
Where We Can Practise Fargun in Joomla
1) When someone ships something new
A new extension, a major update, a rewritten plugin. Even if it competes with your work, their success strengthens the ecosystem. Acknowledge it without turning it into a comparison with yourself.
2) When a new contributor gets recognition
Most of us remember our first accepted pull request or public thank-you. Celebrating those moments builds confidence that lasts. Praise rooted in fargun is offered freely, without qualifiers or hidden buts.
3) When other CMS projects do well
Open source is not a zero-sum game. Innovation elsewhere pushes Joomla to improve. Instead of scoffing, try a small shift: “I’m glad this worked for them. What can we learn?”
Why This Matters in 2026
The Joomla community is smaller than it once was, but it is also more experienced, more resilient, and more values-driven.
In 2026:
- Contributors need to feel welcome, not judged
- Maintainers need to feel appreciated, not taken for granted
- Users need to feel confident investing time and trust in Joomla
Fargun helps create that environment.
Communities rarely fail because of technical debt alone. They fail when people feel unseen, undervalued, or quietly resented.
A Community Choice
Schadenfreude is easy. It requires no effort and no generosity.
Fargun is harder. It asks us to:
- Check our ego
- Let go of comparison
- Celebrate progress wherever it appears
But Joomla has always been strongest when it chooses collaboration over competition and generosity over gatekeeping.
True fargun takes effort. It requires noticing our reactions and choosing a generous response anyway.
The Ripple Effect
Imagine fargun as a habit:
- More genuine celebration
- Less backbiting
- More focus on growth and support
So as we move through 2026, my hope is simple:
that we practise fargun a little more often.
- In code.
- In conversation.
- In community.
Because when one part of Joomla succeeds, we all do.
Here’s to fargun in 2026. Quiet, deliberate, and quietly revolutionary.
