Happiness. Everyone wants it. Some get it, others don’t. The Dalai Lama says it’s the main purpose of life. But what is happiness? How do you define it?
Happiness, it seems, means something different to everyone. However, we all agree that it would be a good idea to experience more of it. To me, happiness is a profound felt-sense of being at peace with myself and the world. To you, it might be a deserted tropical beach or a knickerbocker glory.
I am drawn to Buddhist philosophy and science. I have been reading an in-depth report written by leading monk and scientist Matthieu Ricard, which has been prepared in advance of a United Nations summit on happiness and wellbeing.
He discusses the Buddhist perspective on happiness and how he views it as a way of being rather than a gift bestowed on us by good fortune. He offers the example of the Dalai Lama who, despite his profound sadness at the suffering of his fellow Tibetans, is always able to relate to a sense of equanimity and inner peace.
So happiness is a skill we can cultivate, if we are willing to change our minds and stop pinning all our hopes for happiness on the external world. Ricard says: “As influential as external conditions may be, suffering, like wellbeing, is essentially a state of mind. It is the mind that translates good and bad circumstances into happiness or misery.
“The search for happiness is not about looking at life through rose-‐coloured glasses or blinding oneself to the pain and imperfections of the world. It is the purging of mental toxins, such as hatred and compulsive desire and, above all, of ignorance, that poison the mind.”
It’s a long report with plenty of information to digest but in essence, it’s all about cultivating compassion and altruism and moving away from self-centredness. Ricard concludes by saying: “In essence, someone who looks for happiness outside takes everything from the world and someone who cultivates happiness within has something to give to the world.”
Make your mind up to be happy by thinking of others. It’s that simple.
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