Yet happiness comes and goes. The moments you are happy seem to be much less than the moments, you are tired, lonely, depressed, angry, confused, etc.
Now what is happiness?
Looking at my day:
I woke up and meditated. Was I happy? Maybe somehow.
I did some work. Earned some money. Was I happy? Maybe.
I went swimming, had some workout. Was I happy? Maybe.
For dinner I saw a good friend. We played and laughed. Was I happy? I guess so.
Everybody keeps on saying, happiness is NOT
- money/being rich
- a destination but a path
- a characteristic but a decision or a choice
Then some scientists claim that happiness is your good feelings and general satisfaction with life.
Now I believe the following: happiness is a habit !
That is nothing new or special. For example, people suggest to have daily rituals in order to increase the happy feelings. Or there are so called zen habits, like doing good things, helping others etc.
However, if you want to be really happy all the time, even without this rituals, then you have to start somewhere else. It is actually the mind we have to change.
To understand happiness, we have to understand unhappiness. When are we unhappy? Or the better question: why are we unhappy? Something something unwanted happened to us. And the mind reacted with bad feelings.
The crucial fact is the reaction of the mind.
On the other side of the coin, something wanted might happen. Then we react with happy feelings. And that is what we mistake for happiness. Actually, it is just another reaction of the mind.
Now it is getting clear, that real happiness is not just a good feeling. Real happiness is actually something beyond the "normal feelings of happiness". Real happiness is an absence of reaction. Real happiness is peace of mind, an absolute equilibrium. So if we changed the mind, in order to stop to react to input, then there would be real happiness for us. Then one could be happy in every moment of life.
On the other side of the coin, something wanted might happen. Then we react with happy feelings. And that is what we mistake for happiness. Actually, it is just another reaction of the mind.
Now it is getting clear, that real happiness is not just a good feeling. Real happiness is actually something beyond the "normal feelings of happiness". Real happiness is an absence of reaction. Real happiness is peace of mind, an absolute equilibrium. So if we changed the mind, in order to stop to react to input, then there would be real happiness for us. Then one could be happy in every moment of life.
This is the point where meditation comes into play.
Why does meditation makes you happy? Because it actually trains the mind to be in equilibrium. And if one does Vipassana meditation. Then one is even working on changing the habit pattern of the mind.
To understand better check a course with www.dhamma.org ----
No comments:
Post a Comment