Happy Mind, Happy Life
Published 3:00 am, Friday, September 25, 2015
How is it that we make our life truly happy?
Happiness seems to come and go and be beyond our control. Positive events happen and they make us happy, but only for a short time. Sooner or later, negative events happen and we become unhappy. It seems to us that our happiness thus depends on outer circumstances.
This is definitely what we have been taught in our culture.
"Be successful at work." "Have a good relationship." "The more money you have the more successful you are." "Have the right house, the right car, the right clothes."
It can be a lot of stress trying to do all these things "right" so that we can be happy. As if we are chasing a mirage of happiness through these outer things and then disappointed when we don't find it.
The wonderful thing to realize is that happiness is able to be found − we've just have been looking in the wrong places.
The place to look for happiness that works is within our own mind and actions. We create happiness as we learn to guide our mind and actions into effective paths.
How does this work?
Buddhism teaches that our actions and thoughts create our happiness or difficulties. Every action of body, speech or mind leaves an imprint on our mind and will result in a similar experience for us. "What goes around comes around." Very simple. And it puts us in control of the experiences in our life once we know what to do. Buddhism teaches us what to do to have a happy life.
The essential guideline is to engage in as many positive actions as possible, seeking to have our day filled with action after action that is kind, loving, compassionate and brings benefit to those around us. Not only does this make people around us happy, it also makes our mind happy - as good actions feel good. Our basic nature is good, loving , compassionate, tolerant - all those attributes that contribute to making a better world. Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, our founder of the New Kadampa Tradition (modern Buddhism for modern people) says, "Minds like love and compassion are in accord with reality." So when we act in a loving way, we are acting in accordance with the deeper reality, and bringing happiness to ourselves and others.
Buddhism sometimes calls this loving attitude an attitude if "cherishing others." So lovely - just one thing to remember: cherish others and this creates a happy mind for us and a happy life.