I is an inside job “The purpose of life is happiness”
link it to a future change of state. We think we will be happy when we make the right amount of money, meet the right per- son, get promoted, pay off our debts, get well, complete our education, or the children grow up-- and so the list goes on. On the other hand, even admitting that we want to be happy makes us feel guilty. Our cultural work ethic looks down on the desire for happiness as superficial and selfish. Then there is the undeniable fact that pain and suffering are inescapable parts of the human condition. Nevertheless, some great leaders of our time are shedding new light on the topic of happiness. Scientist Candace Pert as part of her groundbreaking work in uncovering the biology of emotions says in her book Molecules of Emotion that we are “wired for joy.” The Dalai Lama says that the very purpose of our life is happiness. If we decide to take their words seriously and believe that it is our true nature to be happy, and moreover that it is this very happiness that gives our life meaning, how then can we find and experience this happiness now—and not at some always receding future point?
H According to the 10th anniversary issue of The Art of
Happiness--written by the Dalai lama in collaboration with psychiatrist Howard C Cutler, MD--leading a happy life begins by understanding that happiness is determined more by our state of mind than by conditions, circumstances, or events (at least after basic survival needs are met); and that a sustained state of happiness can be experienced by systematically train- ing the mind and heart. In other words, happiness depends on a shift in perception, and the ability to make this shift depends
appiness is a taboo topic. Even though we frequently wish others happiness, most of us are ambivalent about it. On the one hand, we want to be happy, but usually
Dalai Lama
on having a daily practice that permits us to transform our consciousness and reshape our attitudes and outlook. Recent scientific studies demonstrate clearly the amazing neuroplasticity of the brain, i.e. its ability to change its structure and function in response to internal stimuli. Research studies using Tibetan monks as subjects clearly demonstrate that it is possible through meditation to “train” and reshape the mind just as an athlete can work and train to reshape the body. Brain scans of the monks practicing a “compassion meditation” showed a dramatic increase in high-frequency gamma waves during this meditation as compared to a slight increase in gamma activity for novice meditators. Functional magnetic resonance imaging pinpointed regions of the brain that were active during this meditation. Activity in the left prefrontal cortex, which is the seat of positive emotions such as happiness, dwarfed activity in the right prefrontal area, where negative emotions, depression, rage, and anxiety are located. Given that happiness depends on changing our perspective, and that for those--such as the monks described above--who are willing to adopt a daily practice to sustain this change of perception, the next question for ourselves becomes one of identifying specifically which of our daily habits of perception are blocking our ability to experience happiness? We are called to examine our inner life—the thinking, feeling, and behav- ioral habits—and ask the question: indeed it is true that I am wired for joy, and that happiness is my life purpose, what is it that stands between me and joy and happiness? Tai Chi and Qigong give us a body-mind perspective on
this question. According to Chinese medicine, we have three brains, not one! We have a head brain, a heart brain, and a belly brain—three centers of consciousness. When these three
by Sandy Seeber, LPC
16
NaturalTriad.com
S
H
A
P
P
N
E
S
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56