What brings joy to you? Is happiness a fleeting moment in a day full of chaos, fatigue and non-chalance? Pretty heavy questions aren’t they!
I can say that my quest for happiness has led me to believe that happiness from external stimuli is transient. The moment the stimuli disappears, the resultant happiness disappears along with it. You buy that new jacket that you look so good in, people compliment you(rather the jacket). After a few months when the jacket has lost its sheen, or worse still, when you lose it someplace, you are no longer happy.
You buy a new house and love every inch of it. You protect the house, the paint, the light fittings, the fixture, the fabulous teak bay window, from the smallest scratch possible. One fine day, you have to move out, because you are moving to a new city and happiness goes caput! Happiness from the best accessories, the greatest of achievements, the best relationships – are all fleeting. They may last awhile – a few years, a few decades maybe. But at the end of the day, external happiness is what it is – temporary!
You buy a new house and love every inch of it. You protect the house, the paint, the light fittings, the fixture, the fabulous teak bay window, from the smallest scratch possible. One fine day, you have to move out, because you are moving to a new city and happiness goes caput! Happiness from the best accessories, the greatest of achievements, the best relationships – are all fleeting. They may last awhile – a few years, a few decades maybe. But at the end of the day, external happiness is what it is – temporary!
But internal happiness on the other hand, the one that comes from within, the one that is not ephemeral, the one that will stick with us even when the going gets rough- is remarkably different! The key to internal happiness lies in our mind.
So control your mind, programme it to be happy and you are done! Happiness is yours for the taking!Sounds easy? On the contrary,it is probably the most difficult thing attempted by man. The great warrior Arjuna in Bhagavad Gita says that controlling the mind is impossible and Lord Krishna concurs when he says, that taming the mind is akin to taming the wind.
So control your mind, programme it to be happy and you are done! Happiness is yours for the taking!Sounds easy? On the contrary,it is probably the most difficult thing attempted by man. The great warrior Arjuna in Bhagavad Gita says that controlling the mind is impossible and Lord Krishna concurs when he says, that taming the mind is akin to taming the wind.
Every time I find my mind thinking undesirable thoughts – fear, anger and so on, I try to stop the thought process on its tracks. How do you stop thinking a certain thought? By watching the mind. By detaching from it. The mind loathes being watched. Go on, try it! Watch your mind carefully and suddenly you find that thoughts no longer make a beeline into that cramped up cerebral space like they always do!
Another easy technique that I follow is to take a moment and watch my breath. Watch your breath -as you inhale and exhale. Concentrate on the breath as you inhale and the stomach rises. Concentrate on your breath as you exhale and the stomach falls. Repeat this process five times.You will find that the thought has broken free from the rut. You are free to think something nice and happy- afresh. Resort to this process whenever you feel dejected, angry or even afraid. Repeat as often as you can, as frequently as possible and you will notice a remarkable change in your attitude, in your feelings. You will find a general sense of well-being taking over.
You will also find then that happiness need not necessarily be a destination at the end of the road. It can be a beautiful jouney.
Here’s wishing everyone true, lasting happiness. Always.
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