THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH US!

For once, a relatively short post.

We all want to be happy, but most of us regularly engage in certain self-defeating behaviour (including self-sabotaging subconscious programming) that prevents us from being happy ... as well as from seeing things-as-they-really-are.

I recently came across this gem from the Indian mystic and spiritual leader Maharaj Charan Singh [pictured left]:

‘There is something wrong with us. We never want to be happy at the present moment. Either we are worried about what we have done or about what is going to happen to us. We don’t want to make the best use of the present moment. If we make this moment happy, our past automatically becomes happy, and we have no time to worry about the future. So we must take life as it comes and spend it happily. Every moment should be spent happily. …’

Dr Emmet Fox [pictured right], the famous New Thought minister, lecturer, and author, made a similar point when he wrote:

‘Has it ever occurred to you that the only time you ever have is the present moment? … What that means is that you can only live in the present. It means you can only act in the present. It means you can only experience in the present. Above all, it means that the only thing you have to heal is the present thought. … All that you can know is your present thought, and all that you can experience is the outer expression of all the thoughts and beliefs that you are holding at the present time. 

'What you call the past can only be your memory of the past. The seeming consequences of past events, be they good or bad, are still but the expression of your present state of mind (including, of course, the subconscious). What are all the future things that you may be planning, or things that you may be dreading? All this is still but a present state of mind. This is the real meaning of the traditional phrase, "The Eternal Now." The only joy you can experience is the joy you experience now. A happy memory is a present joy. The only pain you can experience is the pain of the present moment. Sad memories are present pain. Get the present moment right. …’

There is no 'way,' as such, to happiness; rather, happiness is the way. Things do not 'make' you happy. Happiness depends upon 'no-thing,' and 'no-thing-ness'---the latter being a munificent state of consciousness---is synonymous with happiness, peace of mind, and serenity. So, choose to be happy---now! (Yes, it is a choice.) In this very present moment. Make the most of the present moment---and make every moment count! If you do that properly, your past, as well as any fears you might hold about the future, will disappear---instantaneously! Forever! Make a decision to do only this---heal the present thought. Get that right. Get the present moment right.

That’s all you have to do. Simple, isn't it? Well, get to 'it.'

THE POWER OF PRACTICAL MINDFULNESS

What good is mindfulness if it doesn’t make any difference in one’s practical living? In the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous it is written, ‘The spiritual life is not a theory. We have to live it.’ Yes, one day at a time.

Here are 10 'commandments' for making mindfulness a practical reality in one’s daily life:

1. Live one day at a time ... and one moment at a time. Most of our problems arise because we try to do more than that. All religions and spiritual philosophies teach the importance of living one day at a time ... indeed, one moment at a time. It is the only sensible way to live. Remember, at this very moment you are creating your tomorrow.

2. Do one thing at a time ... and forget about ‘multitasking’. Follow the advice of Saint Paul who said, ‘This one thing I do’ (Phil 3:13 [KJV]). Zen says the same thing. When you’re washing the dishes, just wash the dishes. Do nothing else. Think of nothing else. Just wash the dishes. Ditto when you’re eating, walking, etc. It’s that simple! Now, take a look at the picture of the woman (pictured immediately below). With her multiple arms and hands she looks like a modern day Ganesha! Pitiful! Just like so many of us. Despite what you may have been told, the brain can only ‘think’ one thought at any given moment in time, and can only handle one cognitive function at a time. So-called ‘multitasking’ is nothing other than ‘switch-tasking’, that is, toggling between one task and another ... each time with a startup cost. Multitasking makes us feel efficient but actually slows down our thinking, erodes our attention, and makes us more stressed out, depressed and less able to connect with others.

3. Be ever mindful of your thoughts and feelings. Note, especially, any negative thoughts or feelings of anger, hostility or resentment. Don’t identify with those thoughts and feelings. See them for what they really are – a passing stream which you merely observe ... and observation itself is an instrument of change. Don't judge or condemn yourself for the presence of any such thoughts or feelings. Simply note what is going on, and gain insight into what is happening in, and as, you. Do not mechanically go along with negative thoughts and feelings that arise. Impersonalize those thoughts and feelings ('There is anger,' as opposed to 'I am angry.') By bringing misery and anguish up to full awareness, you destroy their supposed 'power' over you ... for awareness brings understanding.

4. Practise being relaxed throughout the day. Take a few seconds every few minutes to be inwardly still. Mindfully note any tension which may have developed in your mind or body. Let that tension flow away. Imagine it passing down through your body, through your feet, and right into the ground or floor. Sprinkle one-minute periods of calm and quiet throughout your day ... and prefer quietness and silence to noise! Inhale and exhale three long, deep breaths at regular intervals throughout the day. Relax the mind by imagination and creative visualization. Mentally ‘take a trip’ ... but not when, say, you are driving a motor vehicle or operating heavy machinery!

5. Practise emptying the mind at regular intervals throughout the day. Simply let go of all negative thoughts and feelings. Say to yourself, ‘I am now emptying my mind of all anxiety [or fear/anger/resentment, etc].’ Drain the mind of all impure thinking, and do not carry the day into the night. Do not identify with anything. You will cease to suffer when you refuse to identify with anything negative. Remember this – insight and understanding, combined with a sincere desire for positive change, destroy painful negatives.

6. Meditate for at least 15 minutes at least once during the day. (I find first thing in the morning and later in the evening best for me, but do what works best for you. As the Buddha said when explaining to the Kalama tribespeople what was his authority, ‘Let experience be your guru. If what I say accords with that, accept it, if not, discard it.’)

7. Accept the inevitable. Shit happens. Life is hard, and often unfair. Certain inevitabilities occur in human experience, and those who overcome adversity have generally learned how to get along with the inevitable.

8. Choose to be happy. Yes, happiness, which is formless, is a choice. As my mentor Dr Norman Vincent Peale often said, we are all in the ‘manufacturing’ business, that is, we manufacture either our own happiness or our own unhappiness by the thoughts we habitually think ... regardless of what happens to us! And never forget this spiritual truth – it is impossible to be unhappy in the present moment, for all unhappiness is rooted in either the past (in the form of memories) or the future (in the form of anticipations and fears). In the words of Alan Watts, 'all ego-centric action has an eye to the past or the future'. If you live completely in the present moment, 'letting the past and the future drop out of mind', the ego will drop away with them. Hence, mindfulness is the way to freedom (that is, happiness).

9. Get your mind off yourself. Many of our problems ‘die from neglect’ when we focus on others rather than ourselves. Self-centredness, self-obsession, self-absorption – so many maladies of mind and body result from these things! Learn from the Buddha. There is no ‘self’, so why give this damn imaginary thing so much power over the person you are? Get outside your self. Get out of your own way ... for your own good. In the words of Vernon Howard, 'Life is real only where you are.'

10. Never forget that all things pass. Yes, everything is impermanent, including you. Very few people on their deathbed wish they had spent more time at the office. Life is short. Seize the day!

(This previous post of mine sets out a simple form of mindfulness sitting meditation.)

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MAKING AUSTRALIA HAPPY ... MINDFULLY AND OTHERWISE

“Eight volunteers. Three experts. Eight weeks. One vision.”

Last night I watched the first episode Making Australia Happy on ABC-1 ... and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Here’s the link to the first episode.

For the first time ever, in Making Australia Happy the latest and most fascinating research from the science of happiness has been compiled, consolidated and taken for a test drive on the suburban streets of Sydney. Three of Australia’s leading experts have agreed to “take” eight people from what is said to be "Australia's unhappiest area" - Marrickville, in the Sydney metropolitan area - and “give” them the necessary living tools to empower them to become happier.

As Dr Norman Vincent Peale used to say, we are all in the "manufacturing" business ... each of us, each day, manufactures our own happiness or unhappiness as the case may be. This TV program, along with other writings, talks about the "science of happiness". To me, it's all about "altered attitudes" and "choices" ... no matter what happens to us. Easier said than done, of course.

The eight volunteers, from all different walks of life, all live within the Marrickville area but were unknown to each other prior to being selected for the program. Individually and collectively, these eight people represent a range of ages, backgrounds and life circumstances. What they share in common was the desire to get happy. After screening for clinical depression and mental health issues, the producers selected eight individuals who were "relatively unhappy but ready for change".

Heading up the “team of experts” is Dr Tony Grant, who is an academic and a practitioner and international pioneer in the fields of coaching psychology and positive psychology. he makes the interesting point that an "attitude of gratitude" - familiar to those involved in Twelve Step programs - has been shown to have lasting psychophysiological effects for up to 6 months. Amazing! So, be grateful ... again, no matter what happens.

Then there’s Dr Russ Harris, a Mindfulness expert and the author of the international bestseller The Happiness Trap.

Finally, there is physiotherapist and mind-body specialist Anna-Louise Bouvier. She’s there to attend to the bio-physical needs of the volunteers.

After explaining what Mindfulness is - “paying attention with openness, curiosity and flexibility” was the description given - Dr Russ Harris engaged the eight volunteers in two Mindfulness exercises. The first was “the sultana bit” ... sounds, at first, like the old burlesque routine known as “the lemon bit”, but it's altogether different. You take just one a sultana and look, smell, touch, feel, fondle, listen (!), taste, etc, the sultana for 5 minutes, before ultimately swallowing the sultana.

For those familiar with the writings of the celebrated Zen master and author Thich Nhat Hanh, he, long ago, recommended that you put just one raisin in your mouth and, without doing anything, let it dissolve. Sultana, raisin, orange ... it doesn’t matter.

The sultana exercise was followed by an exercise in Mindful Listening in which volunteers, in pairs, faced each other, taking turns to listen mindfully ... without interruption or commentary ... to each other tell the other person about a happy incident and then a most unhappy incident in their life. All very moving.

I was greatly impressed by the way the volunteers responded to the use of Mindfulness “techniques” (I know I shouldn’t use that word). Mindfulness made a big impact on the way they started to feel about themselves, assisting them to develop empathy and understanding for others as well as learning to stay focused in, and curious about, the present moment.

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