The Art of Happiness

by the Dalai Lama

ISBN: 978 0 7336 0858 2

From the rear cover -

"Whether one believes in religion of not, whether one believes in this religion or that religion, the very purpose of our lives is happiness, the very motion of our life is toward happiness."

- The Dalai Lama

The world's greatest spiritual leader teams up with a psychiatrist to share, for the first time, how he achieved his hard-won serenity and how we can find the same inner peace.

Through meditaions, stories, and the meeting of Buddhism and psychology, the Dalai Lama shows us how to defeat day-to-day depression, anxiety, anger, jealousy or just an ordinary bad mood. He discusses relationships, health, family and work to illustrate how to ride through life's obstacles on a deep and abiding source of inner peace. Based on 2500 years of Buddhist meditations and a healthy dose of common sense, The Art of Happiness is a book that crosses the boundaries of traditions to help readers with the difficulties common to all human beings.

Page 3 -

As my contact with the Dalai Lama grew over the next several years, I gradually came to appreciate his many unique qualities. He has a penetrating intelligence, but without artifice; a kindness, but without excessive sentimentality; great humour, but without frivolousness; and, as many have discovered, the ability to inspire rather than awe.

Over time I became convinced that the Dalai Lama had learned how to live with a sense of fulfilment and a degree of serenity that I had never seen in other people. I was determined to identify the principles that enabled him to achieve this.

Page 14 -

From that standpoint, the claim that there was a clearly defined path to happiness seemed like quite a radical idea

... may type out more of this section ... or maybe not ... you know me :)

Page 37 -

... the message is clear: we don't need more money, we don't need greater success or fame, we don't need the perfect body or even the perfect mate - right now, at this very moment, we have a mind which is all the basic equipment we need to achieve complete happiness.

Page 42 -

You shouldn't have the notion, for instance, that there is just one key, a secret, and if you can get that right, then everything will be okay. It is similar to taking prower care of the physcal body. You need a variety of vitamins and nutrients, not just one or two. In the same way, in order to achieve happiness you need a variety of approaches and methods to deal with and overcome th varied and complex negative mental states ...

Page 46 -

... bringing about discipline in one's mind is the essence of the Buddha's teaching

Page 52 -

Now, we are made to seek happiness. And it is clear that feelings of love, closeness and compassion bring happiness. I believe that every one of us has the basis to be happy, to access the warm and compassionate states of mind that bring happiness," the Dalai Lama asserted. "In fact, it is one of my fundamental beliefs that not only do we inherently possess the potential for compassion but I believe that the basic underlying nature of human beings is gentleness

Page 69 -

"My basic belief is that you first need to realize the uselfulness of compassion," he said with a tone of conviction. "That's the key factor. Once you accept the fact that compassion is not something chilish or sentimental, once you relaize that compassion is something really worthwhile, realize its deeper value, then you immediately develop an attraction toward it, a willingness 2 cultivate it." ...

{One chapter starts with a definition of compassion - remind me 2 type that up ...}

Page 113 -

"Given the importance that Buddhism places on compassion as a central part of one's spiritual development," I asked, "can you more clearly define what you mean by compassion?"

The Dalai Lama replied, "Compassion can be roughly defined in terms of a state of mind that is nonviolent, nonharming and nonaggressive. It is a mental attitude based on the wish for others to be free of their suffering and is associated with a sense of commitment, responsibility and respect towards the other."

May type more of this section later on ...

Page 115 -

Rather, genuine compassion is based on the rationale that all human beings have an innate desire 2 be happy and overcome suffering, just like myself.

Page 126 -

In recent years there have been many studies that support the idea that developing compassion and altruism has a positive impact on our physical and emotional health.

Page 130 -

But there was something quite stirring about sitting among the assembly that morning. I imagine that even the most-hardened individual could not help being moved when surrounded by fifteen hundred people, every one of them holding the thought of compassion in their minds. After a few minutes, the Dalai Lama broke into a low Tibetan chant, his voice deep, melodic gently breaking and falling in tones that soothed, comforted.

Page 136 -

In our daily lives, problems are bound to arise. The biggest problems in our lives are the ones we inevitably have to face like old age, illlness and death. Trying to avoid our problems or simply not thinking about them may provide temporary relief, but I think there is a better approach ...

May type up more of this section later ...

This chapter discusses the possiblity of liberation from suffering

Page 137 -

"That's why I beleive it can be useful to prpepare yourself ahead of time by familiarising yourself with the kinds of suffering you may encounter

Page 146 -

Although pain and sufering are experienced by all human beings, I have often felt that those bought up in some Eastern cultures appear to have a greater acceptance and tolerance of suffering.

Page 154 -

Raising this issue with the Dalai Lama one morning, I asked, "How can we deal with the feeling of unfairness that so often seems to torture us when problems arise?"

The Dalai Lama replied, "There may be a variety of ways that one might deal with the feeling that one's suffering is unfair. I have already spoken of the importance of accepting suffering as a natural fact of human existence. And I think that in some ways Tibetans migh be in a better position to accept the reality of these difficult situations, because they will say, 'Maybe it is because of my karma in the past.'"

May type more of this section - it discusses karma in a littl bit more detail

Page 162 -

The possibility of a human being's wholly accepting herself or himself, complete with limitations, foibles, and lapses of judgement ...

Page 175 -

"For instance, you mihgt reflect on the fact that when you are really angry at someone you tend to perceive them as having 100 percent negative qualities. Just as when you are strongly attracted to someone the tendency is to see them as having 100 percent positive qualities ..."

Page 178 -

Having challenged our characteristic attitude towards one's enemy, the Dalai Lama went on to offer an alternative way of viewing one's enemy, a new perspective that could have a revolutionary impact on one's life.

In this section, the Dalai Lama says we should be grateful to our enmemies for giving us the opportunity 2 practice patience

Page

Page 187 -

The ultimate benefit of a supple mind is that it allows us to embrace all of life - to be fully alive and human.

Page 191 -

Without cultivating a pliant mind our outlook becomes brittle and our relationship to the world becomes characterised by fear. But by adopting a flexible, malleable approach to life, we can maintain our composure even in the most restless and turbulent conditions. It is through our efforts to acheive a flexible mind that we can nurture the resiliency of the human spirit.

Page 206 -

"When you are aware of your pain and suffering, it helps you to develop your capacity for empathy, the capacity that allows you to relate to other people's feelings and suffering. This enhances your capacity for compassion towards others.

The Dalai Lama discusses the practice of Tonglen

Page 206 -

By reflecting on suffering in the quieter moments of our lives, when things are relatively stable and going well, we may often discover a deeper value and meaning in our suffering.

Page 214 -

When engaging in this practice it is sometimes helpful to begin by first imagining your own future suffering and, with an attitude of compassion, take your own future suffering upon yourself right now with the sincere wish of freeing yourself from all future suffering. After you gain some practice in generating a compassionate state of mind towards yourself, you can then expand the process to include taking on the suffering of others.

Page 224 -

The Dalai Lama's words rang true, yet as a psychiatrist, I was acutely aware of how strongly entrenched some negative behaviours and ways of thinking could become, how difficult it was for some people to change.

Page 225 -

"Now, for example, in my own case, I think if I compare my normal state of mind today to ,say, twenty or thirty years ago, there's a big difference. But this difference I came to step by step. I started 2 learn Buddhism around the age of five or six, but at that time I had no interest in Buddhist teachings," he laughed, "although I was called the highest reincarnation. I think it wasn't until I was around sixteen years old that I really began to have some serious feeling about Buddhism. And i tried to start serious practice. Then, over the course of many years, I began to develop a deep appreciation of Buddhist principles and practice, which initially seemed so impossible and almost unnatural, became much more natural and easy to relate to.

Page 232 -

Holding full Enlightenment as your ideal of achievement is not an extreme. But expecting to achieve it quickly, here and now, becomes an extreme.

Page 240 -

So it is on these three premises that Buddhism accepts that the mental and emotional afflictions ultimately can be eliminated through deliberately cultivating antidotal forces like love, compassion, tolerance, and forgiveness and through various practices such as meditation

Page 241 -

Let's say that one accepts the possibilty of eliminating one's negative emotions, and even begins to take steps in that direction. From our discussions, however, I sense that it would take tremendous effortto eradicate this dark side - tremendous study, contemplation, constant application of antidotal factors, intensive meditation practices and so on. That might be approprioate for a monk or someone who can devote a lot of time and attention to these practices. But what about an ordinary person with a family and so on, who may not have the time or opportunity to practice these intensive techniques? For them, wouldn't it be more appropriate for them to somply try to control their afflictive emotions, to learn to live with them and manage them properly, rathe than try to completely eradicate them?

Page 242 -

The Dalai Lama's method for achieving happiness is based on the revolutionary idea that negative mental states are not an intrinsic part of our minds; they are transient obstacles that obstruct the expression of our underlying natural state of joy and hapiness.

... may type more of this section later on ... if I fel like it :)

Page 259 -

An end result, or a product of patience and tolerance, is forgiveness. When you are truly patient and tolerant, then forgiveness comes naturally

The Dalai Lama mentions a couple of meditations about anger

Page 265 -

As the Dalai Lama has emphasised, cultivating compassion and deepening our connection with others can promote goood mental hygiene and help combat anxiety states

Page 271 -

"In my case, people also come to me for help. Many are looking for miracles, for miraculous cures, and so on. I can't help everybody."

Page 272 -

"If you develop a pure and sincere motivation, if you are motivated by a wish to help on the basis of kindness, compassion and respect, then you can carry on any kind of work, in any field, and function more effectively with less fear or worry, not being afraid of what others think, or whether you will ultimately be sucessful in reaching your goal."

Page 273 -

In the Dalai Lama's system for training the mind and achieving happiness, The closer one gets to being motivated by altruism, the more fearless one becomes in the face of even extremely anxiety-producing circumstances.

Page 282 -

Over the years, I have often witnessed the Dalai Lama's illustrating how self-coinfidence comes from being honest and straightforward about one's abilities. It came as quite a surprise to me when I first heard him say in front of a large audiencesimply "I don't know" in response 2 a question. Unlike what I was used to with academic lecturers, or those who set themselves up as authorities, he admitted his lack of knowledge without embarrrasment, qualifying statements or attempting to appear that he knew something by skirting the issue.

Page 287 -

For those emgaged in Buddhist practice, the antidote to self-hatred would be to reflect on the fact that all beings, including oneself, have Buddha nature - the seed or potential for perfection, full Enlightenment - no matter how weak or poor or deprived one's current situation may be.

Page 289 -

Reminding ourselves of the great qualities we share with all human beings acts to neutralize the impulse to think we're bad or undeserving. Many Tibetans do this as a daily meditation practice. Perhaps that's the reason why in Tibetan culture self-hatred never took hold.

Page 293 -

The art of happiness has many components. As we've seen it begins by developing an understanding of the truest sources of happiness and settin our priorities in life based on the cultivation of those sources. It involves an inner discipline, a gradual process of rooting out destructive mental states and replacing them with positive, constructive states of mind. In identifying the factors that lead to a full and satisfying life, we conclude with a discussion of the final component - spirituality.

Page 295 -

Now, for example, as a Buddhist monk, I find Buddhism to be most suitable. So, for myself, I've found that Buddhism is best. But that does not mean Buddhism is best for everyone. If I believed that Buddhism was best for everyone, that would be foolish, because different people have different mental dispositions. So the variety of people calls for a variety of religions. The purpose of religion is to benefit people, and I think that if we had only one religion, after a while it would cease to benefit many people.

May type out more of this section ...

Page 296 -

"I believe that one can cultivate a deep respect for all the different religious traditions. One reason to respect these other traditions is that all of these traditions can provide an ethical framework which can govern one's behaviour and have positive effects.

... and the way to demonstrate one's love of God, the God who created you, is by showing love and compassion to one's fellow human beings."

"I think that one way of strengthening that mutual respect is through closer contact between those of different religious faiths - personal contact."

Page 298 -

The Dalai Lama answered, "I think prayer is, for the most part, a simple daily reminder of your deeply held principles and convictions. I, myself, recite certain Buddhist verses every morning."

May get around 2 typing more of this later ...

Page 299 -

"However, if you understand spiritual practice in its true sense, then you can use all twenty-four hours of your day for your practice. True spirituality is a mental attitude that you can practice at any time."

Page 301 -

The Dalai Lama mentions the Bodhisattva vow in this section

Page 303 -

Thus the Dalai Lama added the final ingredient of a happier life - the spiritual dimension. Through the teachings of the Buddha, the Dalai Lama and many others have found a meaningful framework that enables them to endure and even transcend the pain and suffering that life brings."

Page 304 -

The world is filled with such examples of the ways in which religious faith offers concrete help in times of trouble.

Page 308 -

Here I think that education is crucial - instilling in people a sense that compasssion, kindness and so on are the basic good qualities of human beings, not just a matter of religious subjects. I think earlier we spoke at greater length about the prime importance of human warmth, affection and compassion in people's physical health, happiness, and peace of mind.

Page 311

The Dalai Lama gives a meditation on the nature of the mind in this section

Page 314 -

"Many of the truly profound meditative experiences must come on the basis of this kind of stillness of the mind ... Oh," the Dalai Lama laughed, "I should warn you that in this kind of meditation, since there is no specific object to focus on, there is a danger of falling asleep."

Page 312 -

"So, today, let us meditate on nonconceptuality. This is not a mere state of dullness, or a blanked-out state of mind. Rather, waht you should do is, first of all, generate the determination that 'I will maintain a state without conceptual thought' ..."

Page

Note: I have only just started this book & may add to these excerpts as I read further. But why not get yourself a copy - Reading off a computer screen can't compare with having a book in your hot little hands and reading it :)

Some Links -

Search 4 the book

Buy the book online

Read all the customer reviews

A search 4 excerpts

More excerpts

Review of the book

If you want others 2 be happy, practice compassion

Leads us here

Mindfulness advice at that site

This small planet is our only home

Now to the Chapter titles ...

Dealing with anger & hatred

Leads us 2 an outline of the book

Methods for turning around anger and for learning a little patience

Transforming suffering

And a few related pages ...

Interview with the great man

His advice 4 the new millenium

My Dalai Lama page

Dalai Lama's little book of wisdom

Building a better world

Quotes by the Dalai Lama

Meditation from the Dalai Lama

The very purpose of religion is to control yourslef, not to criticize others. Rather, we must criticize ourselves. How much am I doing about my anger? About my attachment, about my hatred, about my pride, my jealousy? These are the things which we must check in daily life.

A different kind of love

Others have an equal right 2 happiness

The monk in the lab