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24 EASTERN HORIZON | TEACHINGS

His Holiness the Dalai Lama enjoying a moment of laughter during his conversation with Archbishop Desmond Tutu on joy at his residence in
Dharamsala, HP, India in April of 2015. (Photo by Tenzin Choejor/OHHDL)

The Causes of Happiness the mind a little dull. I thought at that time that that’s

not good. On one side, you have a little calmness of
Now, what are the causes of happiness? I think that mind, but on the other side, if the effect is dullness, this
since this body element goes well with a calm mind, is no good. I prefer another way. I prefer having the
not with a disturbed mind, therefore a calm mind is intelligence fully functional and attentive and alert, but
very important. It doesn’t matter our physical situation, not disturbed. Undisturbed mental calmness is best.
mental calmness is most important. So, how can we
bring about a calm mind? For this, compassionate human affection is really
important: the more compassionate our mind is, the
Now, to get rid of all problems, that would be better our brain functions. If our mind develops fear
impractical; and to make the mind dull and forget about and anger, then when that happens, our brain functions
our problems, that doesn’t work either. We have to look more poorly. On one occasion I met a scientist who
clearly at our problems and deal with them, but at the was over eighty years old. He gave me one of his
same time keep a calm mind so that we have a realistic books. I think it was called We Are Prisoners of Anger,
attitude and we are able to treat them well, deal with something like that. While discussing his experience, he
them well. said that when we develop anger toward an object, the
object appears very negatively. But ninety per cent of
As for those who take tranquillizers – well, I have no that negativeness is in our mental projection. This was
experience. I don’t know if, at the time when people from his own experience.
take tranquillizers, their intelligence is sharp or dull;
I have to ask. For example, in 1959, when I was in Buddhism says the same. When negative emotion
Mussoorie, my mother or maybe it was somebody develops, we can’t see reality. When we need to make
else was disturbed and had a lot of anxiety: the sleep a decision and the mind is dominated by anger; then
was disturbed. The doctor explained that there were chances are, we will make the wrong decision. No one
some drugs that they could take, but this would make wants to make a wrong decision, but at that moment,