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12 EASTERN HORIZON | TEACHINGS

Why the Buddha Kept us are bound to so many things. We But finally he convinces you to
Meditating believe these things are necessary leave, and an hour or two later, you
for our survival, our security, find yourself in the countryside.
When I was a young monk, I
and our happiness. But many of You see open space. You see the
wondered why the Buddha kept
these things—or more precisely, sky, and you feel the breeze on your
practicing mindfulness and
our beliefs about their utter cheeks. Happiness is born from the
meditation even after he had
necessity—are really obstacles for fact that you could leave the city
already become a buddha. Now I
our joy and happiness. behind. If you hadn’t left, how could
find the answer is plain enough to
you experience that kind of joy? You
see. Happiness is impermanent,
Sometimes you think that having needed to let go.
like everything else. In order for
a certain career, diploma, salary,
happiness to be extended and
house, or partner is crucial for your 2. INVITING POSITIVE SEEDS
renewed, you have to learn how to
happiness. You think you can’t go
feed your happiness. Nothing can We each have many kinds of “seeds”
on without it. Even when you have
survive without food, including lying deep in our consciousness.
achieved that situation, or are with
happiness; your happiness can die if Those we water are the ones that
that person, you continue to suffer.
you don’t know how to nourish it. If sprout, come up into our awareness,
At the same time, you’re still afraid
you cut a flower but you don’t put it and manifest outwardly.
that if you let go of that prize you’ve
in some water, the flower will wilt in
attained, it will be even worse;
a few hours. So in our own consciousness
you will be even more miserable
there is hell, and there is also
without the object you are clinging paradise. We are capable of being
We can condition our to. You can’t live with it, and you compassionate, understanding, and
bodies and minds to can’t live without it. joyful. If we pay attention only to
happiness with the five the negative things in us, especially
practices of letting go, If you come to look deeply into your the suffering of past hurts, we are
inviting positive seeds, fearful attachment, you will realize wallowing in our sorrows and not
mindfulness, concentration, that it is in fact the very obstacle to getting any positive nourishment.
and insight. your joy and happiness. You have We can practice appropriate
the capacity to let it go. Letting go
attention, watering the wholesome
takes a lot of courage sometimes.
qualities in us by touching the
But once you let go, happiness
Even if happiness is already positive things that are always
comes very quickly. You won’t have
manifesting, we have to continue available inside and around us. That
to go around searching for it.
to nourish it. This is sometimes is good food for our mind.
called conditioning, and it’s very
Imagine you’re a city dweller
important. We can condition our One way of taking care of our
taking a weekend trip out to the
bodies and minds to happiness suffering is to invite a seed of
countryside. If you live in a big
with the five practices of letting go, the opposite nature to come up.
metropolis, there’s a lot of noise,
inviting positive seeds, mindfulness, As nothing exists without its
dust, pollution, and odors, but also a
concentration, and insight. opposite, if you have a seed of
lot of opportunities and excitement.
arrogance, you have also a seed of
1. LETTING GO One day, a friend coaxes you into compassion. Every one of us has a
getting away for a couple of days.
seed of compassion. If you practice
The first method of creating joy At first you may say, “I can’t. I have
mindfulness of compassion every
and happiness is to cast off, to too much work. I might miss an
day, the seed of compassion in you
leave behind. There is a kind of joy important call.”
will become strong. You need only
that comes from letting go. Many of
concentrate on it and it will come