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FACE TO FACE | EASTERN HORIZON 47

a few years, and I wanted to see You are trained in analytical taught meditation for 18 years,
for myself if this great Buddhist meditation. Can you explain and over that time, I have found
master really could teach “The Art briefly what it is, and whether it that analytical meditation is often
of Happiness,” as his famous book is similar to the more popularly much easier for beginners to
promises. known mindfulness meditation? practice because it’s quite similar to
listening to a podcast or watching
What struck me most about the Most people know of only one form a TV show: it takes all your
Dalai Lama was that he had gone of meditation, one in which you attention. Yet instead of distraction
through a genocide with the Tibetan focus on a single object—usually or entertainment, the stories and
people—over a million Tibetans your breath—and try to keep your thoughts of analytical meditation
are said to have died because of the concentration on it for as long as bring out our natural virtues like
Chinese invasion. Yet in his talk, the you can. This practice is popularly kindness, patience, generosity, love,
Dalai Lama said that even if we even known as mindfulness. In the compassion, and wisdom.
kill one Chinese person, we make a tradition I was trained in, we call it
hundred enemies; and that we must “stabilizing meditation.” In your recently published book
remain nonviolent in our pursuit for How to Train a Happy Mind
Tibetan autonomy and maintain our However, in Tibetan Buddhism you explained that through
compassion for the Chinese people. there is another form of meditation analytical meditation one can
called “analytical meditation,” achieve happiness. How do you
Despite going through a holocaust, which is almost the opposite of define happiness in the Buddhist
His Holiness didn’t become angry, mindfulness. It is an active form context?
violent, depressed, or vengeful. In of meditation that uses stories,
fact, he was quite cheery: laughing, emotions, and critical thinking Translating the words of Pali,
telling jokes, and imbuing us to actively steer the mind toward Sanskrit, or Tibetan to English can
with extraordinary wisdom over its best qualities. In fact, as I was be difficult, because we don’t have
the course of 5 days’ Buddhist trained, this is the very definition of quite the same concepts embedded
teachings. As soon as I saw him in meditation, “thoughts that train the in western culture. The Buddhist
person, I said to myself, “I want mind toward virtue.” definition of happiness isn’t
what he’s having.” And despite pleasure, it isn’t anything fleeting
not believing in karma, rebirth, A simple way to explain the or temporary that requires external
or other realms of existence, I difference between these two objects, people, or experiences.
began to study Tibetan Buddhist types of meditation is that English words for the Buddhist form
philosophy and meditation. mindfulness calms the mind, of happiness might be “satisfaction,”
while analytical meditation steers “well-being,” or “contentment.” But
the mind—toward good. I have happy is a nice word, and it’s often