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Five practices for Nurturing Happiness

JeroenJeroen Luminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlands Veteran
in Mindfulness

I was pleased to see this article by Thich Nhat Hanh in Lion’s Roar. It’s an excerpt from No Mud, No Lotus, which is a book that I have, and it’s all about transforming suffering through practice. It’s a nice article to read as a refresher.

https://www.lionsroar.com/5-practices-for-nurturing-happiness/

I have a lot of compassion for TNH and what he is going through at the moment, it’s good that he is not forgotten even though he doesn’t do speaking engagements or retreats anymore.

ShoshinpaulysoVastmind

Comments

  • ShoshinShoshin No one in particular Nowhere Special Veteran

    Five practices for Nurturing Happiness

    The five practices- letting go, inviting positive seeds, mindfulness, concentration, and insight.

    INVITING POSITIVE SEEDS
    We each have many kinds of “seeds” lying deep in our consciousness. Those we water >are the ones that sprout, come up into our awareness, and manifest outwardly.

    So in our own consciousness there is hell, and there is also paradise. We are capable of being compassionate, understanding, and joyful. If we pay attention only to the negative things in us, especially the suffering of past hurts, we are wallowing in our sorrows and not getting any positive nourishment. We can practice appropriate attention, watering the wholesome qualities in us by touching the positive things that are always available inside and around us. That is good food for our mind.

    One way of taking care of our suffering is to invite a seed of the opposite nature to come up. As nothing exists without its opposite, if you have a seed of arrogance, you have also a seed of compassion. Every one of us has a seed of compassion. If you practice mindfulness of compassion every day, the seed of compassion in you will become strong. You need only concentrate on it and it will come up as a powerful zone of energy.

    Naturally, when compassion comes up, arrogance goes down. You don’t have to fight it or push it down. We can selectively water the good seeds and refrain from watering the negative seeds. This doesn’t mean we ignore our suffering; it just means that we allow the positive seeds that are naturally there to get attention and nourishment.

    Going against the grain so to speak...I like the approach :)

    It's funny...when it comes to "kindness" ...We all know how a kind act (towards us or from us) makes us feel, yet it can be hard to be kind to those whom we might have taken a dislike to....

    So we must also be kind to our own monkey mind

  • paulysopaulyso usa Veteran

    yes be kind to the self.

  • JeroenJeroen Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter Netherlands Veteran

    @Shoshin said:
    Going against the grain so to speak...I like the approach :)

    It's funny...when it comes to "kindness" ...We all know how a kind act (towards us or from us) makes us feel, yet it can be hard to be kind to those whom we might have taken a dislike to....

    So we must also be kind to our own monkey mind

    Yes that is how it works... you invite another quality to take the place of your negative thoughts, whether it be mindfulness or something else. Often these things come with a little mindful breathing, which calms you down and settles your rhythm.

    In terms of being kind to the monkey mind, it’s one of those areas where in the beginning discipline is good, until a pliant acceptance is achieved.

  • ShoshinShoshin No one in particular Nowhere Special Veteran

    Which reminds me of this..

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