The Buddhist master Mingyur Rinpoche is considered the happiest man in the world. He earned this title after having participated in a series of studies conducted at the University of Wisconsin in the US. After studying him, scientists discovered that the activity in his brain that is normally associated with “happiness” was ten times greater than that of the average person.
For Rinpoche, however, happiness itself is not that important. He says that more important than being happy is how we deal with our own minds and what motivates our actions. In his book that was translated into Portuguese – “The Joy of Living – Unlocking the Secret and Science of Happiness” – he delves into the subject with an approach that is both profound and extremely clear. He describes how science and Buddhism are becoming closer to one another in explaining how the mind works and in helping us decipher the secret of happiness.
According to Mingyur Rinpoche, what keeps us from being happy is that in our constant search for happiness we cling to our “I” and that makes us tense. This, in turn, obscures our perception of reality. “To preserve our ‘I,’ we fight against the ‘other’ and in so doing we cultivate anger,” he says. “Scientists say that if you are angry, 99% of your perception is obscured, and only 1% of your mind remains available to perceive what is really happening.”
As time goes on, Rinpoche explains, the brain becomes “molded” and becomes accustomed to feeling anger – and we begin to see the world, constantly, through a filter of mistrust and aversion.
The key is to be able to employ “neuronal flexibility” – the name given by scientists to the capacity of the brain to mold itself – to create more positive habits and reveal our true nature. The best way to do this, he reinforces, following the results shown by the research, is systematic training of the mind and meditation.
In his book, Rinpoche explains different methods of meditation that are part of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, which, for him, is more of a philosophy of life than a religion. Of all of the methods, the one that he emphasizes most is that of compassion, which can be summarized in the motto: put the happiness of others ahead of your own!
He explains, “It’s important not to use moments of happiness to reinforce your ego, but to use the power of your mind to help others.” The motive? Aside from creating what he calls “a circle of goodness,” while helping others, you train your own mind to remain free of attachment to ego. This leaves the mind predisposed to act more freely, and, with this, the activity in the area of the brain associated with happiness (the left frontal section) increases, bringing with it the sensation of happiness.
Rinpoche reinforces that whatever meditation method is used should be cultivated along with wisdom. “We need wisdom to have a broader perspective of reality, understand the situations that arise in our lives, and know what is the best posture to take.”
Then, Rinpoche says, we will be able to reach a state of recognition of our own true nature – the so-called “enlightened state.” According to him, this nature of perfection is ever-present, whether or not we are aware of it. The difference is that, by cultivating the different meditation methods and wisdom, he affirms, we will have this recognition. So, as he states in his book, “things that you never dreamed were possible begin to happen.” Like being happy, for example…
Meditation – How to transform your habitual sadness into happiness
During the studies at the University of Wisconsin, Rinpoche’s brain was meticulously monitored. It was observed that the neuronal activity associated with happiness peaked while Rinpoche was meditating. During these periods, the indices were 1,000% greater than a person who did not meditate.
Meditation, the researchers concluded, was the key to self-recognition and control of one’s own mind – and, consequently, the most important tool to “transform” one’s reality.
To follow, Mingyur Rinpoche teaches three meditation methods that can be practiced on a daily basis.
Rinpoche says, that, in order to meditate, it is necessary be conscious of one’s physical posture, in that it is necessary to support the proper functioning of the mind. In simple terms, he suggests that you keep your spine erect and the rest of your body relaxed. He also recommends short sections during the course of the day – rather than one long session. In this way, you will have greater chances of integrating the habit of “relaxing the mind” during the course of your everyday activities.
The first method is known as “Shamata – the meditation to make calmness persist.” In this meditation, we use objects, emotions or sensations as the support to calm the mind. We can use a sound, for example. You focus on this sound in order to calm your agitated mind, your mind rests in this sound. We can also use sadness as a support. You face it, pay attention to it, accept the sadness, let your mind rest in this feeling. Then, over time, you will see that the sadness loses strength and becomes a support in avoiding distraction and helps you cultivate a more alert mind.
The second method is called “Meditation of loving and compassionate generosity.” You use your sadness to remind you that other people also feel the same way, this helps you understand others. There is a practice in this category called “sending and receiving” (Tonglen, in Tibetan). You sit with your spine erect and inhale all of the suffering and sadness of all beings. As you exhale, you send all beings all of your well-being and happiness. This will help you, as the cause of your sadness, most of the time, is your own rigid and tense mind that is full of attachment. This compassion becomes an antidote against this attachment and rigidity. It is for this reason that compassion is so powerful and effective to help remedy our own sadness.
The third method is “Recognition of Emptiness.” You practice this method by examining profoundly the essence of your sadness and depression. Sadness is merely one of the manifestations of your perfect mind. With experience in this practice, you will have an understanding that sadness and perfect nature are the union of clarity and emptiness. This method is the most difficult of the three and requires practice. For those who are just beginning, ideally, it is better to focus on the first two methods.
Interview
Mingyur Rinpoche gave this interview during the break at the teachings that he gave in São Paulo in 2007, for a group of Buddhist students.
Rinpoche, you are considered the happiest man in the world. Are you ever sad?
R: I am always sad (he said, smiling). When I was young, I had many emotional problems. From 7 to 13 years of age, I used to have panic attacks and it was really difficult. But, I applied the meditation techniques I had learned. Once, I sat in my room for three days and used the panic I felt as a support for my meditation and… it went away, leaving my mind stable. Today, when I have a negative emotion, my meditation becomes clearer and stronger. What is most difficult is when everything is ok, without difficulties. Then, my mind wanders, without focus.
People often think that they need to meditate in order to free themselves from their problems.
R: It is important to understand that fighting against negative emotions will not make them disappear. We have to understand that everything is fine the way it is, good or bad. You can use the difficult situations from your life as a support for your meditation – for example, your anxiety can be used as a support by transforming it into an object of observation of your mind during meditation. Behind the anxiety is an alert state, full of contentment. The anxiety is merely on the surface. If you know how to use the difficult moments in your life, they become your allies.
In what way do our families and surroundings affect our ability to achieve happiness?
R: Having these supports are very important, especially when we are young. To be able to offer this support is even better, especially for parents, who can offer love to their children.
It is very important to cultivate and have good relationships. For this, the meditation of loving and compassionate generosity (see above) is very helpful. Using this method, you can be supportive of your family and vice versa. Everyone begins to collaborate and what is created is what I call “the circle of goodness.” However, if you cultivate aggressiveness and competition, if you have a mind that always needs to win and see others lose, you will have great difficulties.
But, absolute happiness does not depend on external factors. It exists, naturally, within you and is 100% unchangeable. If you cultivate this happiness and the external factors are favorable, you can benefit further and then help all those around you. If you focus on temporary happiness, depending on external factors, like family, society, or perfect friends, then, you will be disappointed.
You speak about the “Circle of Goodness.” In Brazil, how can we use this “circle of goodness” to control violence?
R: Before anything else, we need to understand that by using violence we always wind up losing. You may win, but, this is only temporary. You can look at historical examples, like Hitler. He had tremendous power, many followers, and a gigantic army. In the end, he committed suicide. This was the end result of violence.
Non-violence has much more power than violence. Look at the example of Gandhi.
You need to apply the practice of “loving and compassionate generosity” and remember the suffering that violence causes. Imagine what you would feel if someone pointed a gun at you. You would not like that at all. The same is true of everyone else, no one likes it. Apply this method, open your heart to relate with others.
Try to think this way about other actions: if you steal money, you will live with the fear that you will lose what you have and be put in prison… You will start only to think about money and will stop thinking about others.
“Self-esteem” has been promoted to nearly cult status, in terms of the power of the mind. Films like “The Secret” reinforce this perspective. What do you think?
R: There is something strange in this idea. The message winds up being that even if you are doing something wrong you should believe that you will succeed. People today begin to believe that they can do whatever they want. In certain respects, this is very good, as it allows people to get past a certain lack of self-confidence. This problem of a lack of self-confidence is very common today. But, this winds up getting exaggerated and these people arrive at the other extreme.
You lose compassion, lose empathy for others and everything becomes about what you want… Clearly, you need an objective to grow. But, in Buddhism, we learn that we cannot take the objective so seriously. We need to cultivate relaxation. It serves no purpose to be tense, thinking only about the results. You need to be diligent and relaxed at the same time. If your mind is tense, everything becomes impossible and any small difficulty discourages you. The next day, you cannot even get out of bed, you are discouraged. Balance is more important than reaching objectives, achieving things.
Do you need to be religious to meditate? Or can we meditate following general instructions to calm the mind, for example?
R.: Meditation can be very basic, like “Shamata” (mentioned above). In this case, it’s not necessary to be associated with any religion. But, if you want to delve more deeply, a spiritual path will be very helpful, because of other related methods. But, I say that Buddhism, for example, is not a religion. It is a way to live your life, a philosophy.
Have the researchers started to meditate after observing the impressive results of your tests?
R.: Yes, they have become great meditators (laughing).
And have they started to consider Buddhism?
R.: Ha ha… I didn’t ask.
(By Marcelo Guerreiro - published by 'Revista Trip')
