| Yongey Peace Prevails Center 7714 W. Catalina Drive Phoenix, AZ 85033 |
| Under the guidance of Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche |
The Journey Begins
by Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche
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science, a method of exploring your own experience through techniques that enable you to examine your
actions and reaction in a nonjudgmental way, with the view toward recognizing, “Oh, this is how my
mind works. This is what I need to do to experience happiness. This is what I should avoid to avoid
unhappiness.”
At its heart, Buddhism is very practical. It’s about doing things that foster serenity, happiness, and
confidence, and avoid things that provoke anxiety, hopelessness, and fear. The essence of Buddhist
practice is not so much an effort at changing your thoughts or your behavior so that you can become a
better person, but in realizing that no matter what you might think about the circumstances that define
your life, you’re already good, whole, and complete. It’s about recognizing the inherent potential of your
mind. In other words, Buddhism is not so much concerned with getting well as with recognizing that you
are, right here, right now, as whole, as good, as essentially well as you could ever hope to be.
You don’t believe that, do you?
Well, for a long time, neither did I…
… But the best part of all is that no matter how long you meditate, or what technique you use, every
technique of Buddhist meditation ultimately generates compassion, whether we’re aware of it or not.
Whenever you look at your mind, you can’t help but recognize your similarity to those around you.
When you see your own desire to be happy, you can’t avoid seeing the same desire in others, and when
you look clearly at your own fear, anger, or aversion, you can’t help but see that everyone around you
feels the same fear, anger, and aversion. When you look at your own mind, all the imaginary differences
between yourself and others automatically dissolve and the ancient prayer of the Four Immeasurables
becomes as natural and persistent as your own heartbeat:
actions and reaction in a nonjudgmental way, with the view toward recognizing, “Oh, this is how my
mind works. This is what I need to do to experience happiness. This is what I should avoid to avoid
unhappiness.”
At its heart, Buddhism is very practical. It’s about doing things that foster serenity, happiness, and
confidence, and avoid things that provoke anxiety, hopelessness, and fear. The essence of Buddhist
practice is not so much an effort at changing your thoughts or your behavior so that you can become a
better person, but in realizing that no matter what you might think about the circumstances that define
your life, you’re already good, whole, and complete. It’s about recognizing the inherent potential of your
mind. In other words, Buddhism is not so much concerned with getting well as with recognizing that you
are, right here, right now, as whole, as good, as essentially well as you could ever hope to be.
You don’t believe that, do you?
Well, for a long time, neither did I…
… But the best part of all is that no matter how long you meditate, or what technique you use, every
technique of Buddhist meditation ultimately generates compassion, whether we’re aware of it or not.
Whenever you look at your mind, you can’t help but recognize your similarity to those around you.
When you see your own desire to be happy, you can’t avoid seeing the same desire in others, and when
you look clearly at your own fear, anger, or aversion, you can’t help but see that everyone around you
feels the same fear, anger, and aversion. When you look at your own mind, all the imaginary differences
between yourself and others automatically dissolve and the ancient prayer of the Four Immeasurables
becomes as natural and persistent as your own heartbeat:
- May all sentient beings have happiness and the causes of happiness.
May all sentient beings be free from suffering and the causes of suffering.
May all sentient being have joy and the causes of joy.
May all sentient beings remain in great equanimity, free from attachment and aversion.
| Rinpoche selected these first and last pages of his book The Joy of Living as an introduction to his talks for the general public during his 2007 teaching tour. |