Happiness, that fortuitous mix of excitement at your prospects, satisfaction with your choices so far, comfort in your skin no matter where you find yourself, a noticeable absence of anxiety or fear, a safe and sound feeling of belonging here - on the planet, in the universe in general – and a sense that whatever unseen force is generating the whole show, it's smiling benevolently at you – in short, the sensation that you stand in good relation to everyone and everything around you, with all internal and external conditions in order and harmony, (happiness) is your natural birthright. But that doesn't mean you don't have to work for it. Happiness is what happens when the innate pain of existing - the yin and the yang, the pull and the push, the coalescing and dispersal of cells, individual and societies, attachment and separation, momentarily ceases, whether by fluke or intention, where fully present in your body, you momentarily spontaneously transcend the primordial paradox of creativity and destruction inherent in every aspect of life and in every situation, look within and around you. feel yourself to be the king (or queen) of no matter what, take a deep satisfying breath and say or think, now this is damn good. Most days, however, you find some thought-stream or other, with which to torture yourself – it could be worrying about money, workload, personal responsibilities, missing out, being stuck, being cut loose, reputation, general survival prospects – it's the mind's nature to find challenges even where none exist, projecting into the future, invariably causing anxiety – clinging to the past, with regret or nostalgia, causing turgidness of spirit. The antidote to both, consists in taming the mind till it becomes still, both while at rest and in the midst of activity. This involves dedicating a part of it to monitoring distress as it arises. Once acknowledged, rather than exploring and identifying with its psychological causes, though these are interesting, you focus instead on how you're reacting to it physically. You notice which muscle groups are tensing unnecessarily, you relax them, paying special attention to the diaphragm muscle which works the lungs, because once that's moving freely and your breath deepens and decelerates as a result, your mind comes into the present moment, all projection, back or forth in time, instantly ceases - with it, the existential pain and Bob's your uncle, you're happy again.
