Meditation, Single-minded focus & Happiness

[Palani]

Hi Everyone,

 

Apologies for the long online absence.  I just got back and will start the weekly posting to keep the discussions going.  I thank those who have been writing in with their comments or queries.

 

I have attached a newspaper article on the latest research on the mind and how happiness is affected by the lack of focus.  This is in line with the ancient wisdom on meditation to achieve clarity, shamatha and shanti.

 

As I had mentioned during our sessions, there is plenty of science in ancient wisdom that science is only beginning to verify.  We do not always have to rely on faith, we can also use science along the way to satisfy our rational minds - it just might take longer for us to achieve our spiritual realisations when we wait for scientific verification for everything we do but there is nothing wrong with that, too!  I read HH Dalai Lama being quoted as saying that we should analyse the Budda's teachings to see whether they are logical and make sense to us.  If it does, we can use it to make our lives and those of others around us better.  If some things make sene and some things don't, logicaly speaking, it is more likely that we do not understand or appreciate what is being told to us based on our capacity and capability.  So we should strive to learn and understand more rather than reject it outright.  It is better to leave it alone till we are able to know it better in the future. In this way, our spiritual progress is not hampered by doubt but strengthened by our effort (virya or joyous effort - which is the 3rd Paramita out of 6)

 

Happy reading and season's greetings!

 

Tashi Deleg!!