Mindful Happiness. A Path to Harmony with Yourself and the World

An Eastern spiritual teacher and his Western student wrote this book for those who feel tired and unhappy, constantly worried or irritated.

The authors describe several of the deepest Buddhist ideas about finding happiness in everyday life, including through meditation. If you’ve started learning Buddhism or are simply learning how to find balance and happiness in daily life, this is the ideal book for immersion.

Everything in it is wonderful: concise and vivid presentation, personal stories from the authors (in some you might recognize yourself), clear explanations. And besides, it’s simply beautiful.

Here are a few thoughts from the book that capture its essence and mood:

We don’t know what we truly need for happiness, and we can’t be grateful for what we already have.

Our mind often wanders—we don’t know how to simply be present in the moment and we constantly get distracted by the past or the future, by pointless and sometimes unkind thoughts. It’s hard to focus even on our breathing.

We experience true happiness when we calm the stream of thoughts, wish happiness to all living beings, and enjoy the very fact of our existence. It isn’t easy, but meditative practices will help you achieve conscious happiness.