The Positive Psychology Of Meditation Training

I’m excited about a fairly new development in the science of psychology that I believe could revolutionize the way we think about mental health. Unlike traditional psychological models where the emphasis is on eliminating neurosis or abnormalities in a person, positive psychology
takes a new approach and works to promote a person’s positive qualities to encourage the flourishing of the whole person. It falls under a broader category of the science of happiness.

In short, it works on your strengths instead of trying to eliminate your weaknesses. Focusing on what you want instead of what you don’t want. There is very good logic behind this. Just because you eliminate your weaknesses doesn’t mean you will be happy, but if you actively cultivate what researchers have discovered to make people happy, you will find the happiness and well-being you are looking for.

When I first came into contact with positive psychology, I was struck by the similarities with the Buddhist path in which I had been trained. In fact, Buddha summarized his teachings on how to live a good life and overcome suffering by saying:

“Cultivate virtue, eliminate negativity and purify the mind.”

I want to focus on the first piece of advice, which is to cultivate virtue, which is exactly what positive psychologists now recommend. Further similarities can be found in what Buddha described as virtues and in what modern psychologists say now. Qualities like open-mindedness, social connection, patience, mindfulness, and loving-kindness are all on the positive psychology list of what makes people happy and flourishing, and are also virtues that Buddha recommended cultivating as well.

Buddha defined virtue as actions motivated by positive states of mind that produce happiness for oneself and others. Non-virtue then are actions that are motivated by negative states of mind and that cause suffering in yourself and others. He also advised to know well what causes happiness and know well what causes suffering and choose the path that leads to happiness. Seems simple enough.

Of course it’s not that simple. Why? Because of our deeply ingrained habits that do not lead to happiness and are anchored in our behavior. This stems from a fundamental assumption about where we believe happiness comes from. We are conditioned to believe that happiness comes from external events and possessions, but in reality happiness comes from a positive or healthy state of mind and not from having or consuming things.

A new mindfulness-based therapy called Acceptance and commitment therapy
first works on accepting the present moment through mindfulness training, even accepting the inner ‘demons’ without trying to get rid of them and then focusing your full attention on manifesting your values ​​in the present moment.

Meditation training

A key to understanding meditation is found in the Tibetan word for meditation, which is “gompa,” which translates as “to familiarize.” Meditation, then, is a conscious effort to familiarize yourself with virtuous states of mind; positive mental states that promote happiness and undermine negative mood states.

Meditation therefore means becoming familiar with positive states of mind such as mindfulness, loving-kindness, contentment and patience. The more often you sit down and intentionally cultivate these, the happier you will be in your daily life. A great meditation master Sogyal Rinpoche said that meditation is simply the practice of contentment. Feeling good about yourself. Not trying to change anything, but finding the simple joy of just living.

You can really meditate on anything, even negative things. Worrying is meditating on what you don’t want, and this can consume people’s lives and become disabling. Meditation often quickly reveals where we focus our attention. When you sit down to meditate, you become very aware of all the clutter that runs through our minds and occupies our attention. Our attention plays a major role in how we experience reality. What we focus our attention on is exactly what we are experiencing in the moment; Usually this is an unconscious choice due to past associations.

Meditation is learning the skill of controlling our attention so that we can direct it to things that will reduce mental suffering and bring happiness to ourselves and others.

If we can deliberately control your attention, we can choose happiness over mental suffering. Even scientific researchers have discovered that happiness comes from the way we perceive things, rather than from the actual things themselves. ( Ted Talk about where happiness comes from
) We tend to overestimate the happiness of possessions and material success, as well as the suffering that comes from not having those things. Within the Buddhist tradition, this overestimation of the happiness and suffering found in things is called attachment and aversion, and Buddha said that these misconceptions are the main source of suffering in our lives.

The truth is: it is the way we think about something that brings happiness or suffering, and not about the actual situation itself. This is hard to accept, but when you see the truth in that statement, you begin to realize how important meditation is, especially in gaining control over where you focus your attention.

You can literally turn suffering into happiness by training your mind to perceive things differently. When I fully came to know the truth of this, I realized that nothing could really harm me, not even negative karma, because I could always see things differently and synthesize happiness and well-being regardless of the circumstances. This gives confidence in yourself and reduces fear and anxiety about events and circumstances.

Each time you consciously refocus your attention, you develop a stronger mind.

The highest form of meditation is actually to not focus your mind on anything, but to let it be free, unobstructed and without points of reference. That is a kind of reorientation from being lost in thoughts to being free of their opinions. This Zen experience is very ordinary, just a continuous transparent simplicity. It is also called meditating on one’s true nature, or in Zen terms, becoming familiar with ‘no mind’ or no self.

Becoming familiar with your true nature is diving into a world without words, it’s just an authentic immediacy with the present moment. Even with this advanced form of meditation, you are introduced to the nature of clarity and presence that is beyond ordinary description. It’s actually a completely natural state that you don’t need to change or add anything to; it’s just this moment as it is.

Rather than this kind of nonverbal clarity being independent and isolated from your life, it actually helps you see clearly and honestly what brings happiness to yourself and others and what holds you back. Seeing reality clearly and acting accordingly is the Way of Meditation.

Therefore, today we have the opportunity to combine the ancient inner technologies of meditation with the new sciences of happiness. We can learn exactly which mental states make us happy and which mental states make us suffer, and by learning to stabilize our attention through meditation we can become happier and make our lives flourish.

Chad Foreman is the founder of The Way of Meditation and has been teaching meditation since 2003, determined to bring authentic meditation practices into the lives of millions of people in the modern world. Chad is a former Buddhist monk who lived in a retreat hut for six years and studied and practiced meditation full-time. He now has over twenty years of experience teaching meditation. Chad likes regularly
Meditation retreats on the Sunshine Coast, Australia
Online meditation coachingprovides three online programs – The 21 Day Meditation Challenge to gradually guide people from the basic principles of mindfulness and relaxation to profound states of consciousness.
Breathwork to help manage stress and go deeper into meditation and
The bliss of inner fire This is a Buddhist tantric method to clear energy blockages and connect with the clear light of bliss. You can also get Chad’s free ebook now Insights on the go.