The Mystery of Happiness

We are all vulnerable, partly because we are totally exposed. As John O'Donohue says, although this very exposure allows us to have positive experiences, such as smelling the roses, seeing the waves and stars, and reading the hieroglyphics of the human condition, it also makes us feel unsheltered. His cosmic view is that one is surrounded by infinite space without physical shelter. Read More

John Wheeler, an eminent physicist, wrote, "The past, the present, and the future are all unreal as independent entities, but real as a unity." This recognition should tame our preoccupation with "now," our agony of the past as well as anxiety about the future. A patient's attempt at denial of the importance of the past and the future is a way of defending against anxiety. Read More

Here are two poems, one from an ancient Welsh text, the other from a Sufi poet, thousands of miles and decades away from each other, revealing that same mystery of being in communion with the world. Read More

Only what happens to you is your sacred teacher, follow the observation of Berrien Berends, whether you get old, lose a loved one, or become ill. The secret, Berends says, is to learn to sit at the feet of your life and be taught. That means being constantly alert to your experience and always being receptive to life's teachings. Read More