
The Happiness Factory: Meditation & Productivity
Is there any “product” that we desire, for a reason other than because we believe that this “thing” will in some way make us feel more happy, more satisfied, more genuinely content?
Open Secret
The secret that meditators discover (and then playfully relish) is that the “happiness factory” is already within each and every one of us: we’ve just succumbed to the habit of ignoring it — and this is the definition of primal ignorance: the ignore-ance of our True Nature!
What Is Meditation, Anyway?
The word “meditation” has two general meanings. In the first — and ultimately most important — meaning, “meditation” is simply who we are, essentially: timelessly perfect, whole, boundless and complete. At this level, there’s nothing that needs to be gained or “produced,” and nothing that can be lost. The “practice” (if we can say such a thing) is simply to recognize that this is always and already the case. We do this by becoming curious about the aware presence within us — the sense of “I am” — that which is aware of these words, right now.
In its second meaning, the word “meditation” refers to specific practices for training the mind. And here, there’s great variety: literally hundreds if not thousands of different forms of meditation. What the various meditation techniques have in common is their experiential nature. In other words, to know what meditation is, you have to actually do it — which (as per our first definition of meditation) turns out to be equivalent to being it: of recognizing our (transpersonal) “selves” as nothing other than the happiness factory!
What Meditation Produces
So when we speak of the advantages of meditation — i.e. of what it “produces” — this oftentimes refers to benefits — at the level of body and mind — derived from practicing this or that particular meditation technique. Such benefits include reducing stress and promoting relaxation, enhancing energy and vitality, improving concentration, increasing intelligence and creative capacities, enjoying better sleep, and increasing our equanimity in the face of life’s challenges.
The deepest benefit and ultimate fruition of meditation is to knowingly connect with the unconditioned peace and joy that is our natural state: a transpersonal dimension which does not share the limitations of the body or mind. This represents the end of psychological suffering — the end of that nagging feeling of dissatisfaction or dis-ease — and the emergence of an abiding sense of well-being throughout life’s activities. We could say that this is the full activation and enjoyment of our non-conceptual “inner wisdom” — or we might say the Wisdom Mind.
This is true whether our formal practice sessions last ten seconds, ten minutes or ten hours. Meditation in its deepest sense — as who we are, essentially — is beyond time and space, beyond thoughts and feelings, beyond the body and mind. And yet it’s here, right now!
Some excellent opportunities for relatively brief (though potentially profound) visits to the “happiness factory” of meditation include:
- on a long bus or train commute
- when you’re stuck in a stand-still traffic jam, or delayed in an airport
- when you’re feeling emotionally “triggered”
- when you’re feeling agitated, confused or constricted
- when you’ve been sitting in front of a computer screen for way too long
- when you’re in a beautiful location (a forest, a mountain meadow, my neighborhood with the first crocuses of spring) and wish to enjoy it even more intimately
- spontaneously when hearing beautiful music
- immediately upon rising in the morning
- before lying down to sleep at night
Group Tour Of The Happiness Factory
The ZenFriend app offers support for your individual practice. But it also offers a community of like-minded friends, for mutual support or — in terms of our playful metaphor — with whom you can take “group tours of the happiness factory.” How wonderful indeed!
With Love and Kindness
