Happiness Basics Part I

Basics are so simple that we may take them for granted and forget to do them.  But mastering the basics are key steps towards our own self truth and it worthwhile to periodically review them to see how our daily life practice of happiness is developing.

The most common happiness basic is breathing!  Yes, breathing.  Besides giving you life, breathing reveals your true nature, your emotions, your state of being.  Did you know that when you are angry your breath is short, when you are fearful your breath is held, when you are sad your breath is heavy on the exhale, and when you are happy your breathing is effortless and smooth?  To a master, observing a person's breathing tells more truth than any words that person might speak.

You can test your own breathing truth by imagining different emotional memories.  Watch what happens to your breath when you think of stressful things like a work deadline, mistakes in the past, or being yelled at. And watch what happens when you think of things you love, like sunsets, smiling babies, being hugged, or being with someone you truly love.

Your breath changes when your emotions change.  That's obvious.  But your emotions change when your breath changes. Your body and brain go through biochemical changes when emotions are strongly felt.  Looping patterns of negativity are hard to break because as you think negative thoughts or feel negative emotions, your brain produces chemicals that cause stress and further negative emotions!   In order to break this loop and move towards constant happiness, you must be able to turn quickly from negative to positive and eventually to remain positively centered no matter what happens in the outside world.  How fast you turn becomes a measure to see how fast you are progressing towards inner happiness.  The faster you turn negative emotions into positive ones, the faster you are becoming self realized.

Mastery of conscious breathing will change your emotional states and is a powerful technique to practice.  If you are in a fearful or angry state, make a conscious effort to change your breath!  Drop your current negative thoughts by focusing on your breath and practicing what happy breathing feels like.  Think about things you love and how things you love always make you breathe better.  Slow down your breath and make it even and effortless. Let your mind concentrate on breathing mechanics while you allow yourself to relax and feel good inside.  As your breath changes your brain chemicals change and then your emotional state changes, making it so much easier to be happy in this moment.  No matter what you are doing, even if you are in the middle of a business deal or dealing with a personal crisis, taking a few moments to change your breath will change your negative emotional state into a happier one and give you a much clearer perspective on the current situation.  And like everything else in life, the more you practice the better you become!

Practice happy breathing all the time, it's one of the best happiness basics you can do for yourself.  There is no better feeling than to be loved and happy and conscious breathing always takes you there.  Just ask yourself this, how fast can I breathe happy?

Om shanti, om happy!!!!