The secret of your life’s happiness, the key to being happy and to stopping depression, to stopping undesirable, unpleasant things, unhappiness and unpleasant appearances, sounds, etc., and to experiencing happiness, feeling good, having pleasant appearances and sounds, etc., all depends on your mind labeling things as positive.
Even suffering results are the product of past negative karma, but in this life, today, this minute, this hour, this second, if you look at a situation as positive, as good, then you see there is a good, positive, pleasant feeling instead of an undesirable feeling. Then, whatever problem one experiences, one thinks about the benefit of problems, and how they are beneficial for one’s own life, to develop one’s mind in compassion, loving kindness, patience, wisdom, and all the positive qualities for the path to liberation.
By thinking of the benefits of problems, one develops this precious quality, this most healthy, positive way of thinking, which brings happiness and stops you from harming yourself and from giving harm to your family and all living beings.
With this positive thought, you are able to make problems, obstacles, and undesirable things so meaningful and beneficial. You are able to make your life so meaningful. Thinking in this way brings you inner happiness and satisfaction. This wish-fulfilling thought is an unbelievably precious gift that brings all the positive qualities of mind and all the realizations, inner happiness, satisfaction, and fulfillment.
Even a billion dollars or all the wealth of this earth cannot buy this experience. But if you generate these peerless, positive thoughts, then whatever problem occurs, if somebody gets angry at you, abuses you, you have some failure, something doesn’t succeed, your friend changes his mind and doesn’t like you anymore, someone who loves you changes his mind, etc., this way of thinking really helps. Therefore, these situations become so precious, become wish-fulfilling, causing happiness. Training the mind in this practice is the best psychology, and with this one’s mind is positive all the time. Then, you are able to bring so much peace and happiness to the world, to your family, to all your neighbors, to the country, and to the whole world. Like this, your life is like the sun shining—one sun dispelling all darkness and giving all warmth and light to every corner of the world, so that everyone can enjoy it. Your life shines on all living beings, giving peace and happiness not only to numberless human beings, but to numberless animals. That’s incredible! If one is able to think like this, then there is no better life than this; this is the best life, the most satisfying life. If one thinks like this, then it doesn’t matter when death happens, because your mind is totally happy and satisfied, and when death comes it is no problem at all, you have no regrets, and you are so joyful and full of bliss.
The thought of bodhicitta is letting go of the “I” and cherishing others, letting go of the “I,” from which all sufferings come, and cherishing others, from which all happiness comes. All one’s past, present, and future happiness comes from cherishing others. This is the most precious thought. By training the mind in this, you completely illuminate the whole path explained by Buddha. The self-cherishing thought causes depression and all the problems, all the delusions: attachment, anger, and, especially, the root of all sufferings—ignorance—which is not knowing the ultimate nature of the “I” and ultimate nature of the aggregates.
Each time you are kind to others, at that time there is not the slightest thought about your own happiness. Instead, you are thinking about others’ happiness more. When you are only thinking about your own happiness, thinking that is the most important thing, you are actually being dictated to by your own ego.
