On Being Happy

Many years ago, while in a yoga class, the teacher instructed us into an asana (pose) and shared this Metta Loving Kindness Meditation with us. The meditation is simple but had a profound effect on me. It goes:

May I be happy, May I be peaceful and at ease, May I live in harmony with the Universe.

May you be happy, May you be peaceful and at ease, May you live in harmony with the Universe.

May All Beings be happy, May all beings be peaceful and at ease, May all beings live in harmony with the Universe.

I couldn’t move off of the words “May I be happy”. They were revelatory. For some reason this was not an idea that I had thought about before - that I could be happy, that I deserved it, and it was a possibility for me in my life. I don’t think I realized how unhappy I had been until I gave myself those words “May I be happy.”

During the days that followed, I continued to say those words to myself: “May I be happy”. Not as a way of being selfish, but as a way of giving myself permission to BE happy. Perhaps I didn’t have to suffer and struggle my way through life. Perhaps there was another way of living my life that I wasn’t connected to yet.

I began to understand from those words that my happiness was my responsibility - that I had some power and agency in creating a happy life for myself. It was also a way of checking in with myself to see if the choices that I was making were really bringing me happiness.

It became an invitation to inquire deeply - what really did make me happy?

Was it the circumstances around me that made me happy, or was it an inner state that I needed to cultivate? As I reflected on this question, I began to align both my inner and outer worlds towards what did make me happy. The question became a guiding light as I navigated different choices in my life. What activities and relationships were truly nourishing? And I began looking at the thoughts and beliefs that kept me in cycles of pain and depression. How was I responsible for my experience in any moment?

I noticed that the happier and more fulfilled I became, the more energy and love I had to share with others. My life felt more abundant. I became more generous and giving. If that is the outcome of nurturing our well being, then don’t all of us deserve to be happy, to find fulfillment in this lifetime? As our own lights become stronger, we have more support and love to give to others.