Being happy

=)

Be yourself (Part 3)

You do not need someone to tell you how to live your life, or allow them to change the way you live it. Everyone sees the world differently. Just do what you know is kind and right. But know that there is no 'right' or 'wrong', just differences in perspective. Look inside yourself for the answers. All you seek comes from within.

Empathy

A good definition of empathy and what listening really means, by Confucius. 

"The hearing that is only in the ears is one thing. 

The hearing of the understanding is another. 

But the hearing of the spirit is not limited to 

any one faculty, to the ear, or to the mind. 

Hence it demands the emptiness of all the faculties. 

And when the faculties are empty, then the whole being listens. 

There is then a direct grasp of what is right there before 

you that can never be heard with the ear or understood with the mind."

~Confucius

Just adding a clarification after some feedback:

Faculty in this case refers to the senses and perceptions. Emptying the faculties means you remove your personal filters of what is really being said/conveyed, filters that are in place inside your mind because of your past experiences/prejudices, and which affect your perception. Without the filters in the way, you will be able to see and hear what is truly happening.

The antidote to emptiness

^_^

The path to joy

When your mind is pure and uninfluenced by the ego (in other words, no compulsive thoughts, no fear, no worries, no judgment, just gratefulness, neutrality, pure acceptance and non-resistance), joy pervades every waking moment. You don't even have to seek joy. More accurately, you cannot seek joy. How can something be found (which would indicate a source that is external) when it already exists within? You just have to learn to calm your mind and feel the inner stillness and peace. It is neither a complex nor religious concept (though it can be hard to practice constantly). Simply acknowledge each experience, emotion, thought, as they come, and release (ie. let them go with a loving awareness, without dwelling on the cause). When nothing stays and you accept the impermanence of things, how can you suffer? The only state that remains is that of peace.

=)

Faithfully religionless

Sharing this TED talk by Timber Hawkeye, author of Buddhist Boot Camp. 

Unconditional kindness

p.s. ego in this case refers to the need for fulfillment of the self. Unconditional kindness is a demonstration of selflessness.