Hello,
I'm Tamara Lechner,
Your happiness expert.
Welcome to this meditation on joy.
In my happiness practice,
Friday is the day that we prioritize creating joy,
Having fun,
And experiencing anything that boosts our positive experience of this life.
So this meditation is designed to heighten your awareness of what fills your cup,
And I hope when you're done,
It will give you some ideas of how you can go out and create more joy in your life.
So please start by finding a position,
Seated or lying down,
Where you can feel as comfortable with as much ease as possible.
Allow your eyes to close gently without squeezing,
And just take a moment to drop everything that's happened in the day before this meditation,
And to release any need to think into the future.
You're giving yourself the gift of being present,
Right here,
Right now,
To discover and to ignite joy.
Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile,
But sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.
This is according to Thich Nhat Thanh,
And I love this quote because it reminds us that we are responsible for our joy,
That happiness isn't a goal to be attained,
It is a way to live,
And that at any moment when we prioritize joy,
We can bring more of it to our lives.
What exactly is joy?
It feels different to everyone.
Some people feel it in their heart,
Center as a warming,
Or perhaps a softening in your eyes.
From the base of your gut,
It can be an almost effervescent feeling,
Like the bubbles in champagne.
Joy is like the icing on the cake of happiness.
It's important to have a strong base of positivity in order to put icing on your cake.
If your cake doesn't taste very good,
The best icing in the world isn't going to hide that.
Start by thinking about things that zap your joy.
What things happen in the course of your day that feel as though they are less than joyful?
This might be your morning commute,
It might be folding laundry,
This could be your exercise routine or a disagreement with someone at work.
How do these things have the power to zap your joy?
It's through the way you think about these things.
Starting to recognize that doing an activity that feels like drudgery or feels less than fun is part of everyday existence,
I'd encourage you to figure out a way to put a little bit of joy even into these activities that are not your favorite.
So perhaps by making it a game or putting on music,
Giving yourself a reward at the end of something that seems like drudgery will help you to increase the fun in those moments.
This is different than something that causes joy at an instinctive level,
A belly laugh,
A shared moment with a friend.
What happens to us as we become adults that having this joy-filled experience becomes less of a priority?
Can you think of at what point in your life you stopped living for joy and started living for another reason?
Or perhaps you haven't,
Perhaps joy has always been your priority.
I want you to think of an experience,
Maybe one specific experience,
That was one of your most wonderful experiences,
One of your happiest times.
I want you to paint a picture visually of what that looked like.
I want you to think about how the air felt,
What smells were around.
Are you inside or outside?
Are you hot or cold?
Who was with you?
And then most importantly,
Where in your body did you feel this joy?
What did it feel like?
Take a moment and just sink really deeply into painting this picture for yourself.
Wonderful.
Now,
If you can,
Use a dimmer switch and turn up those sensations.
Make that picture like a Polaroid that you can access whenever you need a little boost to remind you of how wonderful you can feel.
We're going to move to the silent portion of this meditation and the centering thought around harvesting your joy will be,
I smile and laugh with life.
This is important because life isn't always giving you joy-filled,
Enriching experiences on the surface.
Sometimes we have to dig to see where is the joy in this.
So smiling and laughing with life,
No matter what life sends your way,
Is truly a characteristic that requires practice to become easy and part of our normal tapestry.
The mantra that you will use for the silent portion of this meditation is,
Kleem Upasha.
You repeat it silently to yourself as an anchor to keep you from your thoughts.
Kleem Upasha.
The mantra may change,
It may speed up,
It may morph,
It might slow down or you might lose it entirely.
Whatever happens in this meditation,
Just trust that it's the perfect experience for you right now.
All mind the time so you don't have to and when the silent portion ends,
You will hear a bell.
Again,
That mantra is Kleem Upasha.
Kleem Upasha.
Say it silently to yourself.
Kleem Upasha.
Kleem Upasha.
Kleem Upasha.
Kleem Upasha.
Kleem Upasha.
Kleem Upasha.
Kleem Upasha.
Kleem Upasha.
Kleem Upasha.
It's time to release the mantra.
Bring your attention back to the here and the now.
We often confuse the fact that we want something with the assumption that we will therefore be happy when we get it.
Joy isn't the result of attaining a certain thing or person or status.
Joy is a feeling we gift ourselves.
I hope you've enjoyed this meditation and remember happiness never decreases when you share it.
Have a beautiful day.
Namaste.
