Living in the rainy jungle has its charm. I confess that I was tired of the relentless heat over the summer and fall both at home and in Tokyo. The weather here has been sunny and warm during the day and cool and raining at night. Yesterday a heavy rainfall through the day and parts of the night lent itself to feeling cozy in bed under a warm blanket.
On day seven, we take the day to see the sights, and the teacher gets to rest! I treated myself to an oil massage, lunch in my room and a stroll in the neighbourhood. The rain is heavy now, mid-afternoon, so I am nestled in for a few hours. I was in a local tea shop, and an Indian woman smiled and waved hello. I offered friendliness back, and she and her husband came over to ask where I am from.
It turns out she is a yoga teacher and a student of Ayurveda, while he is a martial arts master. We are going to see a show soon, once the rain abates. In this community, there are few tourists right now, so people stare and wait for a hello and a smile.
Tomorrow we will hold silence between the yoga sessions for two days, and I am ready for the quiet and introspection. I measure time and orient to what day of the week it is, knowing that once home, I will forfeit some of the freedom I have here.
THE HAPPINESS PROJECT
The reminder when I travel to India is that happiness comes from how we think, act and relate to our experiences. When I am here, I lose the neurosis that can drive my actions at home. Here we squeeze five people in a TUK TUK meant for three, don’t fret about safety and simply enjoy the experiences that are very different from home. The feeling of freedom for me is the basis of happiness. Which translates to accepting experience and people as they are, without trepidation or analysis.
Here is an excerpt from the teachings of the famous Indian text, the Bhagavad Gita.
- Dharma- performing your responsibilities with sincerity, humility and love, without attachment to success or failure
- Master your mind and senses- don’t let emotions and daily distractions rule your life. Train the mind to be steady and non-reactive to external experiences. Control impulses, make space between the stimulus and response. Happiness is changing your mindset and choosing to respond rather than react, and over-focusing on what went wrong.
- Maintain equanimity in success and failure. Steadiness is a sign of happiness. Stay focused on finding joy in your life- enjoy your life.
- Happiness lies within and is available to all of us, no matter the circumstances of our lives.
- Live with purpose and align with righteous action. Actions that align with inner truth, virtues, and wisdom teaching that support love, compassion, kindness and kinship.,
