Our experience of life is largely determined by the states of mind with which we meet it.

Much of modern Western culture encourages us to think that if we want to be happier, we can achieve this by changing something in our external environment.

The great wisdom traditions of the world teach that changing our internal environment is of far greater importance. That when it comes to living with greater happiness and peace, our states of consciousness are far more important than external circumstances. Our lives are predominantly shaped by our thoughts.

The famous ‘Serenity Prayer’ (adopted by Alcoholics Anonymous and other 12-step programs) asks that we be granted the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, courage to change the things we can, and wisdom to know the difference. We may have little influence over a large part of our external environment at the moment (and generally). But what we can change, with a little determination and courage, is our internal environment.

In this podcast, Chris reflects on how meditation can help put us in the best position to change what we can change: how we relate to life.

 

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