Happiness Rules to Live By

The following comes from 40 Tips for a Better Life by Deepak Belani.

1. Take a 10–30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.
2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day. Buy a lock if you have to.
3. Live with the 3 E's — Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.
4. Make time to practice meditation, yoga, tai chi, and prayer. They provide us with daily fuel for our busy lives.
5. Spend more time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of 6.
6. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
7. Drink green tea and plenty of water. Eat blueberries, wild Alaskan salmon, broccoli, almonds and walnuts.
8. Clear clutter from your house, your car, your desk and let new and flowing energy into your life.
9. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card.
10. Smile and laugh more. It will keep the energy vampires away.
11. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
12. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
13. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
14. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
15. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
16. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
17. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
18. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and family will. Stay in touch.
19. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
20. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.
21. You only have one ride through life so make the most of it. Enjoy the ride.

Advice for Beginners

How to Find the Right Path for You

There are countless paths, methods, traditions, religions, and yogas. Which should you choose? What's the best place to begin?

If you're hoping to find answers here, sorry. That's not possible. But we can suggest a few useful things to keep in mind while you ponder those questions for yourself:

• The teacher may be more important than the tradition. If you find a teacher who has personal qualities you admire, who is genuinely kind to people, who cares about your happiness, who makes you feel the way you'd like to feel all the time -- that person may be the right teacher for you regardless of his or her tradition.
• Awareness is an important component of many paths. You can't go wrong by being aware as much as possible.
• Have fun. Pick something you enjoy.
• Whichever path you choose, do it. This stuff only works if you devote yourself to it.
• It's better to start out on some path now rather than postpone beginning while you search for the perfect path.
• Don't worry about making a wrong choice. No matter which path you choose, you'll learn something from it. In fact, many people say you can walk on any path, and if you have the right intention, you will automatically progress toward the goal.

Source: realization.org

“The application of the ancient science of Yoga to enhance health and wellness at all levels of the person: physical, psychological and spiritual.”

— Joseph Lapage