Happiness

Welcome to day one of happiness. Now this is a really simple and straightforward easy to learn visualization technique which I'll guide you through as we go. But as much as it's about learning the technique it's also about understanding the supports for happiness. Obviously I'm not talking about the kinda happiness which necessarily leaves us with a smile on our face. It may be sometimes, but not always. It's more about an underlying sense of contentment, fulfillment and satisfaction in life. And as long as those supports are there both internally and externally, and we can expect to experience a lot more happiness in our life. And this particular technique will just help to support that. So just take a moment or two to get comfortable on the chair, eyes open, a nice soft focus with the eyes aware of the space around you. And when you're ready, you can begin the exercise with some nice, big, deep breaths breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth. And as you exhale the next time, just gently closing the eyes, allowing the breath to return to its natural rhythm, in and out through the nose. As you just starts to become more aware of the weight of the body, physical sensations and the points of contact, body on the chair or on the floor. Soles of the feet on the floor, the hands and the legs. And just starting to notice any sounds as well. Both those very close by and those a little further away. And as you just bring the attention back to the body now. Just checking in to notice how the body feels right now. Whether there's a general sense of lightness or heaviness in the body. A general sense of stillness or agitation. And the easiest way to get a clearer picture of how the body feels is just to scan down from head to toe. Think about the next 30 seconds or so, just noticing which parts of the body feel comfortable or feels uncomfortable. And as you're doing this, maybe just starting to get a sense of the general sort of mood of the mind, if you like. And then before moving on to the visualization just taking a moment now, just to be clear about why you're doing this exercise today. Especially around happiness, the motivation can sometimes be very self interested, self-focused, but you'll find the exercise far more effective, far more enjoyable. If there's an awareness of how you can benefit those around you, as well as yourself. And just starting to notice the breath now, rising and falling sensation. Just noticing where in the body you feel it most clearly. And also just noticing a general rhythm of the breath. And just continuing to follow the breath in that way. You don't need to count the breath, just noticing how each breath perhaps just slightly different from the last. And as you just relax the focus on...