What happiness is to me

Everyone might have a slightly different version of happiness. But here is what happiness is to me.

I once brought a Tibetan Lama to the U.S. who had to run with the Dalai Lama through the Himalayas while being straffed by Chinese Fighter planes trying to kill all of them as they escaped Lhasa into India then in I believe 1959. So, as many of them died from machine gun fire from Chinese fighter planes he made his way with oxford dress shoes on through the snows of the Himalayas to India. He and the Dalai Lama were two of those who survived this journey.

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What he said to me when I was talking about happiness was: "If you have food and shelter and clothes what more do you need?" This was his definition of happiness. And I agree with that and have never forgot what he told me. 

However, we Americans are kind of spoiled compared to the rest of the world because at least since the end of World War II we have really had an amazing life here in the U.S. The roughest part was really since about 2007 because there haven't been enough jobs for people who wanted and needed them.

But, ever since my Tibetan Lama friend told me this and before that when I went without water or food in 1983 for 96 hours straight on a Native American Vision quest I have realized a person actually needs much less than I thought to be profoundly happy.

In fact, my whole definition of happiness started changing around 1983.

When I saw that at age 35 which I was in 1983 that I could actually do this with no physical harm (at that age) and that it actually made me a much better person I realized that learning who I was (which going on a no water and food vision quest actually made me very happy). After the vision quest on my way back to Mt. Shasta through Redding then, we stopped and watched a movie at a theater there which was about spock dying and being reborn from a few cells on a planet and I found this very profound and it made me cry because something amazing had been opened up inside of me from going on this very profound vision quest of praying for 4 days and nights in the wildernes while not eating or drinking anything.

This vision quest actually directly led to meeting the Lama I'm talking about in Santa Cruz and then eventually meeting him again in Bodhgaya, India and receiving the Kalachakra Tantra initiation along with 200,000 to 500,000 others in Boghgaya where Buddha received enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree 2500 or more years ago(at least 500 years before Jesus).

So, happiness for me was discovering the path of Compassion towards all beings in the universe and moving in this direction in my life. Compassion for myself and all beings has brought happiness into my life ever since. And in addition to this not only just compassion but also "Wise right mindful compassion" that is ultimately efficient and helpful to myself and all beings in the universe.

My father's heritage is primarily Swiss so there was this attention to efficiency at all levels of our lives. This went back at least to 1725 when 6 brothers came over on a boat not unlike the Mayflower to Philadelphia harbor and they and their descendents now live literally all over the U.S. since then.

But, applying this necessity for efficiency to compassion has been a truly wondrous experience for me. It has brought me unending happiness to bring efficiency to compassion as it is practiced upon me and all beings I come into contact or ever become aware of. This I would say has brought me more happiness than any other single thing by the Grace of God!