What Is Happiness Anyway? | Bonus Meditation with Jay Michaelson

Guided Meditation

Jay Michaelson guides listeners through a meditation practice aimed at exploring the nature of happiness. He emphasizes that happiness doesn't require a definition when experienced genuinely, yet acknowledges that constant happiness is unrealistic due to life's inherent ups and downs 1. Michaelson invites participants to settle their minds and bodies, encouraging them to find a comfortable position and take a deep breath to begin the meditation.

When we're feeling happiness or joy, it needs no definition. It's just the feeling of happiness.

--- Jay Michaelson

This practice is designed to help individuals rest in the present moment and observe their feelings without judgment 1.

   

Present Moment

The meditation session led by Jay Michaelson also highlights the significance of present moment awareness in achieving happiness. He suggests that being perpetually happy is not only unrealistic but also inappropriate in certain contexts, such as during times of grief or when confronted with injustice 1. Michaelson encourages listeners to focus on their breathing and posture to anchor themselves in the present.

It would be really odd to just feel happy all the time at cemeteries or reading news of injustice or war.

--- Jay Michaelson

This approach fosters a deeper understanding of happiness as a transient state, rather than a constant expectation 1.