Namaskar Oct 2012

Lecture
Can
an’t Buy Happiness
Vicky Wong
Lama Marut’s book, A Spiritual Renegade’s
Guide to the Good Life a blueprint for
creating and sustaining happiness in this
modern age of consumerism, selfabsorption,
and stress.
He recently came to Hong Kong and gave a
talk on the subject of happiness. “Hong
Kong is full of talented, educated, driven
accomplishment-oriented people who are
depleted and often depressed,” Lama
Marut says. “Because there is no correlation
between money and happiness.”
If happiness cannot be found in a good
job and money, nor in exotic holidays,
nights out or expensive dinners, then
without having to look far, happiness lies
in satisfaction. “We achieve contentment
only when we stop being discontent,” he
says. “Who is not content with
contentment?”
Only you have the power to make yourself happy. Real happiness is not a series of ethereal
pleasures connected to the five senses. We cannot find it in consumer capitalism which is
the mainstream ideology that rules the world: the heart and soul of capitalism is to keep
you dissatisfied and miserable.
Lama Marut described the YouTube clips, “Will it Blend?” as consumer capitalist
pornography in which Tom, the presenter, blends the latest iPad and iPhone. He basically
speeds time up because every gadget will eventually become a piece of junk anyhow, so why
are people so crazy about them? He claims renunciation is the key to happiness. “Let go of
things that hurt you and that can’t deliver. Nothing lasts forever. Get wiser and hipper and
don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” he says.
Happiness comes from generosity. The essence of a spiritual life is to stop thinking about
yourself and start thinking about what you can do for someone else. The real causes of
things are: if you want something, make sure someone else gets it first. Nothing goes
around, nothing comes around. Work for others and their happiness; don’t do harm to
others. Selfishness has been hardwired in human beings and is exacerbated by
consumerism; if you want to keep something, share it, give it away and keep it in
circulation.
If there is less selfishness, there will be more selflessness. The best thing you can do for
yourself is to stop thinking about yourself, stop thinking about your own happiness,
which is the opposite of capitalism. True love is possessive, i.e. “you’re mine!” but, real
love means “I just want everyone to be happy.”
Lama Marut, and many others believe, the secret to happiness is loving kindness. Both
misery and happiness love company. We must achieve that state first in order to help
others. Some of the top regrets people have when they die are: having worked too hard
and lived the life others expected them to. Love and compassion is the morphine to our
suffering because we are focusing on others’ happiness and not our own. “Actions done
for others have a momentum when done with enlightened self-interest.”
Lama Marut says we can start to be happy
when we can say ‘I have enough’
As a spiritual goal, we desire the end of
desire, as opposed to making happiness a
condition of ‘if only I have XYZ, then I’ll
be content’ because we will always want
more. Lama Marut offers us a mantra,
“Om, I have enough (______).” He claims
we have no excuse to not say we have
enough when billions of people are
illiterate and starving. “No one is bombing
us, so what’s your problem?” he asks.
When we look for happiness externally like,
money, jobs, relationships and someone
who would make you happy, you are
setting yourself and others up for failure.
LAMA MARUT’S 10 THINGS TO BRING HAPPINESS
1. Do at least one good thing and keep track of it. For example, be a secret agent and sneak
money into someone’s purse if you know they need it, but don’t wait around for
acknowledgement as it undercuts the virtues.
2. Every night, get a good night sleep or you will wake up cranky.
3. Wake up without an alarm clock.
4. Lull around in bed upon waking and think of things that you are grateful for: your
prosperity, friends and education. Log onto www.globalrichlist.com, punch in your salary
and you will realize you are better off than most people in the world.
5. Remember your own mortality: we don’t know when and how we are going to die, so
what is going to matter when we die? Live as though it is your last day everyday, and one
day you will be right. This way it saves you stress and makes you happy.
6. Meditate for 15-20 minutes a day.
7. Spend some quiet time alone – no phone, no music.
8. Every three hours or 6-times-a-day book, write down the negative and positive actions
you have taken and what actions you could take to neutralize the karmic effect.
9. Do ‘coffee meditation’ – think about what it would feel like when
you are completely happy – with your heart open, wishing all beings
well. Visualize your own utopia.
10. Study a sacred text everyday, be it the Bible, the Koran or Dharma.
Vicky has been a journalist since 2003. She specialised in travel and
lifestyle journalism, then she shifted her focus on social and
environmental issues. Since she started practising yoga in 2008, she
documents teachings on Tibetan buddhism and yoga as she attends
the classes. wickyvong@gmail.com
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