Cultivating Lasting Happiness – What Buddhism and Science Have to Say About It

(HYBRID) What is it that we all are pursuing? Do we succeed in it? Should we explore more carefully and wisely how to fulfill our deepest yearnings? How could we contribute to others’ happiness as well?

We will explore such questions from an experiential point of view, using both scientific and Buddhist knowledge of the mind and meditation, in a journey that may translate into increasing lasting happiness and a positive impact on oneself, others, and the world.

The course “Cultivating lasting happiness: What Buddhism and science have to say about it” focuses on an exploration of what leads to dissatisfaction and suffering, and what contributes to happiness for oneself and others.

The fundamentals of meditation and mind training are introduced, especially in the areas of establishing a meaningful direction in life, balancing the mind with equanimity and a caring attitude, and nurturing warmheartedness and wisdom drawn from the Buddhist tradition.

It is complemented by references to current scientific understanding on our nervous system, values, subjective well-being, neuroplasticity and altruism.

The Journey

“Cultivating Lasting Happiness” gradually unfolds as a 6-week journey along different topics:

1. A universal need explores the common ground that we all want to find happiness and overcome suffering, and presents initial techniques to balance body and mind.
2. Are we pursuing happiness in the best way? is an initial exploration of the Buddhist Four Truths and a suggestion to probe into common ways to pursue happiness—are we succeeding?
3. Following the scent of lasting happiness encourages us to establish meaningful directions and to find ways to cultivate lasting happiness and activate our potential.
4. Meditation and mind training presents tools for doing so.
5. Wisdom and warmheartedness as a source of lasting happiness presents tools to cultivate the fundamental qualities of warmheartedness and wisdom and invites us to explore their contribution to our own and others’ happiness.
6. Enhancing wisdom and warmheartedness further explores these fundamental qualities

While the classes in this course are sequential, each class is a stand-alone topic, so you are most welcome to drop in at any time, even if the course has already started.

What will I learn?

The course is intended to address the needs of modern students, with a fact-based approach to the study of the mind and meditation. It is ideally suited for those:

• Open to learning about Buddhism with an emphasis on the practical integration of its teachings in daily life
• Interested in the dialogue between the Buddhist and scientific perspectives when applied to the fields of study on meditation, the mind, compassion, or well-being, amongst others
• Keen on developing a repertoire of tools, including meditation and contemplation techniques, to contribute to living meaningful, beneficial, and happier lives

It is designed for people who may or may not have experience with secular or other forms of meditation.