Things to Feel Glad About

I’m sure that everyone here can find some things to feel glad about. Even if there are not very many things, we can make much of the few, rather than pushing them to one side, saying, ‘No, they don’t really count; that’s nothing really – but look at all these terrible faults I have!’

We are very good at doing that – but how good are we at looking at the goodness, the beauty of our lives? Everyone here can count the fact that they’ve chosen to come to the monastery, that there is a sincere interest in cultivating peace as something to feel very glad about – particularly seeing how many people are living their lives.

We can also make much of the things we do well. Instead of, ‘Oh no, that wasn’t very good,’ we can try saying, ‘Well, actually, that was rather a beautiful thing that I did. I did do that well.

One person I know keeps a special diary. Whenever he does something good, he notes it in his diary. Then, when he is feeling a bit miserable, he reads it through – then he feels much better! That struck me as really skilful – a way of making much of goodness. Why not?

Generally, we make so much of our misery and our inadequacy, why not instead try making much of the goodness of our lives? I began practising with this some time ago, and the more I’ve done it, the more naturally and spontaneously I can really feel happy when I hear of somebody else’s success. Interesting, isn’t it, how it works?

So this is something I encourage you to contemplate: filling the heart with a sense of the beauty and goodness of your life, as well as that of others. Then, when people are having a really joyful time together, instead of sort of sneering and looking down on them–and feeling a bit lonely and isolated–we can join in with appreciation, sharing in their delight.

That is muditā.

This reflection by Ajahn Candasiri is from the book Friends on the Path, (pdf) pp. 68-69.