Paramhansa Yogananda put it beautifully: “No matter what causes it,

 

Paramhansa Yogananda put it beautifully: “No matter what causes it, whenever a little bubble of joy appears in your invisible sea of consciousness, take hold of it, and keep expanding it. . . . Keep puffing at the bubble of joy until it breaks its confining walls and becomes the sea of joy.”

If we tie our joy to a particular event or experience, when that ends we inevitably slide down the slope of sadness. Yogananda explained that most people live in an endless cycle: happiness when desires are fulfilled, sadness when those desires aren’t met or stop bringing satisfaction, and boredom in between. This is a roller coaster that we definitely want to avoid.

But if we can attune ourselves to what Master called “causeless joy,” then our happiness no longer depends on external circumstances. Try this: Think of something that once brought you joy, and then separate the feeling from the event. Simply feel this joy as a reality in and of itself. Recall this feeling as often as you can, and let it permeate your consciousness.

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