happiness Archives | Ed and Deb Shapiro

It’s My Ego, Not Yours

May 16, 2018 by Ed and Deb Shapiro Leave a Comment

Ever caught yourself trying to defend your words or protect your actions, despite them being clearly inappropriate or even downright wrong, but your egomind just won’t let you do it? No way will you admit you were off the mark! Sound familiar? The ego is the “me-centered” part that gives us a strong sense of […]

Filed Under: awareness, happiness, inner life, joy, love, meditation, mindfulness Tagged With: awareness, ego trip, happiness, inspiration, kindness, meditation, mindfulness, self-imrovement, stress

Dinner with Monica Lewinsky or How to Make Friends With Yourself

April 1, 2018 by Ed and Deb Shapiro Leave a Comment

Monica Lewinsky has been in the news recently, which reminded us of the time we met her at a friend’s dinner party in London, England. As we left we thought about how tough it can be to move on in life beyond difficult or challenging times, such as Monica had experienced when her life played […]

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Are You Hanging Out With Fear?

March 6, 2018 by Ed and Deb Shapiro Leave a Comment

There are many things to feel fearful about these days. While anger is hot and loud, fear is more subtle and pervasive. It also has many different disguises. On the one hand, fear is a natural response to physical danger, but on the other it can be self-created, such as the fear of failure, of […]

Filed Under: awareness, happiness, inner life, joy, love, meditation, mindfulness, peace, presence Tagged With: anger, awareness, compassion, fear, fearlessness, freedom, happiness, inner life, inspiration, kindness, meditation, mindfulness, self-imrovement, tolerence

Taming The Dragons In Your Mind

January 23, 2018 by Ed and Deb Shapiro Leave a Comment

Soon after Nelson Mandela was released from 27 years in jail Bill Clinton asked him if he was angry about how he had been treated. “Tell me the truth, when you were walking to freedom, didn’t you hate them?” Clinton asked, referring to Mandela’s jailors. “You must have been so angry!” “Sure I was,” Mandela […]

Filed Under: awareness, happiness, inner life, joy, love, meditation, mindfulness Tagged With: anger, awareness, compassion, fear, happiness, inner life, inspiration, kindness, meditation, mindfulness, negativity, tolerence

Why Santa is the Coolest Dude Of All!

December 15, 2017 by Ed and Deb Shapiro Leave a Comment

If you haven’t any charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble. Legendary Comedian Bob Hope Don’t let his appearance fool you. Santa may not look like a movie star but neither is he just a jolly old guy in a red outfit. He has the biggest heart, gives fabulous hugs, […]

Filed Under: awareness, happiness, inner life, joy, love, peace, presence Tagged With: awareness, compassion, happiness, kindness, tolerence, unconditional love

How To Get Your Motivation Going

September 19, 2017 by Ed and Deb Shapiro Leave a Comment

We watched as an eager young CNN television reporter asked the Dalai Lama what was the first thing he thought of when he awoke in the morning. We thought that this revered teacher and probably the world’s most well known meditator would say something deeply profound or insightful, such as along the lines of vowing […]

Filed Under: awareness, happiness, inner life, joy, love, meditation, mindfulness, peace Tagged With: anger, awareness, compassion, fear, fearlessness, happiness, kindness, meditation, mindfulness, negativity, self-imrovement

You Have Three Great Powers: Body, Speech and Mind

July 23, 2017 by Ed and Deb Shapiro Leave a Comment

Effectively, whether we are aware of it or not, everything we think, say and do has an effect on everyone and everything else: our thoughts and actions can lead to chaos and destruction as easily as they can to healing and friendship. This means we have enormous resources within to us. “Do not make the […]

Filed Under: awareness, happiness, inner life, joy, mindfulness, peace, presence Tagged With: awareness, change, ego trip, fearlessness, inner life, kindness, self-imrovement, transformation

Are You Here And Now? If Not, Where?

June 12, 2017 by Ed and Deb Shapiro Leave a Comment

Do you live in your head? In your body? In your emotions? In your desires? Normally, we spend our time either living in what-could-have-been or what-might-have-been or if-only, or in the expectation of what-could-be or what-might-be, anywhere but here, constantly in either the past or the future. This is like being in a dream as […]

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Are You Happier Today Than You Were Yesterday?

May 17, 2017 by Ed and Deb Shapiro Leave a Comment

We were in Thailand, attending a ten-day silent meditation retreat in the middle of a coconut grove. Every day Ajahn Maha Dharma Tan, a Thai monk, would come to teach, and each day he would ask us the same question: “Are you happier today than you were yesterday?” As he said this, a wide smile […]

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Mindfulness & Meditation: What’s the Difference?

May 8, 2017 by Ed and Deb Shapiro 1 Comment

“In any one day there are moments where there is nothing going on, but we link up what is happening from thought to thought without any space. We overlook the spaciousness that it’s all happening in,” Gangaji, from our new book The Unexpected Power Or Mindfulness & Meditation. Nowadays, mindfulness and meditation are often used […]

Filed Under: awareness, happiness, inner life, joy, love, meditation, mindfulness, presence Tagged With: awareness, freedom, happiness, inner life, meditation, mindfulness