Intelligence & Wisdom

Hi, and welcome to your daily mindfulness. Today I'm going to talk about intelligence and wisdom. So there are many people in the world who have great intellectual intelligence, but they don't necessarily feel happy. There are people with extraordinary wealth who have everything they want in the material world, but they don't have any inner peace. And there are many people who have achieved incredible things in their lives, but they don't have what they actually want most of all, a sense of lasting fulfillment.

So I think one of the biggest challenges in living a mindful life sometimes is navigating life in a way where there's this balance between enjoying achievement, success and having nice things and experiences while also having the wisdom of keeping the bigger picture in mind, knowing what brings us closer to actual fulfillment. But that is the invitation of mindfulness, really to keep that big picture in mind and to get really, really clear on what it is that gives us a rich, full and meaningful human life. And to keep choosing the actions, the thoughts and the habits that will support that aim. If we truly want to cultivate that kind of lasting, deep happiness, then the best place to start is within. Because when the mind is agitated, anxious, and discontented and restless changing things on the outside cannot give us the sense of freedom and ease within, no matter who we are, what we have or what we've done.

So if we want life to be a life of happiness and peace, then there really is a great wisdom in practicing mindfulness because in it we're training ourselves in cultivating these qualities within ourselves, in a lasting way that is not dependent on outer circumstances. And in this way, we can enjoy all the other pursuits of our lives as we carry our happiness with us within wherever we go. So as always thank you for your practice and your presence here with us. And now let's settle in for today's meditation.