Browse
Top articles
How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
How to Meditate: Meditation 101 for Beginners
10 Science-Backed Benefits of Meditation
What is Meditation?
Benefits of Mindfulness: Mindful Living Can Change Your Life
Mindfulness 101: A Beginner's Guide
00:00
00:00
Duration
Personalized support for learning how to integrate mindfulness into your life. Delivered fresh everyday by our world renowned experts. Choose meditation duration:
Hi, and welcome to your Daily Mindfulness.
Today, I'm going to explore the
primary cause of unhappiness.
So Eckhart Tolle said, "The primary cause
of unhappiness is never the situation,
but your thoughts about the situation."
Now, that's a pretty radical thing to say.
So you might find yourself kind
of thinking right now, but you
don't know what I've been through.
It's been horrible.
And I absolutely agree.
Many of us have been through
incredible pain and suffering and
loss in our lives that is very real.
And we would never expect someone to feel
good during a time like that, you know.
In times of challenge, loss or crisis,
a certain amount of fear, grief,
sadness, or stress is really inevitable.
And that's a completely natural response
to the more difficult times in our lives.
However, I think it also does hold
true that for many of us, we also tend
to cause ourselves a lot of excess
unhappiness, excess suffering through
the thoughts we have about a situation.
An example.
Two years ago, I developed a
really debilitating illness.
I had it for months and months on end.
Of course, this is an unpleasant
thing to have happened, but it was
my own thoughts about the situation
that made me suffer so much more.
Oh my God, what is going to happen
to me if this keeps going on?
Maybe I'll lose my ability to work?
Or, you know, thinking to myself,
who would ever want to be in a
relationship with me when I'm so
sick and unable to work or play?
Or just thinking, I don't like this.
I don't want this.
Why me?
So my sickness was one thing
that was fairly simple.
I have less energy.
There's some pain in the
body, foggy head, low mood.
Now when I could just accept
that, you know, when I could just
accept this as my situation right
now, I could be at peace with it.
But in the times when I did add all
those unhelpful thoughts about my
situation on top, I suffered so much.
I felt anxious about my
sickness, sad about my sickness
or hopeless about my sickness,
depending on the inner narrative.
Now there's an old saying, you
know, "Pain in life is inevitable.
Suffering is optional."
And I think this is what
Eckhart is pointing to here.
While we cannot control the fact
that painful or difficult experiences
will come our way in life, but
we can choose not to add more
unhappiness, more suffering on top.
So the invitation for practice today
is just to be aware of the mental
habit of adding unhelpful thoughts,
to already difficult moments.
It could be, you know, in that
moment, when you miss the train,
make a mistake, experience a setback,
or have a difficult conversation.
In these moments, just noticing any
thoughts that get added on top that
make things feel so much worse.
And as best you can, just letting
them go and bringing your focus back
to the present moment on what you can
see, hear, and feel all around you.
So that's the practice.
And as always, thank
you for your practice.
Let's settle in now
for today's meditation.
Get Unlimited Access
A Mindfulness Plus+ subscription gives you unlimited access to a world of premium mindfulness content.
Email Missing
We couldn’t detect your email with the SSO provider you have selected.We are here to make a positive impact on the world. We never want to sell you something that hasn’t helped you live a better life. That’s why if you’re unhappy with any purchase from us, you have 30 days to get a full refund and your money back.
If you subscribed to Mindfulness Plus+ and are unhappy with your purchase, please get in contact with us within the 30-day period and we’ll refund your purchase.
Learn more about our Mindfulness Guarantee.
Mindfulness
We believe in a world where everybody has access to the life-changing skills of mindfulness.
Private Browsing
Congratulations on taking the first step towards a more mindful life! As a token of our appreciation, we want to offer you an exclusive opportunity to upgrade to Mindfulness Plus+ for a price you won't find anywhere else.
Mindfulness Plus+ is our premium membership that includes everything you need to learn mindfulness and keep practicing throughout all stages of life.
Take this exclusive offer to further your mindfulness skills and experience deeper levels of well-being.
Annual membership
$0
Just a small sample of the life-changing 5-star reviews we get on a daily basis.
Vidyamala’s tips on catching anger as it’s happening or about to happen are great - clear, practical, and doable.
- Vicoir
The little talks before the meditations are priceless. It's like I've found my peeps. The topics, the quotes, the goals—it all makes so much sense to me, things I want to be thinking and learning about. Most importantly, the meditations are kindness-centered, which I love. It feels like a new way to approach meditation.
- Lauren
Incredible, easy to navigate app. I would highly recommend this app to anyone who wishes to reduce stress and anxiety or simply as an aid to improve overall mental health.
- Kirtus
I love how the app gives me pointers to new things to explore.
- Lydia
So calm and soothing. I love the new bundle with Kelly Boys, she’s brilliant!
- EJ
Better than Headspace. I've had the paid version of both apps, and I must say I enjoy this one better.
- Gina, Plus+ Member
Vidyamala’s tips on catching anger as it’s happening or about to happen are great - clear, practical, and doable.
- Vicoir
The little talks before the meditations are priceless. It's like I've found my peeps. The topics, the quotes, the goals—it all makes so much sense to me, things I want to be thinking and learning about. Most importantly, the meditations are kindness-centered, which I love. It feels like a new way to approach meditation.
- Lauren
Incredible, easy to navigate app. I would highly recommend this app to anyone who wishes to reduce stress and anxiety or simply as an aid to improve overall mental health.
- Kirtus
I love how the app gives me pointers to new things to explore.
- Lydia
So calm and soothing. I love the new bundle with Kelly Boys, she’s brilliant!
- EJ
Better than Headspace. I've had the paid version of both apps, and I must say I enjoy this one better.
- Gina, Plus+ Member
Vidyamala’s tips on catching anger as it’s happening or about to happen are great - clear, practical, and doable.
- Vicoir
The little talks before the meditations are priceless. It's like I've found my peeps. The topics, the quotes, the goals—it all makes so much sense to me, things I want to be thinking and learning about. Most importantly, the meditations are kindness-centered, which I love. It feels like a new way to approach meditation.
- Lauren
Incredible, easy to navigate app. I would highly recommend this app to anyone who wishes to reduce stress and anxiety or simply as an aid to improve overall mental health.
- Kirtus
I love how the app gives me pointers to new things to explore.
- Lydia
So calm and soothing. I love the new bundle with Kelly Boys, she’s brilliant!
- EJ
Better than Headspace. I've had the paid version of both apps, and I must say I enjoy this one better.
- Gina, Plus+ Member
I am very new to meditation, and am so happy that my first introduction to it has been through this app
The first session was fantastic. I feel safe. And supported. Almost like having someone helping me through my difficult time. I’m very grateful for this app.
- Babi
You get a lot of useful tips for handling stress and anxiety in 'real life'.
- Joy
Highly recommend.
- Humanfrst
Kelly Boys is hands down the best. Everytime I click on one of her guided meditations I get excited for the calmness that lies ahead.
-
I am very new to meditation, and am so happy that my first introduction to it has been through this app
The first session was fantastic. I feel safe. And supported. Almost like having someone helping me through my difficult time. I’m very grateful for this app.
- Babi
You get a lot of useful tips for handling stress and anxiety in 'real life'.
- Joy
Highly recommend.
- Humanfrst
Kelly Boys is hands down the best. Everytime I click on one of her guided meditations I get excited for the calmness that lies ahead.
-
I am very new to meditation, and am so happy that my first introduction to it has been through this app
The first session was fantastic. I feel safe. And supported. Almost like having someone helping me through my difficult time. I’m very grateful for this app.
- Babi
You get a lot of useful tips for handling stress and anxiety in 'real life'.
- Joy
Highly recommend.
- Humanfrst
Kelly Boys is hands down the best. Everytime I click on one of her guided meditations I get excited for the calmness that lies ahead.
-
Claim your free access
Create a mindfulness account and we’ll unlock this premium session in your account forever.
7-Days free trial, cancel anytime.
Complete a few quick questions to make your own personalized mindfulness plan.