Happiness cannot be found

through great effort and willpower,

but is already present, in relaxation

and letting go.

Don’t strain yourself,

there is nothing to do.

Whatever arises in the mind

has no real importance at all,

because it has no reality whatsoever.

Don’t become attached to it,

don’t identify with it

and pass judgment upon it.

Let the entire game happen on its own,

springing up and falling back like waves –

without changing or manipulating anything –

and everything vanishes and reappears magically,

without end.

Only our searching for happiness

prevents us from seeing it.

It’s like a rainbow which you pursue

without ever catching.

Although it does not exist,

it has always been there

and accompanies you every instant.

Don’t believe in the reality

of good and bad experiences;

they are like rainbows in the sky.

Wanting to grasp what cannot be grasped,

you exhaust yourself in vain.

As soon as you open and relax this grasping,

space is there – open, inviting and comfortable.

So make use of this spaciousness, this freedom

and natural ease.

Don’t search any further.

Don’t go into the tangled jungle

looking for the great elephant

who is already quietly at home.

Nothing to do,

nothing to force,

nothing to want,

and everything happens by itself.

– Ven Gendun Rinpoche

With a grateful heart.  For all that is. On this Thanksgiving day.