Cultivating Happiness with the Secret Smile

Happiness does not happen to us, it happens by us.  That is, by our specific intentions.

The Secret Smile is a simple and powerful meditative technique for cultivating happiness, to improve your health, your work, your relationships and your outlook on life. To practice the Secret Smile, follow these steps:

1. Sit quietly and relax, until you have reached an emotionally neutral state.
2. Recall a specific event in your past that made you genuinely happy.  (It is important to choose an event, rather than thinking abstract thoughts that should make you happy.)
3. Feel the effects of this happy memory throughout your entire body.
4. Gradually let go of this memory, until the smile has disappeared from your face, but the feeling of happiness otherwise remains present in your body.
5. Hold on to this feeling for a few minutes.
6. Relax, and return to an emotionally neutral state.

With sufficient practice, you can learn to trigger the hormonal release directly and immediately, and experience a new level of emotional freedom.