Buddha nature or basic goodness. It’s the underlying sense that no matter what we have done or what we have been through, we are whole.

‘the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgement; and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship.’

I’ve been working on an antidote to this that comes from a teaching from the Buddha: a heart practice called sympathetic joy, or mudita. Mudita is the practice of being happy for other people’s happiness, genuinely and fully. It can seem easy, conceptually, but when we explore our own happiness and tendencies, we often begin to see that genuinely

‘You are not your thoughts.’

My greatest wish is that you make the most of this precious human life. Mindfulness, compassion and meditation are the tools that can help you do that and, if practised regularly, these things will lead to a lifetime of deeper connections and greater fulfilment.