This is a first principle of Buddhist psychology: 1 See the inner nobility and beauty of all human beings.

The problem with the world is that we draw our family circle too small. —Mother Teresa

The Tao Te Ching explains, “Because she has let go, she can care for the welfare of all as a mother cares for her child.” When we let go of being the one who suffers, we are free to bring blessings wherever we go.

But unfortunately, Western psychology has almost completely neglected the study of consciousness. Perhaps this is because the Western tradition has so emphasized pathology, or because there are no easy external ways to measure consciousness. In his later years, Francis Crick,

The healthy factors have three healthy roots: love, generosity, and mindfulness. From these three roots arise states of clarity, composure, insight, joy, adaptability, confidence, discretion, and balance. Each of these healthy mental states creates a happy and free mind. They grow from mindful attention, and like sunlight on fog, the presence of

Training in mindfulness, we learn to be aware of our own mental states without being caught in them. This capacity for self-reflection is the key to Buddhist psychology. The Buddha asks, “How does a practitioner remain established in observation of states of mind in the mind?” He instructs, “The practitioner becomes aware when the mind is tense and

“deliberately and directly ignore these thoughts, turn away, giving no attention, as if shutting our eyes or quickly looking away from a disturbing and harmful sight.” And if such patterns continue, “the wildly unskillful thought stream should be gradually slowed and stilled by slowing the breath step by step as if gradually slowing one’s pace from

around her and was gifted in caring for others. Her regular meditation practice had helped her manage a part-time nursing job, do community service work, and care for two young children. The scale began to tip, however, when her mother-in-law, who lived nearby, had a stroke. Now Joan needed to care for her as well, and she began to feel

consciously, deliberately, without causing harm. In the thirty years since leaving the monastery and working with Myron, I have learned to be much more at ease with strong feeling states, letting them be or, when called for, expressing them. Grief and tears, anger and strength, joy and sorrow move through me now in a more open and playful way. Some