An illuminating perspective on the science of meditation—and a handbook for transforming our minds, bodies, and lives

In The Joy of Living, world-renowned Buddhist teacher Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche—the “happiest man in the world”—invites us to join him in unlocking the secrets to finding joy and contentment in the everyday. Using the basic meditation practices he provides, we can discover paths through our problems, transforming obstacles into opportunities to recognize the unlimited potential of our own minds.

“Rinpoche’s investigations into the science of happiness are woven into an accessible introduction to Buddhism”
—Tricycle

“There is real wisdom here. Fresh and clear. Mingyur Rinpoche has offered us what may well be an essential link between the Buddha and contemporary neuroscience and physics. He effortlessly makes connections between seemingly disparate and complex disciplines, and makes the journey sparkle. His voice is generous, intimate, and refreshingly personal. As he repeatedly reminds us, our experience of ourselves and our world is none other than an interactive projection of our mind; and most important, our minds can change. Our neurons can change structure and function, merely by observing the flow of our mental activity. Through repeated familiarity with positive mind states, such as love and compassion, and by transforming our limiting mental conceptualizing into vast freedom, we can achieve the already present basic mind of clarity and knowing—true happiness. Read this book.”
—Richard Gere

“An extraordinarily clear book on the whys and the hows of cultivating mindfulness effectively in our lives. It makes use of the idiom and exciting discoveries of modern science in ways that are easy to understand and entirely relevant to the meditation practices themselves.”
—Jon Kabat-Zinn, author of Coming to Our Senses and vice-chair of the Mind and Life Institute

“The first of its kind . . . a truly compelling and infinitely practical fusion of Tibetan Buddhism and scientific ideas. Mingyur Rinpoche is a teacher for our time, uniquely gifted to bridge these two worlds.”
—Sogyal Rinpoche, author of The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying

“It is extraordinary to see the words lineage, compassion, spacetime foam, and limbic resonance all in the same book. . . . The Joy of Living is a personal, readable, and wonderfully warm and clear guide to changing the way we see ourselves and the world.”
—Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness

“Mingyur Rinpoche is a charismatic teacher with a heart and smile of gold. The clarity, humor, and wisdom of his stories and teachings are collected in this book, and it will always be with me as a most valued companion. This is one of those rare books where you meet the author and learn from his radiance.”
—Lou Reed

“A beautiful tapestry of Buddhist insight woven together with modern science, this book is a landmark in the development of a contemplative neuroscience . . . a must-read for anyone interested in the causes and consequences of happiness.”
—Richard J. Davidson, professor of psychology and psychiatry and Director, Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior at the University of Wisconsin–Madison


From the Hardcover edition.

A rising star among the new generation of Tibetan masters, YONGEY MINGYUR RINPOCHE is an internationally known and respected teacher of Buddhist philosophy and meditation techniques.