"Happiness is not something you seek, but rather it is a skill you develop," says Matthieu Ricard, a Buddhist monk and internationally known author, translator, and photographer. On these two CDs lasting two and one-half hours, he explains the relationship of this elusive state of being to the ways our minds and emotions work. He presents practices for working to develop the ingredients of inner peace — attention, focus, and clarity. There are also insightful comments on the ego and going with "the state of flow."

Happiness in the West is still seen by most people in material terms, as having the most toys and perks. In Buddhism, happiness is a state of well-being that unfolds when we overcome mental blindness and afflictive emotions.