Have you ever worked incredibly hard to achieve your goals, only to reach the finish line and think, “Why don’t I feel happy?”
Many of us believe that if we just get the right degree, the right job, and the right family, happiness will naturally follow. But a heartfelt column published in the Gangwon Ilbo by Park Yi-soon, a Professor of Japanese Studies at Kangwon National University, reveals a different truth.
Her inspiring journey shows that true happiness isn’t found in adding more to our lives, but in learning how to subtract.
💼 The Hidden Cost of Worldly Success
Professor Park lived a life defined by fierce determination. She studied abroad at the prestigious University of Tokyo for 10 years, working so hard that she rarely even took a proper walk in the sunlight.
On paper, her life was perfect. She successfully earned her degree, started a family, and secured a highly coveted professorship at a national university. Many people envied her accomplishments. She wanted to believe she was a happy person enjoying life’s blessings.
But in reality, she was physically and emotionally exhausted.
- Her digestive system was ruined by stress.
- She suffered from severe migraines.
- She experienced the extreme fatigue of a long commute and raising children.
- She couldn’t remember the last time she had a deep, restful night of sleep.
Swallowing her guilt and pain, she constantly wondered, “I gave it my all. Why am I not happy?”
📬 A Lifeline in the Mailbox: Mind Subtraction
One day, by chance, she found a Ma-eum Su-ryun (meditation) brochure in her apartment mailbox. Desperate to resolve the deep fatigue and futility of her life, she grasped it like a lifeline and began the practice of “mind subtraction.”
The results were life-changing.
Professor Park used to believe that humans inevitably had to carry the heavy burdens of money, love, honor, pride, and complex relationships. However, through mind subtraction, she realized a profound truth: true happiness and freedom are obtained only when you completely discard the mind attached to these things.
📖 Moving Beyond “Dead Knowledge” to Living Wisdom
As an academic researcher, Professor Park had spent her life diligently reading materials and books. Through meditation, she experienced a shocking realization about her own intellect.
She realized that she had merely been taking “pictures” of dead, lifeless knowledge, cramming it into her head, and wearing it as intellectual pride. As she diligently practiced mind subtraction, she let go of even these feelings of pride and resentment.
By draining away these illusory pictures, she reached the place of her original nature. This place wasn’t filled with academic facts; it was living wisdom itself—a pure state that naturally knows the principles of the world. Furthermore, the religious truths she had previously only studied intellectually finally began to make sense because she was experiencing them firsthand.
🌻 A Bright Smile and a Grateful Heart
By escaping her self-centered mind of greed and attachment, Professor Park finally found the infinite joy and gratitude of living with a boundless mind.
Today, she stands in front of her university students with true confidence, offering guidance that genuinely helps them. At last, she can smile brightly and tell them with certainty how to live a fulfilling life.
We are all born as human beings to know our true purpose and be genuinely happy. If you feel burdened by the weight of your achievements or the stress of daily life, perhaps it is time to stop adding and start subtracting.
✨ Ready to Find Your True Happiness and Freedom?
If you are feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, or unfulfilled despite your hard work, mindful self-reflection and mind subtraction can help you rediscover true joy.
👉 Book a Free Meditation Introduction at Santa Clara Meditation
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📰 About the Original Article
- Publication: Gangwon Ilbo
- Article Title: [Wednesday Forum] Let’s Attain True Happiness and Freedom through Ma-eum Su-ryun
- Author: Park Yi-soon (Professor of Japanese Studies, Kangwon National University)
- Published: October 3, 2012
