Seeking the key to happiness? Research suggests taming the wandering mind

Eastern philosophies have advocated it for more than a millennia. Ram Dass wrote a book about it. And now, an iPhone app has collected data on it. The subject is presence and its relation to happiness. Over the last few years, happiness has been a hot topic of research. Scientists have investigated how to spot it, maintain it and acquire more of it. But one aspect is clear: it isn't external circumstances that determine happiness, it's how present we are in the moment.

"Be Here Now"

The Buddha was known to say, "Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment." And Richard Alpert, a Harvard University professor who would later be known as Ram Dass, wrote "Be Here Now" in an attempt to convey a similar message: pay attention. What both realized (and science validates) is that when we are present in our lives, happiness grows. Interestingly, happiness is not the flashy car or good job, but simply to be fully engaged with what is right in front of us.