Buddhist key to happiness

Buddhists spend their lives seeking enlightenment through deep meditation.

Now scientists have used followers of the religion to discover the secret of happiness.

New research suggests joy lies just behind the forehead, in the brain's left prefrontal lobes.

This part of the brain is associated with positive emotions and good mood. In experienced Buddhists, it is consistently active.

Prof Richard Davidson, who is leading the research at the University of Wisconsin, called the results tantalising.

'We can now hypothesise with some confidence that those apparently happy, calm Buddhist souls one regularly comes across in places such as Dharamsala, India - the Dalai Lama's home - really are happy,' he told New Scientist magazine. 'Behind those calm exteriors lie persistently frisky left prefrontal lobes.'

It was unlikely that Tibetan Buddhists were born with a happiness gene that activated their left prefrontal lobes, added Mr Davidson.

It was more probable that something about Buddhist practice produced happiness.

Separate research found experienced meditators did not get as flustered, shocked or surprised as ordinary people. This suggested they could control the amygdala - part of the brain which makes a person feel fear and anxiety.

'No antidepressant makes a person happy,' concluded Mr Davidson.

'On the other hand, Buddhist meditation and mindfulness, which were developed 2,500 years before Prozac, can lead to profound happiness.'