Happiness Break: A Meditation on Pilina: Our Deep Interconnectedness, With Jo Qina'au
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Pilina is an indigenous Hawaiian word, or concept, that describes our deep interconnectedness. Harvard Clinical Psychology Fellow Jo Qina'au guides us through a contemplation of our profound interrelationships.

Link to Episode Transcript: https://shorturl.at/npAM9)

How to Do This Practice:

Pilina comes from the indigenous Hawaiian language and culture. Pilina means connection, or interconnectedness.

- Settle into a comfortable position and observe your breath.

- Visualize someone to whom you feel meaningfully connected and acknowledge the feeling of Pilina, or deep interconnectedness, between you two.

- Reflect on what it is that connects you, what impact that connection has had on your life, and what it may have had on theirs.

- Notice how it feels to acknowledge these things.

- Repeat steps 2-4 with as many people as you wish.

Today’s Happiness Break host:

Jo Qina’au is an indigenous Hawaiian meditation teacher and a Clinical Psychology Fellow at Harvard Medical School.

- Learn more about Jo’s work: https://tinyurl.com/2wfcma5f)

- Follow Jo on Instagram: https://tinyurl.com/3v8ubn6a)

If you enjoyed this Happiness Break, you may also like these Happiness Breaks:

- 5 Minutes of Progressive Muscle Relaxation, With Jo Qina’au - https://tinyurl.com/4f3fd97f)

- Visualizing Your Best Self in Relationships, With Dacher Keltner - https://tinyurl.com/4dzpatx7)

Check out these episodes of The Science of Happiness about connection:

- How to Feel Less Lonely and More Connected - https://tinyurl.com/36t6urte)

- When It's Hard To Connect, Try Being Curious - https://tinyurl.com/3778r4h9)

We love hearing from you! Tell us who you feel Pilina with, and what it means to you to reflect on it. Email us at [email protected]) or use the hashtag #happinesspod.

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We all could use a break to feel better. That's where Happiness Break comes in. In each biweekly podcast episode, instructors guide you through research-backed practices and meditations that you can do in real time. These relaxing and uplifting practices have been shown to help you cultivate calm, compassion, connection, mindfulness, and more — what the latest science says will directly support your well-being. All in less than ten minutes. A little break in your day.