An Ideal
There’s no question that certain qualities, mind-states, and habits are more conducive to well-being than others. Having granted this, one must also concede that there is a whole spectrum of possible minds, from the most sublime, beatific, and peaceful to the most hellish, miserable, and self-torturing – and that, in large part, the difference between any two minds on this spectrum has to do with their respective states and dispositions. Any person with an eye towards wisdom will endeavor to cultivate and reify those states that conduce to well-being, all the while paring back and extirpating those states that result in misery. Such a person will strive towards the following ideal:
A mind which remains unperturbed by all stimuli: pleasure and pain, praise and blame, gain and loss hold no value to this mind. Setting store by none of these - neither desiring nor fearing them - they become like water off a duck’s back to it. Having shunned and abnegated the vicissitudes of the world, this mind turns itself towards one single intention: morality. Invariably simple and satisfied, it aligns itself with whatever act is at present most morally befitting.
To say that this mind is ideal is tantamount to saying that it lies furthest along the positive end of the spectrum of possible minds. To prop up this claim, hearken to the fact that all human suffering has its roots not in external stimuli themselves, but in the mind’s reaction to them (obviously this is true: what is suffering if not the result of information processing in the brain? And is it not true that two minds, confronted by the same stimulus, can have diametrically opposite reactions to it? - one of suffering, the other of happiness). This granted, it follows that a mind unattached (non-attached also means non-reactive) to extraneous things is, concomitantly, a mind unfettered by them.
To be merely unattached to the vicissitudes of the world, however, is an insufficient basis for psychological well-being. For a mind to be said to be ideal, it must not only be free from suffering; it must also be deeply happy – blissful, even. To this end, it must also be wise. Wisdom is the highest good, and it consists of four parts. Namely:
Morality. Steeped deeply in goodwill, in compassion – indeed, having placed benevolence at the very base of its value hierarchy – this mind would always think, feel, and act in those ways that are most beneficial to others (and to itself).
Concentration. This mind would know no such thing as distraction. Attending to the breath, there would be nothing but the breath in the scope of its attention. In action, it would know only the morally relevant action.
Correct perception. This mind would not be delusional in any respect. It would see nothing concrete in the world, for one: it would see everything as being precarious, transient, subject to change. Further, it would not identify with anything: to it, there would be no “I.” Seeing the self, illogical as it is, as delusion, it would identify with nothing at all.
Equanimity. Holding no preference for pleasure, praise, beauty, comfort, gain - and no dispreference for each’s converse - this mind would always be at ease.