We live in illusion
And the appearance of things.
There is reality.
We are that reality.
When you understand this
You see that you are nothing.
And being nothing,
You are everything.
That is all.
~Kalu Rinpoche
The quality of mindfulness, being with our experience as it is, is challenged in many ways. Some of these distractions are explored by looking at the "5 hindrances or guests" that often show up when we sit on the cushion.
The Hindrances, Guests
1) Restlessness (worrying, remorse, agitation)
2) Sloth & Torpor (sleepiness, boredom)
3) Desire (wanting, attachment, craving)
4) Aversion (anger, frustration, irritation, fear)
5) Doubt
Continue to sit or walk for 20 minutes daily or in whatever schedule your commitment has taken. Notice and include " this too" in your daily life and come to join us this Sunday as we continue to unravel the ways of meditation and mindfulness.
Sunday November 25 2010
630pm
Eyes of the World, Providence
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Friday, November 12, 2010
Meditation Support
" The Russian author Alexander Solzhenitsyn has written that the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. It is not as if only others have anger , fear, hatred, greed, and aggression. It is not someone else who is the cause of all the problems in the world, but the nature of all of us together. So it is a very important task in Meditation to learn how to be with the most powerful energies in our own being and to find some compassion, mindfulness and openness in the midst of all of our feelings and emotions."
"...The answer is that this too, is fine. Sometimes the theme of meditation is sleepiness; sometimes it is tears and sorrow; sometimes it is joy. Whatever it is, let the feelings come and go as they will, and that will be your meditation. Sometimes the clouds need to weep themselves to their end, a poet said, in order for us to have the clear sky shine out from behind them. So do not be afraid of what ever feelings arise in meditation. let them be a part of your practice."
~ Jack Kornfield
"...The answer is that this too, is fine. Sometimes the theme of meditation is sleepiness; sometimes it is tears and sorrow; sometimes it is joy. Whatever it is, let the feelings come and go as they will, and that will be your meditation. Sometimes the clouds need to weep themselves to their end, a poet said, in order for us to have the clear sky shine out from behind them. So do not be afraid of what ever feelings arise in meditation. let them be a part of your practice."
~ Jack Kornfield
A lovely gentle reminder to allow whatever is present. If you have been troubled by any part of practice try to cultivate a willingness to look again, to begin again, to allow yourself to be yourself without judgment and with all the feelings, thoughts, emotions. Check in with the sensations in the body and the continuous rhythms of breath anchoring you to the here and now.
As well, if the cushion is not always available try the car, the waiting room, your office chair, even a few minutes of practice keeps the meditation muscle more pliant, supple and helps to keep us developing the habit of awareness.
Finally, adding a new menu practice as we head into the weekend and next week...
Mindfulness in Daily Life: "This Too"
We all have a tendency to push away much of what is showing up in our day, lives, communities, world. THIS TOO practice is to notice whatever is showing up with the mantra, "THIS TOO" as in, "this too is a part of my experience." It's really a practice of inclusion, of acceptance of whatever is arising in the moment. Remember, acceptance of what is arising does not imply a passive acquiescence to the greed, hatred and delusion in our inner and outer worlds. But it is about having an honest, open and spacious relationship with what is happening, noticing our inner reactions, softening to them, being present for the rich spectrum of our lives. From that place we have a much better chance to act out of compassion and wisdom rather than reactivity and aversion. Other versions of "THIS TOO" practice are "YES" practice, and also, "BREATHING IN ACCEPTANCE, BREATHING OUT LETTING GO." Choose whichever...
May your sits and walks be fruitful, may your awareness grow boundless as you discover "this Too"
Love,
Jenn
As well, if the cushion is not always available try the car, the waiting room, your office chair, even a few minutes of practice keeps the meditation muscle more pliant, supple and helps to keep us developing the habit of awareness.
Finally, adding a new menu practice as we head into the weekend and next week...
Mindfulness in Daily Life: "This Too"
We all have a tendency to push away much of what is showing up in our day, lives, communities, world. THIS TOO practice is to notice whatever is showing up with the mantra, "THIS TOO" as in, "this too is a part of my experience." It's really a practice of inclusion, of acceptance of whatever is arising in the moment. Remember, acceptance of what is arising does not imply a passive acquiescence to the greed, hatred and delusion in our inner and outer worlds. But it is about having an honest, open and spacious relationship with what is happening, noticing our inner reactions, softening to them, being present for the rich spectrum of our lives. From that place we have a much better chance to act out of compassion and wisdom rather than reactivity and aversion. Other versions of "THIS TOO" practice are "YES" practice, and also, "BREATHING IN ACCEPTANCE, BREATHING OUT LETTING GO." Choose whichever...
May your sits and walks be fruitful, may your awareness grow boundless as you discover "this Too"
Love,
Jenn
Mindfulness in Daily Life:
Shadow
Becoming aware of the interplay of light and shadow is great fun! Whenever you can (whenever you remember!) notice whatever shadows are present in your immediate environment. You may discover a subtle shading of the pepper shaker on your kitchen table or a sharp display of a tree’s limbs on the pavement. This practice encourages you to SEE the spaces in between the objects of our lives. Sunny days are wonderful for this practice, but cloudy orindoor days require a keener eye. As always, notice your judgments (“wow!” or “whatever…”) and come back to simply seeing. Consciously attending to this play of light and shadow opens us up to the extraordinary nature of the ordinary.
Becoming aware of the interplay of light and shadow is great fun! Whenever you can (whenever you remember!) notice whatever shadows are present in your immediate environment. You may discover a subtle shading of the pepper shaker on your kitchen table or a sharp display of a tree’s limbs on the pavement. This practice encourages you to SEE the spaces in between the objects of our lives. Sunny days are wonderful for this practice, but cloudy orindoor days require a keener eye. As always, notice your judgments (“wow!” or “whatever…”) and come back to simply seeing. Consciously attending to this play of light and shadow opens us up to the extraordinary nature of the ordinary.
HOME PRACTICE GUIDELINES #4
“Mindfulness is often likened to a mirror; it simply reflects what is there.”
~Larry Rosenberg
We are now asking you to sit or walk for 20 minutes a day!
Seated practice
This week we ask you to open your awareness to include a broader spectrum of what shows up on the cushion. While you are still focusing (and returning to) the breath, you are allowing for greater awareness of what draws you away, particularly the feeling tone of what draws you away. Is a sound, sensation or thought pleasant, unpleasant or neutral?
Our emotional world is driven by an interplay of sensations in the body and thoughts in the mind: thoughts trigger sensations, which trigger more thoughts and so on. We are not interested right now in the content of the thoughts so much as our emotional response to whatever is arising (including thoughts) in the moment.
As we begin to open to the complex world of emotions and thoughts, it is helpful to be familiar with what is classically referred to as the “hindrances:”
The Hindrances
1) Restlessness (worrying, remorse, agitation)
2) Sloth & Torpor (sleepiness, boredom)
3) Desire (wanting, attachment)
4) Aversion (anger, frustration, irritation, fear)
5) Doubt
Remember to honor these hindrances as guests—we aren’t denying or pushing them away but we also aren’t letting them decide who we are, take over our house and run the show.
Gatha Walking
Gatha Walking is simply a meditative walking practice in which we use a “gatha” or verse as the focus of our meditation. The gatha we are offering in class is from Thich Nhat Han:
When I walk the mind will wander.
With each sound the mind returns.
With each breath the heart is open.
With each step I touch this earth.
Friday, November 5, 2010
"...to experience the mind thoroughly and fully just as it is, with whatever level of clarity we have. As we do that, we begin to see that mindfulness takes the energy out of our mind states, so that they arise but no longer have so much power to push us around. We no longer act automatically at their commands...We've grown intimate with these mind states, and that changes our relation to them...we are learning to observe these states in a friendly way, instead of identifying with them, resisting them, or rejecting them."
~Larry Rosenberg
Breath by Breath
Ahhh, It's time to sit!
Breath by Breath
Ahhh, It's time to sit!
Join Rebecca & Jenn as we dive into
thoughts, emotions, feeling tones!
Meditation this Sunday,
11/7/2010,
630 - 8pm
thoughts, emotions, feeling tones!
Meditation this Sunday,
11/7/2010,
630 - 8pm
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Mindfulness in Daily Life
Sound
Whenever you can (whenever you remember!) notice whatever sounds are present. Hear the tone quality, the loudness, softness, continuity, sharpness, dullness, roundness, even the silence underneath. Notice the sounds of walking, eating, cooking, breathing, going to the bathroom, computer keys clicking, voices, wind, cars, birds, plumbing, whatever it is. And of course, notice if you have a “relationship” to the sound—a drawing in or a pushing away. How does that relationship, positive or negative, get in the way of hearing the sound just as it is, without judgment? As always, meet whatever shows up with curiosity and acceptance, and then come back to the physical quality of the sound itself. Enjoy!!
Whenever you can (whenever you remember!) notice whatever sounds are present. Hear the tone quality, the loudness, softness, continuity, sharpness, dullness, roundness, even the silence underneath. Notice the sounds of walking, eating, cooking, breathing, going to the bathroom, computer keys clicking, voices, wind, cars, birds, plumbing, whatever it is. And of course, notice if you have a “relationship” to the sound—a drawing in or a pushing away. How does that relationship, positive or negative, get in the way of hearing the sound just as it is, without judgment? As always, meet whatever shows up with curiosity and acceptance, and then come back to the physical quality of the sound itself. Enjoy!!
Monday, November 1, 2010
Breath
Breath, the mindful breath,
the rhythm, out and in,
the wave that washes
through our days, creating
space for stillness, sorrow,
joy, or exaltation. Full,
then empty, ebb and flow,
breath accompanies each
step into the unknown.
In the breath, the soul
finds an opportunity to
speak. Images or intuition,
poetry or wordless wisdom,
come and go - no effort but
to breathe and listen.
~Danna Faulds
Breath, the mindful breath,
the rhythm, out and in,
the wave that washes
through our days, creating
space for stillness, sorrow,
joy, or exaltation. Full,
then empty, ebb and flow,
breath accompanies each
step into the unknown.
In the breath, the soul
finds an opportunity to
speak. Images or intuition,
poetry or wordless wisdom,
come and go - no effort but
to breathe and listen.
~Danna Faulds
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