Sunday, February 21, 2010
Quote
The day will come when, after harnessing space, the winds, the tides and gravitation, we shall harness the energies of love. And on that day, for the second time in the history of the world, we shall have discovered fire. -- Pierre Tielhard de Chardin
More Than What I expected
This morning my meditation began to close with the sound of chirping birds. It reinforced the precious existence. Yesterday I took a class called "free stroke." It was an ink on paper class taught by a former president of the Zen Community of San Francisco.
The class was interesting and I came away with something I didn't expect. At the end of the class I walked up to Sensei ("teacher" in Japanese) and thanked him for the class. I also thanked him for his comment "religion has no rules" during our midway meditation. He responded "You think religion has rules?" I said "I guess so." Then I said goodbye to him, gathered my things and left.
I kept thinking about that comment. While I do branch out and try many different spiritual practices, I normally stick to the form that I am taught because it works. But I have often thought about mixing things up to combine various practices, and even modify components of those practices. In a way I guess he gave me the permission I was seeking to do so. Maybe that is why I took the class.
On a final note, during our meditation, Sensei gave us a tool to help quiet our minds. To reduce discursive thoughts and center attention on breath he suggested visualizing the breath coming in like a breeze that flows through our bodies. I tried that this morning and liked it very much. I was riding my breath.
Peace this day.
The class was interesting and I came away with something I didn't expect. At the end of the class I walked up to Sensei ("teacher" in Japanese) and thanked him for the class. I also thanked him for his comment "religion has no rules" during our midway meditation. He responded "You think religion has rules?" I said "I guess so." Then I said goodbye to him, gathered my things and left.
I kept thinking about that comment. While I do branch out and try many different spiritual practices, I normally stick to the form that I am taught because it works. But I have often thought about mixing things up to combine various practices, and even modify components of those practices. In a way I guess he gave me the permission I was seeking to do so. Maybe that is why I took the class.
On a final note, during our meditation, Sensei gave us a tool to help quiet our minds. To reduce discursive thoughts and center attention on breath he suggested visualizing the breath coming in like a breeze that flows through our bodies. I tried that this morning and liked it very much. I was riding my breath.
Peace this day.
Friday, February 19, 2010
My First Blog: The Day of Practice
Today marks the first day I made the decision to share the practices that have changed my life. All of the books I have read, the classes I have taken, the therapists I have seen never amounted to anything until I began to practice. It is really that simple. I'm not so sure that even the kind of practice matters as much as practicing itself and on a daily basis.
There are so many paths to a peaceful state of mind, that to say "this" is the "one" would be purely ignorant of me. The reason is simple: Different practices appeal to different people on different paths. However, there is one general practice that seems to cross many if not all paths: meditation.
We all know what it is. It comes in various forms normally envisioned as a person sitting cross legged in a quiet space. Where the mind goes (or doesn't) is what makes meditation unique. For a simple starting place, I recommend the most traditional approach: focus on breath. Eyes may gaze slightly downward or be completely shut, whichever produces the fewest metal distractions.
Either way, the mind will surely wander all over the place in the beginning, and potentially even for many years I suppose. But the seconds (and if you're disciplined, minutes) that you are able to stay with breathing without any other disruptive thoughts, is the "sweet" spot, the middle ground, the true nature of mind. This is the only opportunity to quiet your mind as at night we dream and by day we dream some more or simply navigate to avoid accident.
Practice is the key. Give it at least 30 minutes for 30 days, preferably in the morning before you start your day. I find that early morning meditation sets the stage for the day.
Wishing you peace.
There are so many paths to a peaceful state of mind, that to say "this" is the "one" would be purely ignorant of me. The reason is simple: Different practices appeal to different people on different paths. However, there is one general practice that seems to cross many if not all paths: meditation.
We all know what it is. It comes in various forms normally envisioned as a person sitting cross legged in a quiet space. Where the mind goes (or doesn't) is what makes meditation unique. For a simple starting place, I recommend the most traditional approach: focus on breath. Eyes may gaze slightly downward or be completely shut, whichever produces the fewest metal distractions.
Either way, the mind will surely wander all over the place in the beginning, and potentially even for many years I suppose. But the seconds (and if you're disciplined, minutes) that you are able to stay with breathing without any other disruptive thoughts, is the "sweet" spot, the middle ground, the true nature of mind. This is the only opportunity to quiet your mind as at night we dream and by day we dream some more or simply navigate to avoid accident.
Practice is the key. Give it at least 30 minutes for 30 days, preferably in the morning before you start your day. I find that early morning meditation sets the stage for the day.
Wishing you peace.
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