Setting the Stage: Desire, Mindset, and the Mind of a Newbie. Part 2 of 2.
Making life better. Imagine that you are battling to get your life together since it is a complete disaster, so you decide to start meditating. You believe it will help you develop the focus and discipline you need to succeed. Another possibility is that you struggle with relationships and want to settle your emotions so you won't be in disagreement with people all the time. You can have a chronic condition and believe daily meditation would help you feel less stressed and have better overall health. Or perhaps you simply want to learn how to appreciate your family, friends, and leisure activities more or improve your performance at work or in sports. Whatever the case, it is wonderful of you to want to correct or better yourself and your external circumstances at this level.
When you reach a particular stage in your growth, you could be weary of attempting to change yourself, or maybe you've succeeded so well that it's time to advance. At this moment, you opt to move away from "fixing" and toward self-awareness and self-acceptance after seeing that some habits persist and attempting to modify them only strengthens them. The harder you pull, the more trapped you become, like with one of those Chinese finger traps. However, if you make the self-acceptance sign with your fingers, you may simply release them. You may be drawn to meditation as a method of learning to accept and even love yourself if you're plagued by self-blame, self-doubt, or self-judgment. Mean-spirited self-criticism can cause psychological devastation in otherwise well-balanced people. The cure nearly always includes self-acceptance, or what the Buddhists refer to as "becoming friends with oneself," When you work on truly embracing who you are, you eventually soften and offer your heart to others.
While you understand the importance of getting to know or like oneself, you could be motivated to meditate because you want to cut through the barriers separating you from the ultimate source of all meaning, serenity, and love. You'll be content with nothing less! Maybe you're preoccupied with the answer to one of the big spiritual questions, such as "Who am I?" "What is God?" or "What does life mean?" According to great Zen teachers, this deep craving for the truth feels like an iron ball in your gut that is burning hot. You can only alter it via the force of your meditation; you cannot swallow it, and you cannot spit it out. You may be on a journey because of personal pain, but you're not content with improving or accepting yourself; instead, you feel compelled to reach the peak of the mountain I described in an earlier blog and have the experience the great masters refer to as enlightenment or satori. The distinct self disappears as you become aware of who you are, revealing your identity as being itself.
The results of this awareness can be far-reaching, ironically leading to a better and more peaceful existence and perfect self-love and self-acceptance. The most crucial incentive for all meditators, according to Tibetan Buddhists, is to regard others as being no different from themselves and to prioritise their freedom over their own. This altruistic ambition, known as bodhicitta ("awakened heart"), quickens the meditation process by counteracting the human inclination to hoard knowledge and insights and to protect one's own psychological and spiritual space. According to the Tibetans, meditation can only advance you so far on the road to self-realisation if it is not supported by bodhicitta. demonstrating your natural perfection. According to the Zen tradition, the goal of meditation is not to achieve a particular mental state but rather to express your true nature. With this drive, you never leave your home; instead, you sit with the assurance that you already embody the tranquilly and contentment you want. When you catch a glimpse of who you truly are, you may find yourself motivated to meditate to realise and expand your insight. This degree of desire demands enormous spiritual development, though.
A few suggestions for creating a mentality and way of living that support your practice may be helpful after you've decided what inspires you to meditate. In other words, meditation practitioners have found that the quality and stability of their meditation may be directly influenced by their actions, thoughts, and attributes. Every spiritual tradition places a certain emphasis on acting morally uprightly, but not always in accordance with strict rules of good and evil. Your daily life may be at odds with the time you spend on your cushion if your actions don't align with your motivation for meditating, such as when you're trying to reduce stress, but your actions exacerbate conflict. As you practise meditation, you become more aware of how some activities encourage or even improve while others interrupt it. There is a continuous feedback loop between formal meditation and daily life: how you live influences how you meditate, and how you meditate influences how you live.
Here are eleven fundamental rules for living in keeping with the spirit of meditation.
1. Keep cause and effect in mind. Keep an eye on how your behaviour—and the emotions and ideas that go along with it—affects other people and your mental state. Watch how your actions may affect others' reactions, your own body, and your meditation for hours or even days after you act out of anger or fear. Apply the same principle to deeds that demonstrate compassion or kindness. Remember, you reap what you sow.
2. Consider the transience of all things and the value of life. The Tibetans believe that death is real, that it might happen suddenly, and that this body would eventually become food for worms. You could feel more inspired to seize your chances if you consider how uncommon it is to be a human being in a period when physical comforts are comparatively abundant and other practices for decreasing stress and relieving pain are so easily accessible.
3. Understand the limitations of achievement in the world. Look at the individuals in your life who have succeeded in the areas of the world you desire. Do they appear to be happy than you? Do they experience more love or tranquilly in their lives? You may reach inner success via meditation focused on happiness and peace rather than monetary wealth.
4. Become detached. This traditional Buddhist advice may initially seem like an impossibility. The goal here, however, is to observe how attachment to the results of your activities impacts your meditations and state of mind rather than to remain indifferent or withdraw from the world. How would it feel to behave fully, with the finest intentions, and then let go of your fight to influence events in a particular manner?
5. Develop your endurance and patience. If nothing else, the practice of meditation demands the determination to keep on carrying on. You'll experience the most advantages if you frequently meditate daily, no matter what you name it: discipline, diligence, or persistence. In addition, patience and endurance are useful traits in many aspects of life.
6. Make life simpler. Your mind is likely to be more agitated when you meditate, and your stress level will also be higher if your life is busy and complicated. Pay close attention to any additional activities you add to an already full calendar. You might be able to hear the voice of your inner knowledge if you stop rushing and pay close attention.
7. Live honourably and morally: You might be able to hide from yourself for a while when you lie, manipulate, and sacrifice your inner principles, but only until you get to your meditation cushion. When that happens, all your transgressions come back to haunt you like the proverbial flying you-know-what. By reflecting to yourself during meditation, you may be inspired to realise more of your good potential.
8. Take on challenges with the bravery of a warrior. Meditation "warriors" develop the bravery to let go of their hostility and defensiveness, face their anxieties, and open their hearts to themselves and others. This is in contrast to their counterparts on the battlefield. You may object that it is easier said than done, but meditation teaches you how. After learning this skill, you must be ready to apply it to your everyday life. In the end, every opportunity is a chance to practise.
9. Trust in meditation. It is helpful to remember that meditation has been practised effectively for thousands of years, far longer than computers or the Internet. In addition, notice low-tech technology, which includes actions that anybody may take, including breathing and paying attention. Just put your faith in the technology, do what it says, and don't worry about the outcomes.
10. Tailor your practice toward helping other people. The Tibetans refer to this commitment as bodhicitta (literally, "awakened heart") and see it as crucial for life-altering meditation instead of just aesthetic. Studies on how prayer affects healing have demonstrated that prayers that ask for certain outcomes aren't nearly as helpful as those that beg for the best for everyone involved. In other words, the amount of love you get and give is equal.
Be well.
We all need a helping hand from time to time. Please share this post with as many people as possible. You never know who might need it.
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