#572 What is the Most Important Meditation We Can Do Now?

“Critical thinking, followed by action.
Discern what your world is;
notice the plot, the scenario of this human drama;
and then figure out where your talent might fit in to make a better world.
And each of us must do something that makes our heart sing,
because nobody will want to do it with us if we’re not passionate & inspired.”                       Dalai Lama

From the inspired 2010 documentary movie: "I Am" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1741225/

#536 Between Destructive Activity & Passivity - Nurturing Engagement

     Don't we often assume that to get anything accomplished we must bulldoze our way through obstacles, be they things or people? We have the idea that force and "collateral damage" are inevitable and necessary components of getting the job done, of reaching goals. So we assume it's a choice between destructive action - OR - useless passivity through which nothing is achieved.
     Between these two unhelpful extremes - both of which are very hard on everyone involved - is the more reasonable middle way. Neither violent action nor inactivity, but intelligent nurturing provides all the necessary ingredients for beneficial things to happen. A gardening analogy is useful: neither impatiently ripping out the carrots before they're ripe, nor ignoring them helps. What helps is intelligent nurturing - ensuring the carrots receive all the light, water & fertilizer they require.
     Mindfulness meditation trains us for such nurturing engagement - appropriate, helpful action - in our moment-to-moment life.

Quang Tran, National Geographic   http://photography.nationalgeographic.com

#511 Who Am I - Right Now?

     As soon as I pause to consider "Who am I?", I'm immediately being mindful - a feature of the wise adult operating system (WAOS) - see yesterday's post. Perspective, awareness of how things interconnect, how everything is interdependent, how every thought, word & action has immediate local as well as long-term distant effects are important components of wisdom. Behavior that arises from this place of relative stillness tends to be appropriate, kind, and serves the long-term welfare of many.
     But when I'm "driven" to think, speak & act by unexamined energies, short-term gain for my ego is almost invariably the driver, the source of the energy. And long-term pain is very likely the result, for myself, others & the environment. Feeling "energized" to do something should always be carefully examined rather than quickly acted out. Reasonable courses of action seldom come attached to a brief rush of emotion. Behind energized zeal, there is often aversion, anger, hatred, and ultimately, fear - the fearful child operating system (FCOS) actually driving the whole sorry misadventure.
     "Who am I?" is such a critical question to ask oneself, very often, since we make important, life-changing choices moment-by-moment. EVERYTHING depends on the OS that's functioning - who we are - scared child OR wise adult - who do I want running my life? Please also read: http://www.johnlovas.com/2014/03/power-its-origin-how-to-use-it.html

upuaut   www.dpreview.com

#441 Emotions, Momentum & Mindfulness

     Emotions may or may not initiate, but they do energize & perpetuate activity - motion with momentum - propelling a course of action, a predetermined direction toward a goal.
     Even for noble initiatives, shouldn't we still proceed with full conscious awareness of the process & ever-changing conditions, ready & able to enact any modifications & corrections that invariably become necessary along the way? Isn't hot-headed impatience usually detrimental?
     And if, as is often the case, our initiative turns out to be less than brilliant to start with - shouldn't we have the humility to markedly change or scrap a bad action plan?
     Like ethanol & stress, strong emotions trample good judgment. Persevering consciously, intelligently, with great care, to complete a worthy goal comes from a much deeper, more still, more silent place than the chaotic abode of powerful emotions. Chaotic energy can be effectively tamed, transformed & harnessed in the service of wise mindful behavior.

#425 Arising Urges to Be a Squirrel

     I'm quietly working on something, then suddenly an urge arises to do something else. One moment I'm peacefully engaged in an activity, the next moment I'm slightly anxious - an emotion, then the urge to act by going off mentally and or physically. The actual nature of the "something else" could be anything at all & doesn't really matter - it could be planning a vacation, work on another project, what's for dinner?, need to urinate, what time is it?, desire for coffee ... 
     This is precisely what keeps happening - and we see it so much more clearly - during sitting meditation! We're sitting still, engaged in the act of observing the breath, then suddenly the focus of our attention slips off target, onto another topic. Why does this happen? The longer we remain on the new topic(s), the more momentum (energy) the stories we tell ourselves gather. This weaving of stories is mental activity, which in turn may prompt physical activity eg getting up & doing something, or it may remain in an intermediate stage of planning to do something. In sitting meditation, we train to let go of this "anxious quiver of being", and gently return to being peacefully engaged with what we've decided was appropriate activity for this set period of time ie properly engage with the process of meditation for the predetermined time period.
     Why are we anxious being peacefully engaged in appropriate activity? Why do we trust primitive squirrel-like random thinking/doing activity (analogous to randomly trying different number sequences to open a found combination lock) more than deliberate peaceful action arising from the much more evolved aspects of ourselves? Could it simply be that we're so used to using the old primitive part of the brain that we don't yet fully trust this newfangled prefrontal cortex?

     See "Trust": http://mindfulnessforeveryone.blogspot.ca/2012/04/119-trust-quality-5.html

Samer AIR   www.dpreview.com

#397 Wise Behaviour Only Arises from Wisdom

     From birth we're conditioned to act in ways that please our parents, families, then friends, teachers, then bosses, co-workers, and the rest of society. Whether we did or did not accomplish an act is clear, easily judged. How well we did it is much more difficult to judge, and is somewhat subjective. Our attitude & intentions while accomplishing the act are very difficult for someone else to judge.
     So based on a lifetime of conditioning, many of us live our lives tightly governed by external approval of our actions. We become compulsive doers, "overachievers", "terribly busy", to the detriment of our attitudes, intentions, emotions - our inner life.
     Many of us literally fear peace, quiet, tranquility, stillness, self-reflection, meditation etc assuming that these might somehow competitively inhibit our ability to act (loss of external approval). We become anxious when we have even a bit of free, unstructured "down time".
     Indeed a part of us (brain stem) is conditioned to react with an approach-avoidance reflex to (societal & other) stimuli. However, the most highly evolved part of our brain (prefrontal cortex) is the seat of our executive function, mature judgment, meaning, values, attitude, intentions, quality (vs quantity), long-term goals ... our vitally critical inner life that should be directing our outer life.
     Civilized mature human beings should be intentionally cultivating their ability to operate with their FULL mental / human capacity. Meditation is an important means of achieving this for oneself. Universities must assume leadership to ensure their graduates are WISE, not simply reacting to societal pressures via primitive reflexes. 

#369 Ready for Change?

     "According to the transtheoretical model of change readiness for change is represented across a continuum, from 

precontemplation (denial or minimization of a problem),

contemplation (considering making change), 

action (actively engaged in change), and 

maintenance (efforts taken to maintain changes already made)."

       Jakupcak M et al. Readiness for change predicts VA Mental Healthcare utilization among Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans. J Trauma Stress 2013; 26(1): 165-8. 

#46 Non-doing

     “Do not confuse motion and progress. 
     A rocking horse keeps moving but does not make any progress.”                   Alfred A. Montapert
 
     “Effortless activity happens at moments in dance and in sports at the highest levels of performance; when it does, it takes everyone’s breath away. But it also happens in every area of human activity, from painting to car repair to parenting. Years of practice and experience combine on some occasions, giving rise to a new capacity to let execution unfold beyond technique, beyond exertion, beyond thinking. Action then becomes a pure expression of art, of being, of letting go of all doing – a merging of mind and body in motion. … magic of true mastery … moments of grace and harmony.
 
     Thoreau said, ‘To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts.’”
 
       Kabat-Zinn J. “Wherever you go, there you are. Mindfulness meditation in everyday life.” Hyperion, NY, 1994.

photodottom   www.dpreview.com