#719 What's Our First Priority? And How's That Working?

     Automatically, reflexively, by default, we "look out for #1" - "me, myself & I" - we're self-centered. We're primarily concerned with our own safety, nutrition, shelter, health, wealth, power, prestige, fame, etc, etc, all of which, we assume (hope), means our personal happiness will be more or less assured. And there's nothing wrong about wanting to be happy - it's perfectly normal & reasonable.
     Many of us behave as if our happiness will increase in proportion to our health, wealth, power, fame, and the opulence of our clothes, homes, cars, vacations etc. But research shows that above a certain surprisingly modest family income, which permits having reasonable basic necessities, there's NO gain in happiness or quality of life with increasing wealth. I see parallels with ethanol consumption - a drink or two may feel good; being drunk does not; while alcoholism is heading for "rock bottom".
     Doesn't the phrase "Looking for love in all the wrong places" somehow resonate? If we're at all self-reflective, we'll notice a hunger or yearning that we can't seem to satisfy for any length of time, no matter what. Smart, young, energetic university students often seem certain that they control their own futures. Ahhh, the sweet illusion of control! However, as the decades flow by, we repeatedly see just how little control we have over our own & our loved ones' lives.
     The healthiest, most intelligent approach to transcending this hunger or yearning is found by discovering our true identity - who we really are. Wisdom traditions have known this for thousands of years: http://jglovas.wix.com/awarenessnow#!The-Real-Voyage-of-Discovery-New-Eyes/c17jj/56afc4e40cf2062bd412b06e

#673 Forced to Care about Others, the Big Picture

     "When China burns coal, that pollution doesn't just stay above Chinese skies, nor does nuclear radioactivity from Fukushima stay only in Japanese coastal waters. The same is true generally for humankind and the rest of the natural world: when the ecosystems of the earth become sick, we become sick. In short, the ecological crisis is also a spiritual*** crisis: we are challenged to realize our interdependence - our larger 'self' - or else. What the earth seems to be telling us is Wake up or get out of the way."
       David Loy. "Awakening in the Age of Climate Change." Tricycle, Spring 2015.                               ww.tricycle.com


     *** "spirituality ... ‘the personal quest for understanding answers to ultimate questions about life, about meaning, and about relationship to the sacred or transcendent’."
       Greeson JM et al. "Changes in spirituality partly explain health-related quality of life outcomes after Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction." J Behav Med 2011; 34(6): 508-18.

     Atheists also recognize the critical role of spirituality - see:
       Sam Harris. "Waking Up. A Guide to Spirituality without Religion." Simon & Schuster, 2014.

#669 Who's Responsible If Not Me?

     It's fascinating to observe our fellow human beings. Even in situations where one would imagine that anyone would be completely happy and grateful, one sees a surprising proportion of people showing obvious signs of sadness, disappointment, and downright misery. Life just does not measure up to their hopes and expectations, no matter how fine it is. A sadly large proportion of us assume that there's a mechanical connection between our happiness and our idea of what a perfect world is. Of course this is completely off base.
     One's happiness is entirely dependent on one's ability to hold all of life in a loving embrace, regardless of what's going on. This is precisely the opposite of what most of us think. We are entirely responsible for our attitude, which has nothing whatsoever to do with what's happening on the outside or even inside of us. It's all about us not just having, but being unconditional love. And, "whether you think you can, or think you can't, you're right."

#508 Does Mindfulness Practice Lead to a Consistent "High"?

     NO! But some us, early in our practice, do feel "high" or "up" - for a while. We're in a blissful trance, brought about by false expectations of mindfulness practice.
     “... how easily we place a veneer of spiritual practice and spiritual correctness over deeply unresolved personal problems."        Preece R. “The Wisdom of Imperfection. The Challenge of Individuation in Buddhist Life.” Snow Lion Publications, Ithaca NY, 2006.  

     Once this placebo effect wears off, the "honeymoon period" ends, and our feet land firmly on the ground. Everything changes constantly, including our circumstances & moods. With mindfulness practice, the severity of our mood swings diminishes, because we take normal events less & less personally, and therefore suffering diminishes.
     Mindfulness practice is about waking up to reality, not escaping to "never-never land". Life in the real world is challenging: birth, constant change, sickness, aging, death - existential reality is not easy stuff, nobody escapes it. 
     The more fully we integrate mindfulness into our daily life, the less goal-oriented / self-centered / escapist we become, and the more profoundly our perception changes towards all experience. It's very useful to remember the fearful child / wise grandparent metaphor - see: http://mindfulnessforeveryone.blogspot.ca/search?q=grandparent

Steve McCurry   stevemccurry.com

#401 Expressing our Freedom - the Jar of Soil & Water Metaphor - Part 4

     In part 3 we saw how our own selective focus creates what feels like the inherent attractive or repulsive magnetic power of objects that interest us, while at the same time, most objects completely escape our attention. Since we create magnetic charges, which distort perception and cause suffering, it's entirely reasonable for us to let go of this charge-creating process and thereby decrease suffering.
     Restricting the focus of one's attention to either desirable or aversive aspects of an object is like an unethical sales pitch to oneself! Unethical because one or a few features are focused on - magnified, leaving out all the features which would balance out - neutralize - the charge or power to attract or repulse us. So how can we drop the sales pitch, and see things objectively, as they are instead of how we'd like to have them?
     One way is to examine all the features - positive, negative & neutral - of the object of interest, instead of focusing on & magnifying the positive features if attractive (idealize, idolize), or negative features if repulsive (demonize). This is not a killjoy thing, it's simply clear, objective, balanced, dispassionate observation - what the object itself is actually like, without "me, myself & I" dominating.
     Another major complimentary way is to examine all the other objects of awareness surrounding the principal object - to see it in context. What is this whole present situation about? This approach does include how I'm feeling, what I need etc. It also includes all of the atmosphere that will to various degrees color my perception.
     By remembering that the world does not revolve around my needs, we perceive more accurately, judge more wisely, behave more kindly & appropriately. Even though there's all sorts of turbid muddy soil particles drifting, sometimes ever swirling, the bigger picture is clear, still water holding all of it.

Appreciation by David Gillespie   http://www.fogforestgallery.ca/bios/bio_gillespie.html

#325 Why Comfort, Pleasure and Happiness are Elusive

     We're becoming increasingly anxious to secure our own personal pleasure, comfort and security from external sources. And, it's not working!
     Wisdom traditions have consistently shown that self-centeredness causes only suffering, and that happiness is an inward journey. Western psychology and philosophy support these ageless truths.

     See also: http://mindfulnessforeveryone.blogspot.ca/search?q=hypo-ego

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle WA

#209 Choices, choices, choices ... Moment-by-moment

     You may recall stories or cartoons of a little angel sitting on one shoulder whispering advice to do the right thing, while on the opposite shoulder sits a little devil, whispering the opposite advice into the other ear. Angels and devils notwithstanding, we do, consciously or subconsciously, make innumerable decisions daily. These decisions are often between short-term self interest ("noisy ego") vs long-term interest for all (plain common sense when one is hypo-egoic).
     North American society has traditionally idolized the "self-made" individual, who quickly rises above everyone else to become rich & famous. If we think for a moment in terms of biology and ecology, what type of cell quickly rises to dominate all other cells? Cancer. What impact does it have on the whole body? Is it sustainable?

     Can we progressively become more consciously aware of moment-to-moment choices? Can we progressively choose in the direction of what makes sense for the long-term welfare of us all?

Tangled Garden, Grand Pré, Nova Scotia   http://www.tangledgardenherbs.ca/