This is not an exercise in talking about what is going wrong in our lives, but rather a way to look at our current, immediate situation (the now) and ask, "what in this moment is lacking?" The answer, unless you are under immediate duress, is usually "nothing."
I'm in my home office. It's warm and secure and I'm alive. Nothing is lacking in the moment, the natural light through my window helps to connect me to the moment. --I'm off to step outside for 10 minutes of meditation. Ponder this:
- The great Zen master Rinzai would raise his finger slowly and ask: "What in this moment is lacking?" On the level of the mind, you cannot comprehend or answer – the ego is attached to time and can only survive by creating a future and a past. But in going beyond the ego mind you will tap into the eternal – which only exists in NOW.
Resolve to not fritter away your precious life this week living in the future or past. Give your full attention to what you are doing right now. Appreciate it, savor it, notice the feelings, the colors, the tapestry of life that is all around you if you will only become present. If you are constantly waiting to arrive...you never will.
"If not now, when?"
Returned from my 10 minutes of meditation. It sure is amazing how much the internal dialog will resist being silenced or turned off. It's damn near impossible for me to go more than 10 seconds without some thought about the future or past fighting for my attention. However, I was able to get some peace out of it. I will begin doing this daily and like anything, I expect to get better at it over time.
Remember that the goal isn't to resist thoughts and feelings, or try and force them from entering your mind. There is no goal. All there is to do is be aware of thoughts/feelings, note their presence, and return gently to the breath. From this practice you may eventually hope to bring this awareness to all aspects of your life. Life appears to become quieter naturally as you master the transient nature of your day to day experience. A nice thing to do at the end of your meditation, before opening your eyes, is to stay there but let go of any control or focus at all. Just let your mind do as it pleases. Often in this moment you may find that suddenly your mind becomes empty (though it doesn't matter if it doesn't, of course). This can help show you the right kind/amount of effort needed in approaching your sessions. It doesn't matter if you can go 10 seconds or 10 minutes with a clear and present mind. It's all about just letting it unravel naturally.
It's currently close enough to bedtime that I don't feel any pressure to do any work or chores or start anything. At this point, the internal nagging voice is pretty quiet. I find that it's the easiest time of the day to be relaxed and chilled out. If I could tap into that reservoir of tranquillity during the day, that would be really great - although you often need a little bit of stress to get things done that you want/need to get done. I find it pretty amusing that the antihistamines I sometimes take to help me get to sleep when I have itchy skin are called Atarax, named after the Greek concept of tranquillity, ataraxia. Epicureanism provides an interesting point of view on the subject of happiness although I do not agree wholeheartedly with it.
I'm happy to say nothing. I have coffee, my laptop, a bunch of organizational stuff to do before my senior year starts on wednesday, and a whole afternoon to do it, and listen to awesome music. Edit to include: I'm happy you're noticing benefits from meditation already TNG, it's a subtle thing at first, but mindfulness will start to creep into every little facet of your life.
"what in this moment is lacking?" The answer, unless you are under immediate duress, is usually "nothing."
! That said, good luck with the finances and the new gig. Hope the pooch is alright.